NASHVILLE, TN – Teachers and school support staff in Davidson County will start receiving their first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine by Feb. 20.
The school system also announced on Monday that vaccines are to be available for teachers earlier than anticipated because Davidson County leaders have accelerated the move to the next phase of distribution.
“Dr. Battle has taken some important steps to get our schools open for in-person learning, now we must do what we can to keep them open by protecting our educators from contracting COVID,” said Dr. Alex Jahangir, Chair of the Metro Board of Public Health and the Metro Coronavirus Task Force. “This announcement today wouldn’t be possible without the leadership of Vanderbilt University Medical Center and HCA/Tri-Star.”
Vanderbilt University Medical Center will oversee the administration of vaccines to Metro Nashville Public Schools employees, which includes charter school staff, at the Vanderbilt Health Center at 100 Oaks. HCA/Tri-Star will vaccinate those employees who work for independent and parochial schools, as well as day care and preschool staff.
“The vaccine is another important step to keep schools safe,” said Mayor John Cooper. “I’m grateful to Metro Public Health for efficiently rolling out the vaccine to help avoid the long lines and wait times we’ve seen in other cities. With the help of our hospital partners, we will continue providing a courteous and efficient vaccination process for our teachers.”
Metro Schools employees will receive sign-up information from Vanderbilt Health in the coming days and will be prioritized for vaccines based on the district’s phase-in schedule for returning students to classrooms and whether or not the employees are working in the face-to-face learning environment or remotely.
“I know that this news will give our teachers and staff a sense of relief that they are this much closer to receiving that extra layer of protection against the virus that has upended our society,” said Director of Metro Schools Dr. Adrienne Battle. “I’m grateful for the volunteer leadership of Dr. Jahangir who has been such a great resource of knowledge and support throughout this pandemic, as well as the Metro Public Health Department led by Dr. Gill Wright and our longtime partners at Vanderbilt Health who are instrumental to the physical and mental wellness of our team.”
In addition to the vaccines provided through the Metro Public Health Department and Vanderbilt University Medical Center, MNPS has received approval by the Tennessee Department of Health to be able to administer a direct allocation of vaccines through our school nurse program, when the state has additional doses available to support this effort.
