The Juneau School District announced it will be holding in-house vaccine clinics for Juneau residents between the ages of 16 and 18, as well as any staff that hadn’t had an opportunity to get vaccinated.
All Juneau residents ages 16 to 18 are eligible for the clinic, as are JSD staff that have not yet had a chance to receive the vaccine. Being a student in the Juneau School District is not a requirement.
“We did mini-clinics out in the (Mendenhall) Valley for our staff,” said Bridget Weiss, superintendent of the school district. “We’re going to do something similar, but we’re offering this to any students or any staff that haven’t gotten appointments.”
The clinic for the first dose of the vaccine will occur on April 9, with a follow-up with the second shot occurring on April 30, Weiss said. The clinic is a collaborative effort between the school district, the city, Juneau Public Health and Bartlett Regional Hospital, said district chief of staff Kristin Bartlett in an email. Capital City Fire/Rescue will monitor students for potential reactions to the vaccine. Clinics will be held at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé and Thunder Mountain High School.
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“We put out a survey for families last Friday for spring break. Really quickly, we had about 40 students,” Weiss said. “We can support any child in Juneau, 16 or up, whether they’re enrolled or not.”
The state of Alaska opened eligibility to all Alaska residents 16 and older in early March, meaning most juniors and seniors are eligible to be vaccinated. The clinic is to help students who might have trouble getting to clinics at Centennial Hall for the City and Borough of Juneau clinics, Weiss said. The vaccine will require permission from the parents of anyone under 18.
“It’ll all be registered through the same system just as if they were down at Centennial Hall,” Weiss said. “Depending on volume, we’ll scatter them so we don’t have a lot of kids hanging around.”
The student-focused clinics are the first she’s heard of in a state that’s already among the nation’s leaders in vaccinations per capita, Weiss said.
“I don’t know that anyone else has done student clinics. It’s a great collaboration,” Weiss said. “It’s just more evidence of how strong the collaboration between Public Health, the district, and CBJ is.”
The district sketched out the plan for the in-school clinic beginning several weeks ago, Weiss said. The district asks that everyone interested in getting vaccinated apply before April 2. Applicants should go to https://forms.gle/opRZYorGyYXmvVAZ6 to get on the list.
• Contact reporter Michael S. Lockett at (757) 621-1197 or mlockett@juneauempire.com.
