District SROs, nurses receive first doses of COVID-19 Moderna vaccine
Dallas County expanding distribution process
Coppell High School nurse Beth Dorn updates the CHS COVID-19 tracker in her office on Wednesday. Dorn was one of the first Coppell ISD employees to receive the initial dose of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine on Jan. 6.
January 28, 2021
Editor’s note: This story has been updated from its original version.
Coppell High School nurse Beth Dorn was among Coppell ISD’s first group to receive a dose of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine. Dorn received her first dose on Jan. 6 at the Kroger on Sandy Lake Road and is scheduled to receive her second dose 28 days later, on Wednesday.
“It was an easy experience; all I had to do was show my credentials,” Dorn said. “I was a little scared at first. But, I feel good about it, and I am looking forward to getting the second dose and having my 95% immunity. We need to do this to get coronavirus under control.”
All CISD nurses and Student Resource Officers have been given the opportunity to receive at least one dose of the Moderna vaccine. The first shipment of coronavirus vaccines arrived in Texas and Dallas County on Dec. 14. Exactly a month later, Texas became the first state to administer one million doses. Currently, one out of 13 Texans have received one dose of the vaccine, for a total of over two million administered doses.
Prioritization of high risk individuals and frontline workers is at the heart of the vaccine rollout. Phase 1A includes healthcare workers, such as doctors, nurses and first responders. Now, the first doses of the vaccine are starting to be administered to individuals who meet the Phase 1B criteria as well. This includes people who are over the age of 65 or older than 16 with underlying conditions that make them more susceptible to coronavirus.
Vaccine prioritization depends upon the state government and the Department of State Health Services. Teachers are not presently included in the Phase 1A category, but districts across Texas are lobbying to ensure they are next in line.
“We’re pretty excited about it,” Coppell High School Principal Laura Springer said. “I’m shocked that teachers have not been higher up on the list. We’re hoping we are close to that because that would help tremendously. We are seeing so many of our teachers having to be out, and we’re having to have a lot of [substitute teachers] come in our building.”
According to current research, it is not known if receiving the vaccine stops individuals from spreading the coronavirus. Therefore, regulations such as wearing a mask and distancing must be followed until approximately 70% of the population is vaccinated and herd immunity is achieved. The distribution process is expected to take months, particularly as demand outstrips supply, and Texas struggles with inconsistent distribution approaches from county to county.
To avoid misinformation about vaccine efficacy, side effects and distribution, it is recommended to rely on trustworthy sources, such as health department websites and individuals who have received the vaccine.
“Trust healthcare professionals,” CHS senior and pharmacy tech student Saniya Agarwal said. “Don’t believe everything you see on the internet; have valid sources. Before you decide not to get [vaccinated], please do your research with people who have done their research.”
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