CPS teachers, staff start receiving vaccine as some students head back to in-person learning
CHICAGO - The first group of CPS students headed back to school on Wednesday, and CPS teachers and staff are starting to become vaccinated.
"It makes me much more confident to walk into that building," said CPS teacher Katrina Haynes.
Inside Roberto Clemente High School, CPS set up a vaccination site with Walgreens and the city health department.
They are giving out 2,000 shots this week.
"We’ve offered vaccinations to more than 8000 CPS employees, which represents roughly 20 percent of our total employee population," said Dr. Jackson, CEO of CPS.
Pre-K and cluster program staff who are the first to return to classrooms are first in line, as well as people like Haynes, who cares for her vulnerable parents.
"So I've been scared to go to work and bring home the virus to them, or potentially bring the virus to them, so I’m super excited that we’ve taken this step," said Haynes.
While it’s a big step for those getting the shots, the Walgreens staff organizing this says they are quite used to it.
"Oh yeah, we’ve been doing clinics at long-term care facilities, we’ve been doing flu clinics year in and year out, so we’re here to make them feel comfortable," said Shilpa Patel, a Walgreens pharmacist.
CPS plans to move vaccination sites like this around to other schools with the goal of 1500 vaccinations per week.