As another school year approaching, the Biden administration has laid out a set of resources and guidance to ensure that every school in the United States has the tools it needs to reopen safely, and to mitigate the spread of Covid-19 in campuses.
The Biden Administration will work with the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the National Education Association (NEA) – which collectively represent more than 5 million teachers and school staff – to encourage members to get a Covid-19 booster dose as they return to school and during the fall, the White House said.
The Administration repeated its call on all school districts to host at least one school-located vaccine clinic at the start of the school year, and it is providing resources to help schools do so.
The Administration will extend the efforts it launched last January in making millions of COVID-19 tests freely available to schools each month. This will include 5 million over-the-counter rapid tests, 5 million swab-and-send PCR tests, and additional point-of-care rapid tests, all of which will now be available to order through January 2023.
Covid-19 tests will also now be available to early childhood care and education sites through the same distribution channel available to K-12 schools.
The Administration is collaborating with organizations that provide expert guidance and technical support from skilled, trained, and qualified technicians to help make indoor air quality improvements easier for schools to navigate.
Over the coming months, the Administration will highlight school districts excelling in efforts to improve indoor air quality. This includes efforts through the DOE and Department of Education (ED) to support and uplift schools and districts undertaking critical work in indoor air quality.
Additionally, ED will continue to work with CDC to help ensure that K-12 schools and early care and education centers know and understand the latest guidance on COVID-19 mitigation and how they can remain safely open for full-time in-person learning throughout the upcoming school year.
ED will continue to work with schools on strategies to ensure all students can access safe, in-person instruction, the White House said in a fact sheet.
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