What to know about Sacramento city schools' COVID-19 vaccine requirement

Updated Jan. 26, 2022: The Sacramento City Unified School District has announced that the deadline to begin enforcing the student vaccine mandate has been extended from Jan. 30 to Feb. 28.

The Sacramento City Unified School District joined a handful of California school districts — including Los Angeles and San Diego, the state’s two largest — in announcing a vaccine mandate last month. The deadline for the district’s students over 12 and staff to submit proof of at least their first dose of vaccination is coming up, on Nov. 30.

That followed Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pending mandate that all K-12 students be vaccinated once full FDA approval is given to their age group. Currently, kids in grades 7-12 will need to be vaccinated by July 1, 2022. A mandate for kids in grades K-6 is dependent on when the FDA gives full approval to the vaccine for kids 5-11. 

The SCUSD board passed a resolution on Oct. 12 requiring all students 12 or older and staff to submit proof of either partial or full vaccination by Nov. 30. The district will start enforcing the mandate after Jan. 30 for those who haven’t reported vaccination or a valid exemption, through either moving students to independent studies or disciplining staff. [Note: This was extended until Feb. 28.]

“I think that the board made, of course, a very bold stand to protect public health … given the long-standing effects that this pandemic has now had on a very vulnerable population of students,” SCUSD superintendent Jorge Aguilar said in an interview last month with Insight’s Vicki Gonzalez. 

As of Nov. 30, there have been 839 COVID-19 cases in the district. New Joseph Bonnheim Elementary almost closed in September after 7.8% of its population tested positive. And a majority of COVID-19 cases in the county have been in unvaccinated individuals. 

Unvaccinated people in Sacramento County are currently at “very high risk” due to “very high COVID-19 transmission” in the county, based on analysis from The New York Times.

Seventy-one percent of Sacramento County residents 12 and up are fully vaccinated as of Nov. 30. But according to the SCUSD dashboard, only 27% of eligible students 12 or older have submitted proof of being fully or partially vaccinated as of Dec. 1.

Aguilar said on Insight Nov. 30 that the district expects to receive an increased volume of submissions before the end of the day Tuesday, a pattern he saw from the day before.

“As we were analyzing the data this morning, we were averaging about 400 submissions per day, [but] yesterday we received well over 3,000 submissions,” he said.

According to district spokesperson Alexander Goldberg, as of Monday, 72% of SCUSD staff have submitted proof of full vaccination. Over 1% have an approved medical or religious belief exemption, and 27% — about 1,327 people — have not submitted any documentation. 

Seventy-one percent of Sacramento County residents 12 and up are fully vaccinated as of Nov. 30. But according to the SCUSD dashboard, only 25% of eligible students 12 or older have submitted proof of being fully or partially vaccinated. 

Aguilar said on Insight Nov. 30 that the district expects to receive an increased volume of submissions before the end of the day Tuesday, a pattern he saw from the day before.

“As we were analyzing the data this morning, we were averaging about 400 submissions per day, [but] yesterday we received well over 3,000 submissions,” he said.

According to district spokesperson Alexander Goldberg, as of Monday, 72% of SCUSD staff have submitted proof of full vaccination. Over 1% have an approved medical or religious belief exemption, and 27% — about 1,327 people — have not submitted any documentation.

As the Nov. 30 deadline rolls around, here’s what you need to know. 

Who does the vaccine mandate cover?

The vaccine mandate applies to all staff and students ages 12 or over, excluding those with conditional admissions (students who are foster youth, homeless, migrants, from a military family or have an individualized education plan) and valid exemptions. On-campus volunteers must also receive their first or second dose by Nov. 30. 

The district’s board needs to pass a new resolution establishing a vaccination mandate timeline for kids 5-11, Goldberg said. The board’s next meeting is Dec. 16.

The FDA granted emergency approval for the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for kids 5-11 on Nov. 4, after the board passed its original resolution.

Where can vaccination status be submitted?

Vaccination status can be submitted at www.scusd.edu/reportvaccine. Parents should submit a new form for each SCUSD student.

Where can I find a vaccine?

The district is offering vaccine clinics, and you can schedule an appointment at www.scusd.edu/vaccinations.

COVID vaccines are rolling out for younger kids in Northern California. Here's what to know.

You can also find an appointment at www.myturn.ca.gov. More information about places offering a vaccine for kids 5-11 can be found here.

