FLEMING ISLAND – The school board is going to send a letter to Governor Ron DeSantis urging him to consider teachers and education employees frontline workers for COVID-19 vaccinations.

People 65 years of age and older, as well as all frontline workers like doctors and firefighters, can get the COVID-19 vaccine now. The school board wants the definition of “frontline workers” to be expanded to teachers and school-related employees because it believes they should have access to the vaccine should they wish.

“Hopefully, as the vaccines become more and more available, we can encourage the governor to realize that teachers are on the frontline and that all education employees are on the frontline,” board chair Mary Bolla said during the Thursday, Feb. 4, school board meeting.

Superintendent David Broskie said this has been the hot topic, and he’s supports the request and has been heavily advocating for younger teachers to be eligible for the vaccine. He said other districts have already sent letters to the governor and that he would be willing to do the same.

“I know other districts have sent letters to the governor...and I’d be agreeable to do that if the board would like me to do that,” Broskie said. “I think the governor has [received] the message and we’ve all attempted to lobby that to occur, but I consider it to be a serious issue and [will] continue to advocate for it and go from there.”

Bolla suggested sending a letter, especially in light of the Florida legislature having two new Clay County-representing members.

“We should be keeping our local legislative delegation aware and two (of them) are brand new and making sure they’re aware of what we’re doing and our frontline workers…is important.,” she said.

The board came to a 5-0 consensus to send a letter to Gov. DeSantis on behalf of the Clay County School District. Board member Ashley Gilhousen added the letter wouldn’t be asking the governor to make vaccines mandatory for teachers and school-related employees. It will only ask the governor consider teachers and school-related employees as frontline workers so that they may have the option to get the vaccine.

In other business, the school board voted 5-0 to approve a new board policy establishing the Citizens Oversight Committee for the half-cent sales tax approved by voters in the general election last year. The committee will be composed of Clay County residents selected by the individual board members and the superintendent to serve as watchdogs for the tax.

This committee won’t have the final say over how that money is spent. That goes to the school board who is only allowed to spend it on things outlined in the resolution voters approved last year. But the committee will be allowed to symbolically put its stamp of approval on items marked for the tax for the board.