THD On Track To Vaccinate Every Tulsa County Educator By Spring Break

In just one week, more than 7,500 teachers and staff in Tulsa County have received at least one shot of a COVID-19 vaccine, almost half of all the county’s educators.

The Tulsa Health Department said right now they're on track to meet their goal of getting all Tulsa County teachers vaccinated by Spring Break.

One week ago, five Tulsa County educators received their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Since then, several thousand more teachers and staff have been vaccinated.

"We recognize the value that a good strong education system can have on the health of the community," said Ellen Niemitalo, Tulsa Health Department Manager of Clinic Services.

Niemitalo said so far, 7,500 teachers and staff have been vaccinated and 3,000 more are scheduled to get their first dose by the end of the weekend. She said in total 10,500 educators will be vaccinated by Sunday.

"We really think after this weekend all of the teachers should've had access and opportunity to schedule an appointment in Tulsa County,” said Niemitalo.

Niemitalo said there's about 15,000 teachers and staff at all public and private schools across the county.

Tulsa Public Schools Chief Academic Officer Devin Fletcher said they've been working with their teachers who want to get the shot signed up. He said some of their teachers have already received their second dose.

"We believe we are at a space now where the overwhelming majority of our employees who wanted to get a vaccine have been able to sign up,” said Fletcher.

Fletcher said they started the school day last Monday not knowing when teachers would be able to get their vaccines, but since then they've seen a big energy shift across the district.

"Being able to be a part of this and see teachers celebrate the vaccine opportunities has been amazing," said Fletcher.  

The Tulsa Health Department said educators can contact their school administration or the health department directly to get help signing up.