WATERTOWN, MASS. (WHDH) - Massachusetts Teachers Association President Merrie Najimy on Wednesday applauded Gov. Charlie Baker’s decision to add educators and school staff to the state’s COVID-19 vaccine eligibility list, calling it “a huge victory” for the learning community.
“I can tell you, as a 30-year educator, today is a joyful day for educators across the state,” Najimy told reporters at Watertown High School after Baker announced that K-12 teachers, childcare workers, and school staff can start signing up for vaccination appointments on March 11. “This is a huge victory for our students, our school employees, and our entire school community.”
Baker’s announcement came one day after President Joe Biden on Tuesday set a goal to get at least one shot into the arms of teachers by the end of March to hasten school reopenings, according to Baker.
About 400,000 teachers and staff will be able to sign up for a vaccination appointment at any of the 170 sites opened to eligible residents and mass vaccination sites will designate specific days for them, Baker explained.
In late February, Najimy had knocked the state’s commissioner of elementary and secondary education’s plan to bring some students back into classrooms by April, saying that he “can’t just wave a magic wand” and make the dangers of COVID-19 disappear.
With vaccines soon becoming available to educators, Najimy said she now feels that schools will be safer for in-person learning.
“Vaccinating educators now is going to give the added layer of protection for those already in-person and those who will be moving to an in-person model,” Najimy explained. “In the end, it’s going to help us reach the goal that we all want, which is full in-person learning.”
Najimy did say the association would like to vaccinate teachers on the weekend so they aren’t pulled away from the classroom during the week. They would also like to give out the shots at one designated school in each district.
Lea Serena, a second grand teacher in Boston, says she was frustrated to have to return to class this week for in-person learning without being vaccinated.
“We do strongly believe that we should have been in the first round of things, and that we should have been vaccinated before schools were opening,” Serena said.
The CDC has previously said that vaccinating teachers, while important, is not a prerequisite for reopening classrooms.
Baker did warn that vaccine-eligible residents, including teachers and staff, will “need to be patient” because an increased shipment in first doses likely won’t arrive for weeks.
CVS locations in the Bay State have already started booking appointments for teachers under Biden’s direction.
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