Ottawa public school board wants education workers part of next COVID-19 vaccination phase

Chair of the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) Lynn Scott is asking Ontario's health and education ministers to make vaccinating education workers against COVID-19 an “immediate” priority.

“We want our schools to be open, but we need to do everything we can to ensure our staff is safe, particularly those engaged in in-person work in schools, and especially supporting our most vulnerable high-needs students,” writes Scott, in a letter which was sent to the ministers last week. “Education workers have worked hard to keep our schools safe using the safety precautions available. The vaccine represents a new level of protection and education workers need that protection.”

Scott says the emergence of more contagious strains of the COVID-19 virus adds more uncertainty to the OCDSB's efforts to keep schools open, and prevent further educational disruptions for local children. 

At this time of year, the school board chair says districts are planning for the next school year, and their plans have to be “built on our shared understanding that, in Ontario, we prioritize the safety of our students and staff.” 

She views a commitment to vaccinating education workers as, “not just an important contributor to the strategy for containing COVID-19, but an essential part of the provincial strategy to prioritize the opening of schools.”

The OCDSB is requesting a formal public statement from the provincial government, that acknowledges the prioritization of education workers as part of Ontario’s COVID-19 vaccination program.