What happens if a student or staff member isn’t vaccinated after Nov. 30?

They’ll need to register for “regular, routine testing” at www.scusd.edu/covid19testing. That includes students and staff who have only received their first dose of a two-dose vaccine by Nov. 30, those who have a valid exemption and those who are conditional admissions.

Starting on Jan. 31, the district’s second semester, eligible students who are unvaccinated — including conditional admissions students — and have not submitted proof of both their first and second vaccination doses or a valid exemption will be moved to remote learning via the district’s Independent Study program.

Goldberg said the initial Nov. 30 deadline is meant to allow the district to measure responses, prepare for students who will transition to Independent Study and do targeted outreach to those who haven’t reported vaccination or exemption.

“That’s why we only ask that they [students over 12 and staff] report if they’ve only had 1 dose at that time,” he wrote. “It gives indication they will be fully vaccinated by January. How many positions, and how many to Independent Study is what we need time to prepare for.” 

How often is “regular, routine testing”?

Right now, once every week, but that could change.

“If community spread decreases, it can become more spread out based on Public Health guidelines,” said Goldberg via email. “That’s why it wasn’t written as a set interval.”

Are there exemptions? How do you get one?

Yes, students and staff can file for a medical or religious or personal belief exemption. The process and forms for doing so can be found at www.scusd.edu/vaccineexemption. Those filing for a medical exemption will need to provide the district with a signed, written statement from a licensed California physician recommending exemption.

The religious/personal belief exemption form for students is available in English, Spanish, Hmong, Chinese and Vietnamese.

Students and staff with valid exemptions are still required to sign up for regular, routine testing. 

Are vaccines safe for kids?

Pfizer studied over 3,000 vaccinated kids ages 5-11 and did not detect any serious side effects. It also found the vaccine was over 90% effective in preventing COVID-19 for that age group. It’s a lower dose than that given to individuals who are 12 and older. 

Additionally, in a Pfizer study of over 2,200 students who received the vaccine between 12 and 15, the vaccine was found to be 100% effective for that age group.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted emergency use authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for kids 5-15 and full approval to those 16 or older.

You can find more information about the vaccine available to kids 5-11, including where to get the vaccine and how it affects the activities kids can participate in here. 

Why is the district doing this? Have their policies been inspired by other districts?

SCUSD superintendent Jorge Aguilar said during the Oct. 12 board meeting that while the district has been struggling to fill positions to meet demand for Independent Study and has been facing financial challenges, the vaccine resolution was “the most effective means to conquer this pandemic.” 

“A vaccine requirement is the path forward to keeping our schools open and increasing immunity,” Aguilar said. 

During the Oct. 12 board meeting when the mandate was decided, the board considered the vaccine mandates in five other California school districts: Culver City, Los Angeles, Oakland, San Diego and Piedmont. It also considered Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pending mandate.

The resolution cites the unanimous recommendations of both the California Department of Public Health and Sacramento County Department of Public Health that all those eligible for the vaccine — including people 12 or older — get vaccinated. 

The district’s Nov. 30 and Jan. 30 deadlines mirror that of the Los Angeles Unified School District. [Note: The enforcement deadline was extended until Feb. 28.]

Will any staff have to leave their jobs? Aren’t schools already short workers?

While the district says it may take disciplinary action — which could range from unpaid leave to termination — against employees who fail to comply with the vaccination or testing requirement, what that looks like isn’t yet set in stone. 

“The answer to how it will effect (sic) schools won’t be known until Nov. 30,” Goldberg said.

Can you get exemptions after Nov. 30? 

Yes — until Jan. 30, when “outreach will stop and the district will act,” said Goldberg. [Note: This was extended until Feb. 28.]

After Nov. 30, he said that students and staff will receive “targeted outreach” about their noncompliance with the vaccine requirement, reminding them to either get vaccinated or file an exemption. 

“We want to make sure that our families have access to any information that might have created a barrier to submitting at least the first dose of vaccine — that could be issues related to language, to access, to technology,” Aguilar said of the outreach process.

What is the vaccination timeline for students who turn 12 after Jan. 31?

Students have 30 days after their 12th birthday to get their first dose. They must have gotten their second vaccine dose or have filed a valid exemption and registered for testing no later than eight weeks after their 12th birthday.