The race to get Massachusetts teachers vaccinated ahead of mandated April re-openings for in person learning kicked into high gear this week. And on Friday, the city of Revere took a major step forward.
Nearly half of Revere Public Schools’ entire staff received their first dose of the COVID vaccine at a clinic at Rumney March Academy, a Revere middle school, on Friday afternoon.
“I thought we were going to be on our own,” said Janet Cimmino, a Revere Public Schools library aide after received her vaccine shot. ”I am very grateful that they set this up for us.”
Educators are among the group that just became eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in Massachusetts this week. Gov. Charlie Baker announced that state's seven mass vaccination sites will be reserved exclusively for educators during four dedicated days in March and early April, but he has also been critical of the teachers union’s push for educators to be prioritized.
"I am not going to be in a position where I take vaccine away from people who are extremely vulnerable, who have multiple medical conditions and are over the age of 65, to give it to a targeted population. We're just not going to play that game," Baker said on Thursday.
The vaccine doses were secured in partnership with the Revere Board of Public Health, which has held more than a dozen similar clinics for vaccine-eligible Revere residents at this location.
“We’re a registered vaccine provider like many other boards of health are,” said Lauren Buck, director of public health for the city of Revere. “We do the same kind of logistical stuff everyone else does. We request doses, and we see on a week by week basis what we get.”
For much of the coronavirus pandemic, Revere has been among the highest-risk communities in the state. And Buck noted that they have been identified by the state as particularly hard-hit.
“It’s because we’re hard-hit that we continue to be able to do things like this at a board of health level," she said.
Outside the clinic, about a dozen Revere High School students gathered with hand-made signs to show support for their teachers. High School senior Minnah Sheikh, a class officer, helped organize the effort.
“It’s a community thing just to emphasize everything our teachers have done for us,” she said. “They’ve been better than good. They went beyond.”
Revere public schools have been fully remote since the start of the school year, but will begin the process of moving to a hybrid model starting next week.
“One of the challenges for our staff has been working in a city where there’s been an extremely high prevalence of COVID,” said Revere Public School superintendent Dianne Kelly. “So, this is that extra layer of protection that’s going to make people feel more comfortable coming back to the classroom.”
Most of the school’s teachers and staff will return to the classroom before receiving their second dose. Still, the superintendent noted that the Moderna vaccine, which is what was being administered, offers some protection even after the initial dose.
“There’s definitely a lot of stress relief,” said Jeannie Larossa, an English Language Learning specialist for Revere Public Schools. “I would have come back anyway, but I definitely would have been stressed out.”
Kelly said that all teachers and staff who wanted a vaccine were able to get a slot during Friday’s clinic. The vast majority of the 600 shots administered went to Revere public educators and staff. Some early childhood educators and private school teachers from Revere received shots as well. Additionally, a few residents 65 and older received their second dose.
