A Chilliwack father of two, who happens to be a former MLA and attorney general of B.C., is upset that there is no provincial vaccination mandate for teachers and other school district staff.

Barry PennerB次元官网网址檚 two children attend Cheam elementary and will be going in to grades 2 and 5 this year. And since provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry has not ordered adults in school setting who work with children under 12 to be vaccinated, he thinks the Chilliwack School District should do it.

B次元官网网址淚 think it would make sense given Dr. Bonnie HenryB次元官网网址檚 comments on Tuesday (Aug. 24), she said it twice, that the most important thing we can to to protect children is to make sure adults around them are vaccinated,B次元官网网址� Penner told The Progress. B次元官网网址淧articularly for the children under 12 who are not eligible.B次元官网网址�

After the provincial government unveiled its back-to-school COVID safety plan on Monday, B.C. teachers union leader said it doesnB次元官网网址檛 go far enough. B.C. Teachers Federation (BCTF) president Teri Mooring said she wanted to see a testing strategy in place in schools, a K-to-12 mask mandate, and improved ventilation in schools.

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Mooring also said that while teachers in general have high vaccination rates, the union is not opposed to mandatory vaccination.

Asked if the supposedly high vaccination rates among teachers allayed his concerns, Penner said B次元官网网址渘o.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淒o we know what the vaccination rate is for teachers? Will parents be told whether their teachers are vaccinated? I suspect not, so that will lead to serious concern on the part of many parents, including myself, about whether their children are facing an unnecessary risk because the teacher may have chosen not to be vaccinated.B次元官网网址�

While there were several exposure notifications at most schools sent out last school year, there were very few outbreaks. But the delta variant is a game changer for Penner who is concerned about how the higher infectiousness could impact school settings.

B次元官网网址淲e donB次元官网网址檛 ever want to impose measures lightly,B次元官网网址� Penner said. B次元官网网址淭hey only do it when it appears to be absolutely necessary. Given the challenge that COVID-19 presents and is unprecedented in our lifetime, I think vaccines need to be mandatory in certain settings.B次元官网网址�

Numbers released in anthis week found that 83 per cent of respondents think B.C. teachers should be vaccinated. That compared to 87 per cent for hospital and medical workers.

On Aug. 25, the Toronto District School Board mandated teacher vaccinations at its meeting. New York City did the same. And the State of Washington has mandated COVID-19 vaccinations for all teachers and staff.

Asked by The Progress about PennerB次元官网网址檚 suggestion that the Chilliwack Board of Education should mandate vaccinations for teachers, board vice-chair Jared Mumford said he was scheduled to attend a meeting Friday afternoon with provincial public health officials and the deputy minister of education. He said the board may be able to comment further on the subject on Monday.

Reichelt further added that the school district has been following all public health guidelines throughout the pandemic, and any local policies on COVID-19 protocols would need to be decided upon by the entire board.

See for updates on this story next week.

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