Dear students, staff, families and community,
Thank you families for working with us on keeping our schools healthy. We have seen an increase in communication from families when their students are absent which helps us provide the best support to students and families on when they can return to school.
Vaccination Clinic:
As you are aware there has been progress regarding access to the COVID vaccine for students in the 5-11 age category. We are monitoring this progress and are partnering with the State Department of Health through our Return to Learn Program on a possible vaccine clinic. This would not be a requirement but rather a partnership to provide local access to the COVID vaccine for families who would like to have their student vaccinated.
Vaccine Mandate for K-12 Staff:
I want to share information with you in response to inquiries we have received from staff and community members regarding the vaccine mandate. The Blaine School District remains committed to following all legal requirements, including the health and safety guidelines from the Department of Health.
The District has a 91% staff vaccination rate and has worked with all of its employees to ensure we will be 100% in compliance with the mandate prior to the end of Monday, October 18th. All employees of the district have been provided an opportunity to retain their employment through vaccination or an accommodation plan based on an approved exemption. This process has included working with employees seeking accommodation based upon their strongly held religious beliefs and medical exemptions. As part of this process, the District is utilizing additional layers of health and safety precautions for unvaccinated staff members and will monitor compliance as with all other health and safety protocols.
As a reminder, all employees have gone through the proper process to comply with the mandate, whether by vaccination or exemption. We remain committed to the health and safety of our staff, students, and greater community.
Athletics:
A schedule change has occurred in next week’s athletics schedule that we want to make you aware of. Due to a shortage of officials, our game at Meridian previously scheduled for Friday, October 22nd has been rescheduled to Saturday, October 23rd at 5:00 P.M. It is still taking place at Meridian.
As we continue to work through periods of uncertainty and adjust to changing conditions, we remain unwavering in our commitment to maximizing in-person learning that is critical to the growth of students while minimizing the spread of COVID-19 in the school environment. It’s a great night to be a Borderite, and as always, a great night to be your superintendent.
Sincerely,
Dr. Christopher Granger
Every Student. Every Day. In a New Way!