Gov. Wolf Gives Update On Teacher Vaccination Effort

HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania has completed the teacher vaccination initiative ahead of schedule, Gov. Tom Wolf announced Friday.

More than 112,500 teachers and school staff were vaccinated in about three weeks. Wolf said the initiative was a success, and called it an "important step to help more students and teachers safely return to classrooms across the state."

Every educator and support professional in Pennsylvania who wants a vaccine has been given the opportunity to get one, the state teachers union said in a statement.

The program, which was launched in early March, utilized doses of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine to inoculate teachers and school employees.

Wolf said vaccines are "the light at the end of the tunnel when it comes to this pandemic, and with the completion of this special initiative, we are one step closer to the end of that tunnel. That is something for everyone in the commonwealth to celebrate.”

Wolf, who made the announcement alongside Education Secretary Noe Ortega and PSEA President Rich Askey, said the initiative will help return students and teachers safely to the classroom.

The initiative was celebrated by the union.

In a statement Friday, Askey said the completion of the program marks "a turning point" that will allow for schools to reopen safely and expand in-person scheduling.

“The pandemic isn’t over, but we are on a path to getting more students back into the classroom and our economy back on track,” Askey said. “And that is a milestone that we have been looking forward to for a long, long time.”