Health

MA educators start receiving priority vaccinations Saturday

FOXBORO, Mass. — Saturday was the first day that educators could get priority vaccinations at state mass vaccination sites. Massachusetts is designating four days to the effort.

Seven mass vaccination sites offered 1st dose appointments for K-12 educators, child care workers and K-12 school staff.

“As a special education teacher, it’s going to be a lot easier to be doing my job in person,” said Anna Dahlverg, a special education teacher in Fall River who was getting her first shot at Gillette Stadium.

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“Now I feel more protected,” bus driver Carol Alderson told Boston 25 News. “We went back to work in September but with very strict precautions.”

The push to get educators vaccinated comes before a state mandate goes into effect on April 5, putting elementary school students back into the classroom full time.

It also comes as positive cases in classrooms across Massachusetts continue to rise.

According to the latest weekly data from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, the total number of students with positive cases in Massachusetts is 682. The number of staff with positive cases during that same period is 228.

“It is a hot spot, it’s a place where there’s a lot of interaction and transmission, potentiality, so I think that’s just another reason why educators need to be vaccinated to prevent [this] rise in cases,” said high school English teacher Molly Grace Gorman.

Still, many educators told Boston 25 News they hope vaccinations will bring case numbers back down so they can continue to work safely.

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“Now, finally, I think that school is back to normal business, and it’s really exciting,” said Angella Delorey, a human resource officer at a school in Newton.

The upcoming vaccination dates specifically for educators are Saturday, April 3, Saturday, April 10, and Sunday, April 11.

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