Raleigh, NC – About 400 teachers, school staff, and daycare workers received their first vaccination shots against the coronavirus in Wake County on Wednesday, the first day that educators in the state were eligible.
“I was surprised to be picked so quickly,” said Jennifer Hyatt, an elementary school teaching assistant. “I feel like I can take a breath, you know, a sigh of relief because it’s been a long year.”
Just a few days ago, it seemed that educators would have to wait a while for tens of thousands of health workers and people 65 or older who had already signed up for vaccinations. But after Wake County officials looked at the list and removed those who had already signed up multiple times and others who had already taken photos elsewhere, only 100 names were left, allowing teachers to get in line.
About 12,500 educators have already signed up for admissions in Wake County, and about 3,000 of them have scheduled appointments, officials said.
“I think we’re really turning a corner in terms of our ability to keep up with the flow of people who need it,” said Matt Calabria, chairman of the Wake County board of directors. “We will be able to go through teachers very quickly and get them vaccinated so they can go back to class and feel more comfortable being there.”
Tawana Francis, a kindergarten teacher, said she protects her 3-year-old students and their families by getting vaccinated.
“I feel like I’m doing my part to get back to some kind of normalcy,” said Francis.
She has already contracted the coronavirus and said she doesn’t want to risk getting sick again.
“If you are of a certain age and you have underlying conditions because I am a diabetic, I hope and pray every day that I am doing well because if you hear that the numbers are still going up, you worry about that” , she said.
Keith Sutton, chairman of the Wake County Board of Education, said it will take time to vaccinate as many of the 11,000 teachers in the school district and 9,000 other school employees who want to take the photos.
“It’s going to be a while, mainly because of the size of Wake County and its stock,” Sutton said.
As for Hyatt, her mother is 85 years old, and the pandemic has separated them.
“I will be able to see my mother soon,” she said. ‘I’ll be more relaxed when I see her. That will be great. “