Aug 17, 2021 3 min read

The administration of Gov. Tom Wolf today announced two initiatives – school vaccination clinics and free COVID-19 testing in schools – aimed at keeping students in the classroom and participating in sports and extracurricular activities for the 2021-22 school year.

Monday’s announcement came as school districts prepare to return to the classroom and COVID-19 cases continue to surge.

The state Department of Health is directing vaccine providers to support COVID-19 vaccination clinics at school districts, colleges, universities and other institutions of higher education.

In addition, the state DOH and Department of Education announced a partnership with a synthetic biology company, Concentric by Ginkgo Bioworks, to provide free COVID-19 testing in K-12 schools across the commonwealth to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and outbreaks in schools during the school year.

“A priority of the Wolf Administration is to have and maintain in-person instruction, sports programs, and other extra-curricular activities at schools,” acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam said. “Unfortunately, we continue to see predominately unvaccinated Pennsylvanians infected with multiple variants of COVID-19, including the highly contagious Delta variant. This reinforces the need for accessible COVID-19 vaccinations for eligible individuals in K-12 schools so that our students, teachers and staff can stay safe.”

Funding for both initiatives comes from nearly $338 million in funds from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) allocated to the commonwealth “to detect, diagnose, trace and monitor COVID-19 and prevent its spread in schools.”

For schools that participate, testing will be performed weekly to identify and prevent the spread of COVID-19 throughout the schools.

Testing is voluntary.

“Students and teachers across Pennsylvania are looking forward to returning to their classrooms for the new school year. Let’s do everything we can to make sure they are safe while teaching, learning, and growing together,” said Secretary of Education Noe Ortega.

The DOH encouraged school districts and other educational institutions to provide vaccine clinics in coordination with vaccine providers.

The vaccine clinics can be held at the school or another location, and will be open to employees, contractors, volunteers, students, or students’ families.

The U.S. Department of Education recommends schools use the We Can Do This On-Site Vaccination Clinic Toolkit for help working directly with vaccine providers to setup vaccination clinics.

“Despite COVID-19 vaccines being available for some individuals, adolescents under the age of 12 still cannot be vaccinated to protect themselves against the virus,” Beam said. “That is why we are encouraging all K-12 schools to take advantage of a unique opportunity to bring COVID-19 testing into your schools free of charge.

It is imperative that students, educators, and staff who feel they need or want a test, especially if they think they have been exposed to COVID-19 or are experiencing symptoms, have access to free COVID-19 testing,” Beam added. “In addition to getting vaccinated, this testing initiative is another tool in our toolbox for schools to keep ‘Friday night lights’ shining brightly this year.”