With the expectation that the first dose of the vaccine will be administered against COVID-19 To approximately 900 employees, vaccination of teaching and non-teaching staff from public and private schools has started today, with a view to reopening schools that the government continues to specify in March.
While vaccination efforts for this sector are currently concentrated at centers in San Juan, Bayamón and Mayagüez, five more centers will be opened next Monday: in Loíza, Arroyo, Comerío, Arecibo and Ponce, the assistant said. General of the National Guard, José Reyes.
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Once the eight vaccination centers are open, 2,400 people can be vaccinated daily from Monday to Friday. While at that rate it would be possible to vaccinate 55,000 public and private school workers in less than two months, the designated Education Minister, Elba Aponte Santos, pointed out that a possible reopening of the classrooms would not be conditioned to achieve the goal of vaccinated people.
“It doesn’t depend on that. We expect our employees to have the opportunity to be vaccinated as it minimizes any risk and provides a sense of protection, but it does not depend on that, ”Aponte Santos stressed during a press conference at the Federico Asenjo school, in San Juan, one of the vaccination centers for school personnel.
The activity also included leaders from teacher organizations, private education, school canteens and directors of public schools.
“You could say that the process is well organized. At 9:00 am in the city of Bayamón, colleagues who had gone through the vaccination process called me. They had many tables there. The process continues here and in Mayagüez. People feel safe, with the aloofness and the protocols, so it has been a very nimble process to provide a little bit of security to the teachers and non-teaching staff. In case of Federation (of teachers) We understand that it is not safe to return in person at this time, the positivity rate is too high and the children will not be vaccinated. But (the start of the vaccination of workers) is a step forward, ”said Mercedes Martínez, chairman of that magisterial body.
Wanda Ayala, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Private Education AssociationHe recalled that about 40% of school-age students are in private schools, so it was very important that this sector too participate in this vaccination phase.
“At the end of this week, via the Supervision of Catholic schools and the Private Education Association will reorganize to regions which school has to pay on which day so that they can attend the (vaccination) without crowding or waiting people because we have virtual classes to attend, “Ayala said.
“Private schools have been working within their schools since the executive order in May (2020) allowed teachers and non-teaching staff to be on campus for a possible reopening, at the time it was given. Therefore, apart from the fact that private education autonomous and independent, and the level of preparation corresponds to each institution, we understand that as soon as the governor allows it, private schools may be ready to reboot, ”he added.
Aponte Santos reiterated, however, that there is no set date for returning to face-to-face classes, beyond the overall goal set for the month of March. The reopening of schools will therefore depend on several factors, he emphasized.
“We expect to move forward with a plan that we are designing and we have set that goal as a sense of urgency. There are several things we are working on: infrastructure, transport, recruitment, conditioning of schools. We work with all those priorities. This will be done in a community-oriented way, there are communities who have approached us who have developed their plan in the same schools and want us to give them the opportunity. We are consulting with the Ministry of Health to move in that direction, even with the most vulnerable (such as students) in kindergarten, special education and fourth grade, ”said the designated head of the bureau.
With regard to infrastructure, Aponte Santos pointed out that “all” schools need some degree of conditioning to receive students. However, according to official data, 53 schools are “unsuitable” to open without major jobs, while another 253 are “partially suitable”. About 551 of the 857 campuses are in good condition.
At the same press conference, the president of the Teachers association, Victor Bonilla SánchezHe pointed out that resources from the organization itself had attended 432 public schools, 60% of which are “unsuitable” for reopening.
Aponte Santos said “interlocking” schedules would be considered to allow the attendance of students from schools with major damage, and did not close the door to reopen schools in good condition that had been closed by previous administrations, particularly in the United States. southern region, where the Schools were badly affected by last year’s earthquakes.