INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — (WTWO/WAWV) — Teachers now have the opportunity to provide themselves with another level of protection against COVID-19.
Monday marked the first day Indiana educators are considered eligible to received the COVID vaccine by the state. Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb made the announcement last week.
This group of educators includes all pre-K through 12th-grade faculty and staff.
Indiana State Representative Tonya Pfaff, also a teacher herself, has been a strong advocate of educators being vaccinated.
“As a teacher, as a support staff member, having that extra protective layer. Having the vaccine in your arm,” said Indiana State Rep. District 43 Tonya Pfaff. “It just gives people such a sense of relief knowing ‘OK, I can continue to educate the children and I feel a little more safe doing it.'”
Because of their constant contact, educators say teachers being vaccinated is not only beneficial for teachers but students as well.
“Even before the state had allowed it at any place, the federal allowed it at the Walmart and Kroger and Meijer, we had staff take advantage of that immediately and now that it’s open everywhere, it will be easier to do for everybody,” said superintendent of Bloomfield schools Trent Lehman.
The Knox County Health Department is welcoming walk-ins for educators who would like to be vaccinated.
Dr. Alan Stewart of the Knox County Health Department says he is hopeful the state will begin allowing higher education faculty and staff to begin vaccinations soon.
“I’m a strong advocate of in-person learning,” said Dr. Stewart. “I think that the philosophy was perhaps that the younger students in K-12 have more difficulty with learning online as where college students can handle it better.”
