SHELBY COUNTY, Tenn. — About 560 teachers in Shelby County’s six suburban school districts will be able to get COVID-19 vaccinations Wednesday.
Ted Horrell, superintendent for Lakeland Schools and a representative for the municipal districts, said the county health department set aside the doses for teachers in Arlington, Bartlett, Collierville, Germantown, Lakeland and Millington schools.
About 2,800 educators in those districts had expressed interest in getting the vaccine, Horrell said.
Teachers will receive the vaccinations at Bartlett High School. With the county’s other vaccine sites and many school districts closed due to snow, Horrell admitted that weather was a concern. But as of Tuesday evening, he said the vaccine plan was moving forward.
Horell said the health department initially reached out to the districts Sunday, when some excess doses of the vaccine were made available for area teachers. Some teachers with Shelby County Schools received their vaccination Monday.
From there, Horrell said, he got back in touch with the department to provide more doses for suburban teachers. That opportunity was made available Tuesday morning, he said.
On Tuesday, Tennessee health officials announced that the state would begin moving to Phase 1b of vaccinations Feb. 22. That phase includes K-12 school staff, as well as people over 65.
