LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Middletown Unified School District Board on Wednesday night postponed making a decision on a resolution asking the state not to mandate COVID-19 vaccinations for students and staff.
The board considered a proposed resolution with language that was identical to resolutions approved last week by the boards of Lucerne Elementary, Konocti Unified and Lakeport Unified school districts.
The resolutions local districts have been considering and approving are in response to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s October announcement that he would mandate that the COVID-19 vaccine be added to the list of required vaccinations for students to have for in-person instruction and that school employees also would be required to be vaccinated.
The language of the documents all ask the state to recommend, and not require, the COVID-19
vaccine for students and staff.
As of last week, as the first resolutions were being approved in Lake County, the California Department of Public Health told Lake County News that only six districts among 1,037 statewide had requested changes or modifications to the COVID-19 vaccination requirements.
Middletown Superintendent Tim Gill said the resolution promotes local control.
“I totally understand the desire to pass a resolution like this,” said Annette Lee, an educator and new board member appointed earlier this month to fill one of two board vacancies.
However, Lee said she couldn’t accept it as written because she didn’t believe it represented the district’s entire constituency. She also suggested it was a time for everyone to work together, and not take a position to divide the community further.
She offered alternative language that addressed the need for choice. Her revision called for the district to uphold California citizens’ rights to provide informed consent, and for Middletown Unified to petition the state to ensure and maintain the personal belief exemption in any and all upcoming COVID-19 legislation.
Board President Misha Grothe said she didn’t think the original resolution was divisive, adding people who want to vaccinate their children have ample opportunity to do so.
“I don’t understand why we need to support a mandate,” Grothe said, adding she felt people needed to have a choice.
Lee said she was trying to be mindful of getting to the same result while respecting the beliefs of more than one set of the people that the district serves. “We’re not making policy today, we’re making a statement.”
Board member Zoi Bracisco said she felt it was important that parents have a choice to vaccinate their children and she also didn’t support adding Lee’s changes because she didn’t see a difference in the language.
Lee said there are people in the school district who are very much in favor of a mandate — who want teachers and students alike to be vaccinated — and her wording was meant to validate their concerns. It also offered the ability to opt out of vaccinations.
Board member Larry Allen said they had heard a lot about the issue from one side — referring to those who oppose the mandate — and not as much from the other side. If you take one side, you’re ignoring the other half, he added.
Under Newsom’s mandate, the personal belief exemption remains in place. Gill pointed out that if the state Legislature gets involved and adds the COVID-19 vaccine to the list of vaccines required to go to school, there will be no personal belief exemption.
Grothe said several state senators are proposing to mandate it through the Legislature.
During public comment, Charise Reynolds asked Gill if the district had done surveys to ask teachers about the mandate, and to find out if teachers would quit or if parents would pull their children from school if the mandate went through.
Gill said no, although he’s working on a survey on another topic and could look at doing that.
“This feels a little premature to be making this decision at this time,” said Reynolds.
She said it’s hard for some people to come to the meetings, recalling how he was shouted down at a previous meeting when she asked people in the room to mask up. Reynolds added that she wanted them to make sure they are acting in the interests of constituents.
Sharon Huggins, president of the Middletown Teachers Association, said they have surveyed teachers. Some feel strongly about freedom and a small group thinks COVID-19 is ridiculous and they want the board to be brave.
“There is a segment of our teacher population that is just surviving,” she said.
Another segment wants the board to protect them with mandated vaccines and masks, and they would feel abandoned, unsafe and insecure, and it would be one more stressor. Huggins said another group believes that, whatever the board decides, it needs to stick with that decision and enforce it.
“You really do need to make sure you’re representing the entirety of your population,” she said, adding that the teacher population leans more toward the protection of masking and vaccines.
Community member Jennifer Hughes said the resolution was not preventing people from being vaccinated, and she said the government was taking charge of people’s bodies.
Eileen Anderson questioned there being an ongoing public emergency due to Lake County’s low case rates.
She also challenged the vaccine’s efficacy and said the state mandate is unconstitutional.
Allen moved to add Lee’s language to the resolution but the motion failed.
Bracisco then said she wanted more information and moved to table or postpone the discussion. That motion was approved 5-0.
Grothe asked Gill to bring the matter back to the board for further discussion in January.
Kelseyville Unified Superintendent Dave McQueen said his board also will consider its version of the resolution next month.
Upper Lake Unified had its last regular meeting of the year this week and the resolution wasn’t on it. That district so far has not reported if it will consider the matter in January.
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