CULVER CITY (KNX 1070) -- Culver City Unified School District may be the first school district in California to require all eligible students, teachers and staff to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
Ahead of the district's Thursday return to in-person learning, Culver City Superintendent Quoc Tran released revised protocols, which included a deadline of Friday, Nov. 19 for eligible students to provide proof of vaccination. Currently, children aged 12 and older are eligible to receive the vaccine. District officials hope that younger children will be able to get a vaccine by the end of the year.
Once that deadline passes, students without their vaccinations will be required to enroll in distance learning. Tran told KNX no parents have removed their children from school because of the new mandate, yet.
"So far, no one has basically said we’re done," he said. The new mandate will affect the district’s 7,100 students and 900 employees.
“We felt that doing the minimum is not quite good enough. We could do more,” Tran told the Los Angeles Times.
“We are in the context of constantly crowded places in school settings. The vaccine helps in case our children or staff members contract the virus. They have a lesser chance to be severely impacted.”
California mandated last week that staff at public and private K-12 schools get vaccinated or show weekly proof of a negative COVID-19 test. LAUSD is requiring that staff get vaccinated by Oct. 15, without the ability to opt for a weekly testing option.
School board members emphasized this rule was a public health decision.
“I feel like it’s our duty to tell every member of our community that we have a responsibility in the safety of our community,” a school board member told KNX.
The months-away deadline will "give everyone the opportunity to make their vaccine plans,” according to the revised protocols. Tran said that if COVID-19 cases have significantly slowed by November, the district might reconsider the rule.
The new rule has already seen pushback on social media. Tran estimated about 1 in 20 parents is opposed to the vaccine requirement.
“Of course, we got some pushback, but our priority is always safety,” said school board president Dr. Tashon McKeithan.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, however, supported the decision to mandate vaccines.
“That’s a great thing,” Thurmond told EdSource. “It’s not because I’m into making requirements for people, but it makes a difference. It keeps people safe and schools open. Everyone wants their kid in school, and the biggest single factor has to be the vaccine.”
One parent dropping her kids off at school told KNX she thinks the vaccine mandate is a great idea. She has two kids in high school and said to critics of the policy, “You don’t want us to force our opinion on you, so don’t force your opinion on my children.”
Staff and students will continue weekly COVID-19 tests regardless of vaccination status.