Petaluma teachers due for vaccines next week

Sonoma County education officials are expected to begin offering COVID-19 vaccines to Petaluma educators next week, marking the next step in a fraught reopening process for schools.

The vaccines, distributed by the Sonoma County Office of Education, are designated for elementary staff, as well as secondary special education and English language development teachers, county and Petaluma school administrators have confirmed.

About half of Petaluma City Schools’ 900 employees will be eligible for vaccines next week under the plan, which hinges on county education offices receiving enough vaccine doses.

Amid the rocky vaccine rollout for Sonoma County’s educators, local leaders have sought to leverage political muscle to secure the life-saving inoculations for Petaluma teachers, who have taken to sharing information on obtaining vaccines through a shared Google document.

“What’s so frustrating is all of the different information seems to be conflicting,” said Joanna Paun, Petaluma City Schools Board of Education president. “Our educators were supposed to start getting vaccinated this week.”

County leaders prioritized school staff ages 70 and older, and those serving children in person before targeting districts in areas with high caseloads, including Roseland and Piner-Olivet. Then focus shifted to Santa Rosa City Schools educators.

Targeting an April 12 return to hybrid, in-person learning for elementary schools, Petaluma City Schools was next in line, but the district’s turn was pushed back when the county schools clinic was forced to closed amid a sharp drop in vaccine supply. Local educators received good news when state Sen. Mike McGuire, D-Healdsburg, was able to secure 1,500 vaccines for Santa Rosa educators – a move that helped keep the clinic open.

The Sonoma County Office of Education’s vaccine clinic at Rancho Cotate High School in Rohnert Park has the capacity to administer 4,000 shots per week, county schools Superintendent Steve Herrington said in statements emailed to the Argus-Courier.

“Thanks to these vaccines being made available, we were able to maintain our momentum and proceed with Group C, which includes Petaluma, next week – assuming we receive the vaccines we have requested,” Herrington said. “This is a big if, as vaccine supply can change on a moment’s notice. However, we are very hopeful.”

Amid an uncertain vaccination campaign, some smaller school districts, including in west county, Windsor and Sonoma Valley, have struck partnerships with local health centers to get educators inoculated.

Paun cited those efforts, as well as McGuire’s 11th-hour intervention, in an email Monday urging Petaluma City Council members and some of the city’s top health officials to help bring vaccines to Petaluma teachers.

“We ask that you use your political and professional influence to help us get our teachers and staff vaccinated as well,” Paun said in the email. “We would very much like and look forward to a partnership in getting this done with the city of Petaluma and the Petaluma Health Center.”

The response, Paun said, has been supportive but noncommittal.

As the restart of in-person instruction approaches, anxious educators have also worked creatively to find vaccines on their own.

Sandra Larsen, president of the Petaluma Federation of Teachers, said the union created a shared document this past weekend for educators to stay informed about vaccine opportunities.

“It’s literally things like clinics that are closing have some open vials, so start lining up there,” Larsen said. “It’s been stressful. Hopefully we can get everyone vaccinated in time, because it’s really important to stay safe.”

Petaluma City Schools Superintendent Gary Callahan said district leaders have also encouraged teachers and staff to sign up on the state-run website myturn.ca.gov, to receive inoculation appointments.

Larsen and Callahan said it’s impossible to know how many Petaluma educators have received vaccine doses to date, due to federal health privacy laws.

Although Petaluma teachers are not required to receive vaccinations ahead of the district’s limited reopening April 12, school leaders say it’s critical for safety and peace of mind.

“I think it’s really very important,” said Petaluma City Schools Board of Education member Caitlin Quinn, the only board member to vote against removing the vaccine contingency to reopening. “At the end of the day, I can’t ask the teachers to go back into the classroom without a vaccine. I personally wouldn’t want to do that.”

Tyler Silvy is editor of the Petaluma Argus-Courier. Reach him at tyler.silvy@arguscourier.com, 707-776-8458, or @tylersilvy on Twitter.