‘A NECESSARY STEP’

San Francisco to Mandate COVID-19 Vaccines for Teachers, Staff

The announcement is a reversal from previous policy suggestions, which indicated the city would only encourage vaccinations.

San Francisco will mandate COVID-19 vaccinations for all 10,000 of its public school employees, including teachers, the school district announced Tuesday. The requirement takes effect Sept. 7, with unvaccinated employees required to undergo weekly COVID-19 testing. “As we move to a full return to in-person learning on August 16, we are doing so with all of the current health and safety requirements in place,” Superintendent Vincent Matthews said in a statement, per SFGATE. “Given that we are in the midst of rising cases and new variants in our community, a vaccine requirement is a necessary step to keeping our students, staff, and families safe.” Matthews had previously said teachers were not required to be vaccinated, though the district was encouraging them to provide vaccination status.

The latest development comes as the Delta variant upends the expectations for the upcoming school year, with states reckoning with mask and vaccine mandates for students, teachers, and staff. The seven-day COVID-19 rolling average in the city is 272 cases per day as of Aug. 2.