Vaccine Policy Committee

On Friday, October 22, 2021, Superintendents and Board Chairs met with representatives from the Ministry of Education, British Columbia School Trustees Association (BCSTA), and British Columbia Public School Employers’ Association (BCPSEA).

Rhonda Kershaw, Board Chair of Kamloops-Thompson School District 73 Board of Education, stated, “Draft K-12 Sector Guidelines for Vaccination Policies were shared, and the Ministry of Education, BCPSEA, and BCSTA encouraged boards to exercise due diligence in information gathering to make a thoughtful decision about a staff vaccination policy.”

At this meeting, boards were directed to start with step one by evidence gathering through Interior Health.

 “Our Board began that process on Saturday, October 16, 2021 by sharing our questions with Dr. Carol Fenton, our designated Interior Health Officer,” Board Chair Kershaw explained.

Kamloops-Thompson School District 73 Board of Education had many questions related to vaccination rates in SD73 rural and urban communities, potential exposures in schools and transmission in schools in those communities, and about how best to learn from their employees about their views of a vaccination policy that adheres to privacy laws.

On Monday, October 25, 2021, the Kamloops-Thompson SD73 Board of Education passed a motion to direct the Superintendent to establish a committee to gather data and evidence in alignment with privacy laws (step one) as a starting point.

Board Chair Kershaw concluded, “Moving forward, our district committee comprised of representatives from all employee groups will work together to prepare a report for the Board. “We look forward to this report and to making a thoughtful decision regarding mandatory staff vaccination.”