Ian Patrick, FISM News

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With the school year underway, the debate over COVID-19 vaccine mandates for staff and students is heating up once again as new cases have remained above the 100,000 mark over the last few weeks. On Thursday, the Los Angeles schools announced what are likely the most aggressive school COVID policies to date.

In an announcement on September 9, the Los Angeles Unified School District said that they will be requiring the vaccines for all students ages 12 and up. This measure makes the LAUSD the first major school district to require the vaccine for students.

As part of the Los Angeles Unified School District’s efforts to provide the safest possible environment in which to learn and work, all students 12 years old and older will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 by January 10, 2022, unless they have a medical or other exemption. A proof of vaccination must be uploaded into the Los Angeles Unified’s Daily Pass system.

The school district already had multiple safety measures in place which “include daily health checks for everyone going onto school campuses, masks, comprehensive COVID-19 testing, contact tracing and isolation of cases, hand sanitizer, increased sanitization/cleaning of schools and upgraded ventilation.”

The measure says that students who are not fully vaccinated by January 10 of next year cannot attend in-person, but may be able to attend independent studies through remote learning. Those who participate in extracurricular activities will need their final vaccine dose no later than October 31 of this year. Students turning 12 after these deadlines must receive their first vaccine within 30 days and their second (if needed) within 8 weeks of their birthday.

Exemptions in place under other required vaccines are also allowed under this vaccine mandate.