September 10, 2021 - Wilkes-Barre, PA
Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) Secretary Dr. Noe Ortega and Special Advisor to the Secretary Dr. David Volkman joined Wilkes-Barre Area School District students, educators, and community partners to tour their new high school and discuss the importance of layered health and safety mitigation strategies, including getting the COVID-19 vaccine. Secretary Ortega and Special Advisor Volkman also commended the Wilkes-Barre Area School District for holding a COVID-19 vaccination clinic to provide Wilkes-Barre Area students, ages 12 and up, with the Pfizer vaccine."I am grateful to our school communities for continuing to prioritize health and safety, so teaching and learning can continue in-person at school," Ortega said. "COVID-19 vaccination clinics, like the one at Kistler Elementary School in the Wilkes-Barre Area School District today, help us decrease the spread of COVID-19 and keep classrooms open." In August, the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) directed vaccine providers to support COVID-19 vaccination clinics at K-12 schools and institutions of higher education. Additionally, the departments of Health and Education are partnering with 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 2021-22 school year.
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