DSBN says it has had great success in keeping its special needs students in-class, thanks to Public Health's work administering the vaccine.
Around 1,500 DSBN and Niagara Catholic educators have been vaccinated to keep the classrooms open for students with special needs since January.
“Our goal is for every student to continue learning in class, and to keep them, our families, and staff safe. To do this, we are continuing to work with Niagara Region Public Health to expand vaccine eligibility to all staff who work directly with students in our schools each day,” said Warren Hoshizaki, DSBN Director of Education in a media release.
“The safety and well-being of our students and staff is the most important consideration for Niagara Catholic, and ensuring that staff who work with some of our most vulnerable students are vaccinated is the best way to prevent the spread of coronavirus,” said Larry Huibers, Chair of the Niagara Catholic’s Board of Trustees in the same statement.
Ontario decided in January to place educators as part of the Phase Two-rollout of the vaccine, with promises from Ontario's education minister to continue to advocate for school staff being vaccinated.
In recent weeks, several schools in both school boards have reported cases of COVID-19.
Yesterday, St Charles in Thorold reported an outbreak after three cases were found at the school, closing down the same number of classrooms.
