Salem School Committee To Discuss Wider Coronavirus Vaccine Order

SALEM, MA — One week after expanding the Salem Public Schools vaccination order to include all vaccine-eligible students in "high-respiration" curricular activities such as athletics, chorus and band, the Salem School Committee plans to discuss expanding that order even further during its meeting Monday night.

Monday night's agenda includes a "discussion on efforts to increase vaccination rate and the potential for a future vaccine mandate for students and staff."

During last week's meeting, Superintendent of Schools Steve Zrike was asked to prepare plans for how the district may either expand the order to include more extracurricular activities, or all students and staff.

"We've been moving in this direction and we've been having these conversations," School Committee member Dr. Kristin Pangallo said at the Oct. 25 meeting. "I would like at the next meeting, if possible, to have the district prepare some information about how we could implement COVID-19 vaccination as one of the vaccines required for school attendance."

Salem Mayor Kim Driscoll — who is also the school committee chair — has voiced her support for vaccination requirements, while challenger Steve Dibble has said in recent debates he opposes them and that vaccines should be parent's choice.

Monday's school committee meeting comes one day before the city votes on its next mayor and school committee chair.

Driscoll has pointed to low vaccination rates among city teens as a reason for her support of a potential requirement.

"We've got vaccine hesitancy. We've got vaccine ambivalence, particularly among our teens," Driscoll said at last week's school committee meeting. "We need to really tackle that in a way that meets families where they are. But then also recognize that we can't live with these numbers.

"As our younger children become eligible — hopefully soon, in the next week and a half — we are just signing up for more trouble if we can't get past this range of 60 percent. We need to put the full-court press on."

Driscoll reiterated her stance at Tuesday night's debate.

"The reason we have such low (coronavirus) numbers right now is because of the precautions that we have in place," Driscoll said during the debate. "I hope we will be looking at mandates for vaccines."

"I take COVID seriously but I think personal rights are important," Dibble said during the debate. "My opponent has encouraged mandatory vaccinations for children.

"It's just the wrong thing to do."

Amherst-Pelham last month became the first district in the state that will order all students and staff to be vaccinated against the coronavirus to participate in any on-campus activity once the vaccines receive full Food & Drug Administration authorization.

Public comment can be submitted to the school committee here.

Residents can watch the meeting on Zoom here starting at 7 p.m. on Monday night.

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)

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