Conn. (WTNH) — Connecticut teachers are urging the State to prioritize the COVID-19 vaccination of all educators, saying they’re shocked it hasn’t happened sooner.

Connecticut teachers are urging the State, “let us get the vaccine!”

Don Williams of the CT Education Association said, “The vast majority of teachers want the vaccine as quickly as possible so that their classroom can be as safe as possible.”

Connecticut Education Association, the largest teachers union in the state, just launched a campaign.
They argue it’s not fair to prioritize in-person learning if you’re not going to prioritize educators getting the vaccine, especially when most school closures are a result of teacher shortages from quarantining after exposure.

Rochelle Brown, CT Teacher of the Year said, “We do what we do because of the love of the children and because we want the very best for them, we want to be able to deliver that educational experience to them.”

Twenty-eight states are already vaccinating teachers. Educators here are hoping to see that as soon as possible.

Kristen Record, former CT Teacher of the Year, said, “Kentucky will be finished vaccinating all that’s teachers by the end of this week, but yet here in Connecticut we haven’t even started and this is really stunning to me. We all want to see our students for more in-person learning, want to be able to do this safely and in a responsible way.”

They say they’re not trying to cut the line ahead of seniors who are currently getting vaccinated.
They just want to be included in the next group.

“What we’re saying is we’re ready to roll up our sleeves,” Williams said. “We know that the essential workers are next in line for the vaccine, and that includes teachers and school staff, so let us help get that done quickly so that ideally in the month of March, in three, four, five weeks, we can get everybody vaccinated.”

Frontline, essential workers are up next to get vaccinated against COVID. We should find out when that starts and who’s included in the next week or two.