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D70 cancels classes Monday due to anticipated staff shortages

D70 cancels classes Monday due to anticipated staff shortages
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Posted at 7:59 PM, Mar 08, 2021
and last updated 2021-03-08 21:59:22-05

PUEBLO — Pueblo School District 70 canceled classes Monday due to anticipated shortages following the vaccination of nearly 900 teachers and staff. The move comes after a number of teachers reported feeling sick from the first dose.

It's unknown if any teachers fell ill after the second dose last Friday but the district said it was important to take precautionary steps to prevent any staff absences and shortages.

For Sharayah Baca, getting the vaccine has been something she's been looking forward to for a while.

"It was put together very well. I was in and out within an hour," said Baca. "I wanted to take it to not only protect myself but my parents and even the students that I do work with."

Baca says she didn't experience hardly any side effects, just fatigue, but she's glad the district gave educators the day off to recover.

"One that I worked with had chills and flu-like symptoms," said Baca.

"Even if ten percent of those teachers were to call off for an extra day, that's 90 teachers or 90 staff members," said Todd Seip, Public Information Office for Pueblo School District 70.

According to a report, the district said roughly 31 percent of people experience fatigue or achiness after the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. The district decided not to stagger vaccinations because of the issue of equality.

"How do you decide who goes first, who goes second, who goes third. Is it a matter of taking those closest to students, those who are the oldest in the categories, that would have been difficult," said Seip.

Once the district heard about the mass vaccination, he says they sent as many staff as possible. Baca says she's happy with how the district structured it.

"I like the way they did it, it was very organized," said Baca.

Now that she's vaccinated, she's looking forward to getting back to some normalcy.