South Shore League Superintendents Urge Gov. Charlie Baker to Immediately Release Phase 2 COVID-19 Vaccinations for Early Education, K-12 Schools

The South Shore League Superintendents from their 10 districts are urging Gov. Charlie Baker to release the COVID-19 vaccine for Phase 2 immediately for early education and K-12 schools, as well as make any remaining Phase 1 vaccines available to those schools as soon as possible. 

The administrators issued a letter to Gov. Baker Friday outlining the basis of their request.  

Phase 1 of the Commonwealth’s COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Timeline began in December 2020 and will continue into February. Gov. Baker announced Thursday that all groups in Phase 1 are now eligible to receive the vaccine. This includes COVID-19 facing health care providers, first responders, staff and residents at congregate care settings, and other prioritized groups. To view details regarding the state’s current vaccination distribution plan, click here. 

Through the state’s current plan, educators are in the second group to become eligible for the vaccine through Phase 2, which will begin in February and continues into March.

In the letter, administrators note schools are uniquely equipped to administer vaccines immediately upon receipt, allowing schools to vaccinate would free space in state-run vaccination sites, and vaccinating educators and support personnel would be a step toward safely bringing students back to school full-time. 

Below is the letter in full:

January 22, 2021

Dear Governor Baker:

According to the Covid-19 vaccination schedule published on mass.gov, early education and K-12 school personnel are scheduled to be vaccinated in Phase Two, beginning in February through March. We are writing to request that you release the vaccine for Phase Two immediately for early education and K-12 schools and that you make any leftover Phase One vaccine available to early education and K-12 schools as soon as possible. 

Schools are uniquely equipped with the infrastructure, space, and personnel to administer vaccines immediately upon receipt. We have freezers and nurses in most, if not all, of our schools. Additionally, we have relationships with local fire and EMT’s should we need additional assistance. 

Finally, allowing schools to vaccinate locally would free up space in the state-run mass vaccination sites for those further down the vaccination list.

Vaccinating our early childhood and K-12 teachers and support personnel would be a major step toward getting our kids back to school full-time safely, which is a goal we all share. 

We thank you for all of your efforts and sacrifice over the last year and we stand ready to help you address this tremendous challenge.

Respectfully,

Rockland Public Schools – Alan Cron, Ed.D., Superintendent

East Bridgewater Public Schools – Elizabeth Legault, Superintendent

Carver Public Schools – Scott Knief, Superintendent

Cohassett Public Schools – Patrick Sullivan, Ed.D., Superintendent

Abington Public Schools – Peter Schafer, Superintendent

Hull Public Schools – Judith Keuhn, Superintendent

Middleboro Public Schools – Brian Lynch, Superintendent

Norwell Public Schools – Matthew Keegan, Superintendent

Randolph Public Schools – Thea Stovell, Superintendent

Mashpee Public Schools – Patricia DeBoer, Superintendent

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