Kamo High School principal Natasha Hemara. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Kamo High School principal Natasha Hemara. Photo / Michael Cunningham
Northland school principals want more clarity from the Ministry of Health on whether Covid-19 vaccination will be made mandatory for teachers and staff.
Earlier this week, Education Minister Chris Hipkins signalled tougher rules will be introduced for those who haven't yet received a jab but wouldn't say whether vaccination forschool teachers would be mandatory.
Kamo High School principal Natasha Hemara said if the ministry mandated vaccination for teachers, then the school would support that structure.
"At the moment, we are not allowed to ask teachers if they are vaccinated or promote vaccination in schools, which was made very clear in the ministry guidelines.
"However, we would have easy access to that information if the ministry makes the vaccination mandatory."
Hemara said the some of the staff had provided their vaccine status voluntarily and looked like a majority were getting vaccinated.
"It is very important to us to get clear messaging out there in the community.
"There's been a bit of backwards and forwards in the mask-wearing. It was not compulsory to wear masks in schools in Northland at level 3, but they changed that when Auckland went to level 3.
"So, I think, clear communication, good reasoning with advance notice would really support us in schools to get that message out to the community."
While the ministry was talking about mandating vaccination for teachers, Hemara said the school would also like some clarity around the workforce and students in schools as well.
"A secondary school is full of people, and if you would make it mandatory for the teachers, why not for the students who are in the class?
"Again, a clarity and understanding of the why are very important."
Kaitaia School principal Brendon Morrissey said there was still some anxiety around the side-effects from the Covid vaccine in the community and mandating the vaccine would also be a matter of freedom of choice for many.
"I really hope people do get vaccinated, but that is my personal opinion. My family and I got vaccinated because of those we care about.
"But some people believe their freedom is being taken away from them and some do not believe in vaccination.
"Different people believe different things, but trying to make them all believe the same thing is quite difficult."
Kaitaia Primary school principal Brendon Morrissey. Photo / Peter Jackson
Morrissey said a majority of people would be happy with vaccination made compulsory for teachers, but still, a minority would not take it very well.
"My job is to encourage, not to mandate it or make rules about it. It is the policy-makers' job."
Whangārei Boys' High School principal Karen Gilbert-Smith said it was everyone's collective responsibility to follow public health advice and get vaccinated, whether you were a teacher or student.
"I think that is a shared responsibility in a secondary school environment."
Gilbert-Smith said it was very clear there were going to be more opportunities in the future for people who were vaccinated as opposed to those who were not, and people had to make a choice based on that.
"There are people with concerns, objections, or personal views. It is a very tricky territory to mandate for some of the population and not for others.
"If people have clarity, they can make a better decision. The space we are in is a little bit unknown and more difficult for some people."
Principal Karen Gilbert-Smith. Photo / John Stone
Whangārei Boys' High School in conjunction with Kensington Health had organised a vaccination clinic at the school for students and staff.
The school was also keeping a record of who had been vaccinated and it was looking very positive, Gilbert-Smith said.
