Sonoma County school leaders, parents embrace new vaccine mandate for campus staff

Gov. Gavin Newsom’s new order requiring all K-12 school staff to provide proof of vaccination or submit to weekly coronavirus testing came as welcome news Wednesday to many Sonoma County school district administrators and union officials, parents and community leaders.

Newsom’s announcement made California the first state in the nation to impose such a requirement, in effect for both public and private campuses.

It came on the eve of the largest wave of local students and teachers returning to school Thursday — the first day back to full-time in-person instruction since the pandemic closed campuses in March 2020.

The order drew support from the county’s largest single group of teachers, the Santa Rosa Teachers Association, according to Kathryn Howell, the group’s president. Santa Rosa teachers have embraced the “movement” for stronger vaccine and testing standards on campus, she said.

“I’m really happy that (the California Teachers Association) stepped in and pushed for it,” Howell said. “I think it’s very important for the safety for our schools.”

Santa Rosa City Schools, the county’s largest district, was “already moving in this direction” before Newsom’s announcement, said Superintendent Anna Trunnell. “We’ve tried to be mindful of the guidance being provided to us so that we’re moving forward with expectations within the law, and we’ve been paying attention what our county has been providing (for) direction and guidance as well.”

The new policy takes effect Thursday, the first day of school for more than 40% of the county’s roughly 66,000 K-12 public school students. Schools have until Oct. 15 to be in full compliance.

While schools will need some time to establish systems to collect vaccination information and manage a testing regimen, Sonoma County officials expressed relief that the statewide requirement eliminates a patchwork approach to a critical protective measure as the new school year begins.

“Consistency is really important,” Trunnell said. “If you have a district that decides to do their own thing, it can cause dissension and conflict in other districts that don’t move in the same way.”

Parents and community leaders also expressed support for the directive.

“I think this is a good decision,” said Aundrea Spencer, a Ukiah resident and mother to an incoming freshman in the Ukiah Unified School District. “If teachers and school staff refuse to get vaccinated, then they should have to test regularly, and show proof of their test results. Kids need to be kept safe.”

Rebecca McLeod-Márquez, a nurse-midwife, said she thought the protocols could be even stricter. The guidance from the California Department of Public Health requires only weekly testing for those who don’t provide proof of vaccination; McLeod-Márquez thinks twice weekly would be safer.

McLeod-Marquez has three children in middle and high school, and “the only one I’m not worried about is my college senior whose school has mandated vaccination in addition to masking.”

“It is the least we can do for our kids and community,” she said in an email. “I am sad that we are in a situation where mandates are necessary, but we do not have time for anything else in light of the current delta surge.”

Steve Herrington, Sonoma County superintendent of schools, provided an estimate Tuesday on the number of K-12 public school staff who had been vaccinated by this week: 85% of the 17,000, he said.

Schools continue to host vaccine clinics for staff, eligible students and their families.

“Educators in Sonoma County have committed to following the direction of state and local health professionals who best understand the virus and how to combat it,” Herrington said in a statement Wednesday. “Having received this new state direction, we will work closely with our county health partners to help districts understand and put into practice this new requirement designed to add an additional layer of safety and reassurance for our school community.”

Tens of thousands of students are returning to the classroom this week and next as the school year begins. For Sarah Brooks, a grandmother to two elementary school students in Petaluma who are not old enough to be eligible for vaccination, the new requirements for their teachers were a source of comfort.

“I think we must do everything possible to try to protect our children who are unable to be vaccinated at this point,” Brooks said.

You can reach Staff Writer Kaylee Tornay at 707-521-5250 or kaylee.tornay@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ka_tornay.