In a nearly unanimous decision, Oakland Unified School District has voted in favor of a student COVID-19 vaccination mandate.
The measure, passed just after midnight Thursday during a Board of Education meeting, requires that students 12 and older be fully vaccinated in order to attend in-person classes.
Two members, Director Mike Hutchinson and Student Director Natalie Gallegos-Chavez, voted against the mandate citing concerns regarding timeline, implementation, potential legal challenges and the alienation of unvaccinated students.
Many parents were in support of the vote, but some found fault arguing that it should not be the school’s decision on what goes into a child's body.
Sam Davis, a board member who proposed the measure, said that the last thing he wants to do is push anyone out of school. "A big part of this really is the campaign to inform people of the vaccination," he explained. "It won’t be from today to tomorrow, it will be an extended timeline."
Exemptions to the mandate will be permitted for students with medical and religious reasons.
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