ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Orange County Public Schools is doing its part to help the county reach its goal to get at least 50% of students vaccinated before returning to the classrooms in January 2022.
That was the goal Dr. Raul Pino, of the Florida Department of Health in Orange County, announced at a news conference back in November.
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In the past month, school officials have hosted two rounds of vaccination events at their high schools.
“We had children coming in and getting their vaccinations, along with their parents at the same time either getting boosted or getting their first or second dose,” said Scott Howat, chief communications officer for Orange County Public Schools.
The district told News 6 it doesn’t track student vaccination numbers, however, based on the latest numbers from the Florida Department of Health, there are currently 122,289 children between the ages of 5 and 17 vaccinated in Orange County.
Howat said utilizing the schools has been a good way to reach people in the community.
“I think what we see is that parents feel comfortable coming to a school site to get vaccinated,” Howat said.
The district said they already have plans for another round of vaccination events that will start on Jan. 11.