Children not vaccinated against the coronavirus will not be able to attend classes or take online lessons in Washington, D.C. The mayor of the capital, Muriel Bowser, acknowledged that there is no contingency plan for unvaccinated students to continue with their studies.
On the one hand, unvaccinated children will not be allowed to attend school if they have not been vaccinated within three weeks of the start of the school year. On the other hand, there is no contingency plan to offer them alternative options, including e-learning. Therefore, these children will effectively be expelled from school.
The school year begins next Monday in Washington, D.C. From that moment on, students have 20 days to present their vaccination certificate. The State Office of Education announced that "all students must have a current immunization certificate on file with the school within 20 school days or they will not be allowed to attend school or school activities until the school obtains the certificate of vaccination."
The regulation covers all public schools in the District of Columbia and includes the coronavirus vaccine. As of this school year, 2022-2023, the Covid-19 vaccine is mandatory for all students whose age complies with the FDA-approved age. Since July, the vaccine has been approved for people 12 years of age and older.
EUA 27034_Pfizer Fact Sheet for Recipients_12-15y Approval by VozMedia on Scribd
No alternatives for unvaccinated children
Muriel Bowser, Democratic mayor of Washington D.C., said at a press conference that children will be able to go to school on Monday "but they will have to get vaccinated." When asked about alternatives, Bowser acknowledged that her administration is not offering online learning for children, so "families will have to comply with what is necessary to come to school,"The Daily Signal reported.
Official data indicates that 47% of the district’s black children ages 12 to 15 have not completed the vaccination series required to return to school. Among black adolescents aged 16-17 years, 42% are not vaccinated. Therefore, there would be numerous black students who would not be able to attend classes. The Daily Signal asked the mayor about this problem a few days ago, but she claimed that the data was not correct.
I asked D.C. @MayorBowser how she could justify forcing 40% of unvaccinated black students to stay home from school. She said my numbers were wrong. They're her numbers. pic.twitter.com/Gmoidu1YuU
- Douglas Blair (@DouglasKBlair) August 15, 2022
In addition to the vaccination requirement, a recent statement from Mayor Bowser required that all students and staff must provide a negative Covid test result before the start of the 2022-2023 school year. They must provide this proof before next Sunday.
