ORLANDO, Fla. — The Orange County Classroom Teachers Association calls it good news for educators, and the Brevard Federation of Teachers takes it a step further.


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“We are thrilled...” said Vanessa Skipper, a vice president at the Brevard Federation.

Skipper referred to an initiative this week from the Biden administration to get teachers, school staff, and child care workers access to at least one dose of the COVID-19 by the end of March. Biden also said Tuesday the U.S. would produce enough vaccines for every adult in the U.S. by the end of May.

On Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the administration was calling on states to prioritize teachers and to make the federal vaccine supply available to them.

“We are thrilled with President Biden’s dedication to vaccinate all teachers who want to be vaccinated,” Skipper said in an email late Wednesday to Spectrum News 13. “We have been back teaching face to face in our brick and mortar schools since last August and many of our teachers welcome the extra layer of protection that the vaccine will provide.”

Representatives of the Orange County Classroom Teachers Association, among other Central Florida teachers unions, couldn’t be reached for comment late Wednesday. But the association on Tuesday posted an article about the Biden initiative on its Facebook page and wrote: “Good News for educators!”

Teachers in Florida have emphasized the risks to them from working in small classrooms with dozens of students at a time, and the Florida Education Association has urged Gov. Ron DeSantis to give teachers stronger consideration for vaccinations.

DeSantis this week expanded Florida’s vaccination program to include law enforcement officers, firefighters, and K-12 teachers age 50 and over.

Publix spokeswoman Maria Brous said in an email to Spectrum News 13 that the grocery chain follows state executive orders on administering vaccinations. Those orders continue to include K–12 school personnel age 50 and older, she pointed out. 

“It is our desire to continue vaccinating our customers so we can all get one step closer to what our normal looked like pre-COVID,” Brous added.

Despite the state executive order, CVS said Wednesday it will vaccinate all K-12 teachers regardless of age. Its website also listed “daycare and preschool workers, and staff” among those eligible for vaccines at that pharmacy’s participating locations, which include ones in Palm Coast and Daytona Beach. The pharmacy chain showed those locations as “fully booked.”

Although it's still unclear how the Biden administration plans to get the vaccination to so many people so quickly, Florida’s teachers clearly appreciate the initiative.

“This year has brought many challenges, and our teachers have worked tirelessly to meet them,” Skipper wrote in her email to Spectrum News 13. “Having this vaccine will alleviate the fear of contracting COVID-19 and of bringing it home to a loved one.”

She added: “We are hopeful that Governor DeSantis works with President Biden to make sure vaccines are readily accessible for the school personnel who want to receive them.”

Spectrum News reporter Austin Landis contributed to this report.