L.A. Unified to open 25 school-based vaccine centers for families

In an effort to increase the number of students returning to schools by increasing access to vaccines, Los Angeles Unified is opening 25 school-based vaccination sites for the families of students in coming weeks. The 25 sites are an increase from the two sites that were announced two weeks ago and which open on Tuesday.

“The opportunity gaps for students from families who are struggling to get by will only worsen if they’re not back in schools with their peers from more affluent neighborhoods,” Superintendent Austin Beutner said during a Monday morning broadcast. “It’s simple enough to see the solution — providing vaccinations for families with children in schools is the single most important thing we can do to get more children back in school classrooms.”

The first two sites will still be stationed at Abraham Lincoln High School in East Los Angeles and George Washington Preparatory High School in South Los Angeles. The third site will open on April 9 at Gage Middle School in Huntington Park, which is in the southeast Los Angeles region. All three communities have been particularly hard hit with high Covid-19 transmission rates, high death rates, and a slow vaccination rollout.

The first three vaccination sites for families are opening days before the school district will begin to reopen for in-person instruction under a hybrid format.