Educators looking forward to finally having access to coronavirus vaccine
COLUMBIA, MO (KMIZ)
Gov. Mike Parson announced at a press conference Thursday, the state plans to move forward in the vaccine distribution plan.
Starting March 15th, people in Phase 1B Tier 3 will become eligible to receive a vaccine. That will include; educators, school staff members, childcare workers, government officials and other essential workers.
Educators receiving the vaccine has been a hot topic, as many teachers have voiced their concerns in receiving the vaccine now that most schools are back to an in-seat learning environment. Many teachers say they wanted access to the vaccine in order to keep themselves, students and families safe.
Local school districts have released statements about their excitement to have access to the vaccine for their staff members.
Jefferson City School District said it's appreciative for staff members to have access to the vaccine. In a recent survey, the district says 76 percent of it's staff is interested in receiving the vaccine. The district plans to work closely with the Cole County Health Department and local healthcare providers to get staff vaccinated.
Michelle Baumstark with Columbia Public Schools, says, the district is grateful for the opportunity for staff members to get vaccinated and the department is working to facilitate the vaccine to their employees. Almost a third of CPS employees have already received a vaccine, due to being eligible as apart of the previous tiers.
"To date, about 700 of our 3,000 employees have been vaccinated under earlier tiers,", said Baumstark.
CPS teacher, Kathy Steinhoff, says teachers wish it was available sooner but they are happy to finally have access to it.
"I wish it was tomorrow, I wish it was 2 weeks ago actually but the fact that we're moving toward actually getting people vaccinated is fantastic,", said Steinhoff.
Steinhoff says teachers are just concerned with student safety and their safety while interacting in in-person classes.
"Teachers are still concerned about the safety of their students, but we do think that we'll definitely reduce the risk of transmission if the adults in the buildings are vaccinated,", said Steinhoff.
Mark Jones with Missouri National Education Association, says last week the organization wrote a letter to Governor Parson and Dr. Randall Williams with the state's health department, to accelerate the distribution plan so that teachers can have access to the vaccine.
“The concern very much right now is access to the vaccine, we understand that there have been problems with distribution, but we have a better partner in the federal government now and an administration I think is much more willing to do what it takes to get the vaccine to educators,", said Jones.
Jones says in a recent survey, 85% of educators within the organization were planning to get vaccinated once the state moved to the next phase.
“This holds up nationally as well, so about 85 percent of educators will voluntarily take the vaccine which is much higher than the normal population of the state,", said Jones.
Educators are looking forward to having access to the vaccine and believe it will provide an additional layer of protection against the coronavirus and a safer environment for students.
"I think educators have been very clear from the get-go, our first concern is the safety of students and families and the best thing we can do to make sure that happens is to get every educator vaccinated and get children back in school,", said Jones.
