Staten Island officials call on NYC to toss remaining COVID-19 vaccine requirements for public school students – SILive.com
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Staten Island elected officials are calling for an end to New York Citys requirement of the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine for public school students participating in extracurricular and sports programs deemed high-risk, as well as parents and visitors entering school buildings.
Borough President Vito J. Fossella and other officials sent a letter last week to Department of Education (DOE) Chancellor David Banks and Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) Commissioner Dr. Ashwin Vasan requesting the agencies reconsider the COVID-19 guidance ahead of the new school year.
While well-intentioned and noble, some of the decisions in the past have negatively affected many children, the letter reads. Evidence suggests that cases of mental illness in school-aged children are on the rise and low-test scores are sadly becoming the norm. We urge you to reconsider and reverse the policies regarding unvaccinated parents and children.
According to the Department of Education (DOE), the coronavirus vaccine is still required for the following people:
Sports considered high-risk include football, volleyball, basketball, wrestling, lacrosse, stunt and rugby.
Additionally, a COVID-19 vaccination requirement applies to students participating in high-risk after-school extracurricular activities like chorus, musical theater, dance/dance team, band/orchestra (with concern for woodwinds), marching band and cheerleading/step team/flag team.
The letter was also signed by Rep. Nicole Malliotakis; State Senator Andrew Lanza; City Councilmembers David Carr and Joseph Borelli; and State Assemblymembers Michael Reilly and Michael Tannousis.
The elected officials wrote in the letter that the vaccine requirements should be reconsidered for unvaccinated students who wish to participate in those activities, as well as the vaccine requirement for parents citing how important parent involvement is, especially after two years of interrupted school sessions due to the pandemic.
Months ago, New York City rightly relaxed all of its in-person restrictions for the unvaccinated to attend indoor sporting events, concerts, all entertainment venues, or to simply enjoy indoor dining or going to the gym, said the letter. As the DOE COVID-19 guidance stands now, unvaccinated parents are not allowed into their childs NYC DOE school building for back-to-school events, socials, PTA meetings, parent-teacher conferences, fundraising, parent workshops, or any in-school events with their child.
The DOE deferred comment to the mayors office and DOHMH, noting it is the health commissioners orders.
We thank the authors of this letter for raising these important issues with us and we look forward to continuing our dialogue with them in the days ahead, said Patrick Gallahue, spokesperson for DOHMH. We fully recognize the toll that COVID has taken on New Yorkers mental health, especially youth. We have made services for young people a high priority and aim to do even more.
Gallahue continued: We must add, however, that vaccination remains the single best protection against severe illness caused by COVID-19. Every action weve taken has been directed at preventing any more suffering from this terrible virus. We want to keep our children safe in class, in their school communities, and safe from COVID.
According to the DOHMH, many high-risk extracurricular activities are performed indoors, are strenuous, and entail closer contact than classroom activities.
VACCINE MANDATE LIFTED FOR PROMS
The vaccine mandate previously applied to students who were going to prom this past spring. Proms were banned for public schools in both 2020 and 2021 though some parent-led proms not affiliated with schools were held last year.
They made an announcement that unless youre vaccinated by this date, you are not allowed to attend prom, said Kelly McKay, a parent of a New Dorp High School senior, about the vaccine mandate last school year. So I mean, my concern is they can go to school, you can go eat in a restaurant, they can go to a wedding. Why cant they go to a prom?
Fossella said in a statement in March that young adults have suffered enough over the last two years due to coronavirus restrictions severely limiting their academic and social experiences.
A prom and a celebration are just what they need at this time, he said in a statement. This milestone event happens just once in their lives. We are asking that the Department of Education review this guidance and allow all students to go to their prom.
After months of pushback, the DOE lifted the vaccine mandate for proms in May.
NOT REQUIRED FOR ALL STUDENTS
The coronavirus vaccine is not mandated for public school students in New York City, though it is highly encouraged. The DOE stated on its website that vaccination is the best way to reduce COVID-19 risk and encourages up-to-date vaccination for everyone six months or older.
But some Staten Island parents have expressed a fear it could happen. During a rally against vaccine clinics in public schools in November last year, parent Danielle Geandomenico, said vaccination is a medical choice that should be up to each individual person without any pressure or force from other entities.
Theyre going to attempt to mandate it for our children, just like the flu shot is required for schools. When that happens, Ill be gone, she said at the time.
Should the vaccine mandate for students go into effect, Geandomenico said she will pull her kids out of school to homeschool them temporarily, and later seek a learning pod. She predicted that many parents across New York City would do the same.
When it remains clear that New York City will not go back on that mandate and will continue to enforce it, my husband and I will probably do as thousands of other people have already and continue to do, we will seek out life in a different state which offers its citizens rights to religious exemptions for children. We will uproot our family and life here and put down seeds elsewhere and it will be okay, she added.
FOSSELLAS ANTI-MANDATE STANCE
Fossella has been a voice against vaccine mandates across the city, especially on Staten Island.
When New York City mandated all public school employees were required to get the coronavirus vaccine by the end of September last year, Fossella was against it. Staten Island-based lawyers Mark Fonte and Louis Gelormino filed a class action lawsuit against New York City, the DOE and the DOHMH at the time regarding the requirement that all New York City public school employees get the jab.
Fonte said it was Fossella who encouraged the lawsuit. Fossella also called the Supreme Courts ruling striking down the Biden Administrations vaccine mandate for most private employers, a little dose of sanity.
Prior to becoming borough president, Fossella was also seen at several rallies and protests against vaccine mandates, including the Key2NYC mandate that required a vaccine to eat indoors at a restaurant, go to a gym, and go to the movies or other entertainment venues.
As a candidate for borough president, he joined other elected officials and local business owners outside of La Fontana restaurant in Oakwood in August 2021 to announce a lawsuit that called for an injunction against the Key2NYC vaccine mandate.
We represent the people who say no, Fossella said at the time. So if you want to come for their jobs, if you want to come for their business, if you want to come for their liberty, and if you want to come for their freedom, were here to say were standing in your way.
He was also visible at protests at Macs Public House. Danny Presti and the taverns owner, Keith McAlarney, generated national headlines in 2020 when they declared the pub an autonomous zone and kept it open in defiance of government-imposed COVID-19 regulations.
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