Schools
Student Vaccination Rate Lower Than Hoped: Lower Merion Schools
If Harriton and Lower Merion high schools reach a 90 percent student vaccination level, the district may reconsider requiring masks.
LOWER MERION TOWNSHIP, PA — The Lower Merion School District is getting ready to welcome students, faculty, and staff back for the 2021-22 school year, but official said vaccination rates among students is not ideal.
According to Superintendent Robert Copeland, the percent of students vaccinated is below what the district had hoped.
"We continue to strongly encourage vaccination," Copeland said in a letter to the community. "If the high schools can reach a 90 percent vaccination level, the Health and Safety Committee will review whether masks will continue to be necessary at Lower Merion and Harriton."
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According to the district, the most vaccinated student population are seniors at Lower Merion High School, where 64 percent of students are vaccinated.
Below are the percent of students vaccinated in the middle and high schools as reported to the district:
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Bala Cynwyd Middle School
- Sixth Grade — 1 percent
- Seventh Grade — 44 percent
- Eighth Grade — 53 percent
Welsh Valley Middle School
- Sixth Grade — less than 1 percent
- Seventh Grade — 42 percent
- Eighth Grade — 51 percent
Harriton High School
- Ninth Grade — 54 percent
- 10th Grade — 47 percent
- 11th Grade — 34 percent
- 12 Grade — 48 percent
Lower Merion High School
- Ninth Grade — 54 percent
- 10th Grade — 54 percent
- 11th Grade — 39 percent
- 12 Grade — 64 percent
District families are asked to report their students' vaccination status to help the district's Health Services in planning and contact-tracing for the upcoming school year.
Students who were not vaccinated at a Lower Merion School District vaccine clinic should have proof of vaccination send to healthservices@lmsd.org. Vaccination information will be kept confidential.
The district will soon be offering another vaccine clinic. Details for this clinic have yet to be announced.
About 90 percent of district staff are fully vaccinated, Copeland said.
Staff members who are not vaccinated or who choose not to share their vaccination status with the district will be tested for the virus twice weekly.
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