The COVID-19 pandemic has made students stay in homes and do distance learning.  Slowly over time, students gained the ability to switch to a hybrid schedule, meaning two days at home and then two days at school.  When this change occurred, students were not vaccinated, and instead, the school system tried its best to keep the schools sanitized.

Students should be vaccinated in Virginia for the 2021-2022 school year.  It is better to be cautious than to suffer setbacks and it is more of a gain than a loss trying to keep students safe from COVID-19.  Financing this many vaccines is an obstacle, however, President Joe Biden is already planning to provide funding to vaccinate the American public.

If President Joe Biden is willing to fund vaccines for American adults, then it should be mandatory, especially for students, to take the vaccine when available.  COVID-19 can be a dangerous virus, but it can also spread effortlessly.  Risking students to such a virus, even after a pandemic, can result in students missing school and falling behind in classes.  Time is a precious resource, and even more for students, but especially for students who are risking failure in their coursework.

Imagine a school filled with students being vaccinated, so the only thing they will need to worry about is other communicable diseases such as the flu and the common cold.  Comparing this to a school filled with unvaccinated students, they would have a higher chance of getting COVID-19, and the other sicknesses mentioned earlier.  Lowering the average amount of students missing school is the right direction; meanwhile, it will save both the students and teachers time.

As previously said, students should be vaccinated for the 2021-2022 school year.  It is not healthy for students to miss school and get sick; moreover, it also wastes the teachers time trying to get their student caught up.  Knowing that this virus can be dangerous and can spread effortlessly proves the point that we shouldn’t pass on the offer of a vaccine.