COVID Vaccine Clinic Gets Underway For Boston Public Schools Employees
BOSTON (CBS) – Boston Public Schools held its first COVID vaccine clinic on Sunday. Hundreds came to the Gallivan Community Center in Mattapan to receive their first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine shot.
Shots will be administered to teachers, bus drivers, bus monitors, administrators, and all BPS employees, and contractors.
"This really important step for teachers and educators and all of our staff. It gives them a new comfortability to come to school," Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Conseellius said.
The Gallivan Community Center will offer about 200 doses per day Sunday through Thursday over the next two weeks, then again three weeks later for second doses.
Sohanny Ozuna Perez teaches kindergarten. She said it's been extremely hard not seeing her students. "Not being able to be close to them or grab their hands or help them out when they need assistance, especially the little ones, they need help going to the bathroom. So if we are not there for them it's hard."
"We do everything we can across multiple strategies to create access to the vaccine and that includes a clinic like this which we call a priority group clinic," said City of Boston Health and Human Services Chief Marty Martinez.
For teachers, it's been a long time coming.
"I miss my students a lot. It's hard to look at black squares on a Zoom. So, excited that we're one step closer to seeing them in person," Mike Hart said.
If the state gets more vaccines, they will consider opening up a second site for teachers in the coming weeks.
"The thought is to open up another priority clinic within the next two weeks but again, the reality is if we have the doses to use this clinic and even if we can do more in this clinic we might. We are in Mattapan an important community as well," Martinez said.
Earlier this month BPS opened up to in-person learning for their K-0 through Grade 3 and on Monday they will expand grades 4 through 8 for parents who choose to let their kids go back to the classroom.
