BY JIMMY LAWTON
North Country This Week

St. Lawrence-Lewis County BOCES and all districts are working with local hospitals to set up on-site vaccination clinics for educators and school staff.

Although some faculty and staff have taken the initiative to get vaccinated on their own, officials say school employees should hold off for now.

“Public school employees should not be going through the process on their own,” SLCL BOCES Director of Communications and Marketing Rebekah Mott said.

Mott said that details are still being hashed out but said that setting up the on-site clinics will allow for a faster rollout on the whole and allow better tracking and reporting on district numbers.

She asked for patience for those who are eager to get the vaccine.

“I know people don’t want to wait. But this is a good thing, it’s a light at the end of the tunnel. It’s going to be a system that’s easier for teachers and staff and it will be more efficient,” she said. “The hospitals are telling us that once we get everything in place it will be easy.”

Mott said the districts have the space to allow for mass vaccinations and with a focused segment of the population they can get the job done in a more streamlined process than setting up individual appointments.

Mott said the state’s phased vaccination rollout moved from 1A to 1B Monday. She said she’s unsure of amount of vaccine currently available in the county, but more expected soon.

While the governor indicated it could take up to 14 weeks to complete phase 1B, Mott said she expects school employees to be vaccinated much sooner.