Lake County Gazette

Stevenson High School has set an Oct. 15 deadline for all teachers and other staffers at the Lincolnshire high school to be vaccinated.

School officials stress the mandate that will apply to all the school’s roughly 700 teachers unless they have a medical or religious exception. According to a school spokesperson more than nine out of every 10 teachers at the school has already provided proof of vaccination, WBBM reported.

“In mandating vaccinations as a condition of employment, the goal is to maintain the safety of the school community and more quickly return to the teaching and learning experience that families have come to expect,” Stevenson Supt. Eric Waddell said in a statement.

With the Oct. 15 deadline being the same timeline Chicago Public Schools have set for teachers and staff to be vaccinated, a Stevenson spokesperson added noncompliance with the mandate would serve as grounds for progressive discipline leading to dismissal.

Waddell stressed the mandate is about following the guidelines set forth by public health organizations, several of which have praised the efficacy of the vaccine against the novel coronavirus and its COVID-19 disease.

The new school year at Stevenson kicked off on Aug. 12 and between now and the Oct. 15 vaccination deadline teachers who have not yet been vaccinated will be required to submit to COVID testing at least twice a week, The Chicago Tribune reported.

Additionally, the school is currently requiring mask-wearing and social distancing for all, regardless of vaccination status.