By Linda Darling-Hammond, EdSource, October 4, 2021
On Friday, Gov. Gavin Newsom made California the first state in the nation to announce a Covid-19 vaccination requirement for all schoolchildren and staff participating in in-person instruction, adding the Covid-19 vaccine to the list of required school vaccinations that prevent such infectious diseases as polio, diphtheria, measles, mumps and rubella.
The new requirement will be effective at the start of the school semester following full FDA vaccine approval for each age group. In practical terms, with full approval likely in the coming months, this means that students aged 12 and older in grades 7-12 will need to be vaccinated by the start of the 2022-23 school year unless they have a medical or personal belief exemption. Fully approved vaccines for students aged 5-11 are expected to follow at some point in the coming year. All staff, except for those who qualify for exemptions, will need to be vaccinated by the time the student requirement is activated.
The governor invited districts to move even faster than the state where they are positioned to do so, and the state is both helping coordinate vaccine clinics for schools and paying school districts to establish them.
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