69´«Ã½

States Interactive

Where Teachers Are Required to Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19

August 27, 2021 | Updated: May 04, 2022 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

This page is no longer being updated. The last data update was on Dec. 7, 2021.

High teacher vaccination rates are widely considered by public health experts to be a key component of keeping schools safely open for in-person instruction. In August 2021, buoyed by the full FDA approval of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, state policymakers began to consider whether to mandate that teachers get the shot.

As of December 2021, two states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico ordered all teachers to get vaccinated. Another eight states said teachers must get vaccinated or undergo regular testing. On Dec. 2, 2021, New Mexico updated its vaccine-or-test rule to include a coronavirus booster shot.

Federal and many state officials prioritized teachers in the initial vaccine rollout as part of their strategy to return kids to school buildings. The vaccines protect those who receive them from serious illness or death from COVID-19 and also lower the likelihood of transmission to those around them.

On Sept. 9, 2021 President Joe Biden urged governors to adopt teacher vaccine requirements and created a route to set those requirements in some states where governors have not implemented their own mandates. Nationally, by August 2021, 87 percent of teachers had been vaccinated against COVID-19, according to a nationally representative survey by the EdWeek Research Center.

Many states left the decision on whether to require staff vaccinations to individual school districts. As of December 2021, at least 10 states prohibited school districts from requiring teachers to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

For media or research inquiries about this data, contact library@educationweek.org.

How to cite this page:

Where Teachers Are Required to Get Vaccinated Against COVID-19 (2021, August 27). Education Week. Retrieved Month Day, Year from /policy-politics/where-teachers-are-required-to-get-vaccinated-against-covid-19/2021/08

Data compilation and reporting: Madeline Will
Data visualization by Emma Patti Harris

Events

School & District Management Webinar Crafting Outcomes-Based Contracts That Work for Everyone
Discover the power of outcomes-based contracts and how they can drive student achievement.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management Webinar
Harnessing AI to Address Chronic Absenteeism in 69´«Ã½
Learn how AI can help your district improve student attendance and boost academic outcomes.
Content provided by 
School & District Management Webinar EdMarketer Quick Hit: What’s Trending among K-12 Leaders?
What issues are keeping K-12 leaders up at night? Join us for EdMarketer Quick Hit: What’s Trending among K-12 Leaders?

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

States Oklahoma Superintendent Prays for Trump in Video He's Requiring for 69´«Ã½
Two of the state's largest districts say they won't show the video, in which Superintendent Ryan Walters prays for the president-elect.
2 min read
Ryan Walters, Republican state superintendent candidate, speaks, June 28, 2022, in Oklahoma City.
Ryan Walters, Republican state superintendent candidate, speaks, June 28, 2022, in Oklahoma City.
Sue Ogrocki/AP
States In Deep-Red Florida, Voters Reject Partisan School Board Races
Florida voters rejected a constitutional amendment to make school board races partisan.
2 min read
Image of a board room.
Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week (Images: DigitalVision Vectors; E+; iStock/Getty)
States Democrat Defeats a State 69´«Ã½ Chief Candidate Who Called for Public Executions
A candidate's past calls for Democrats' executions thrust one of this year's four state superintendent races into the national spotlight.
3 min read
N.C. State Superintendent democratic candidate Mo Green speaks during a debate with fellow candidate Michele Morrow at the Heart Institute at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C., on Sept. 24, 2024.
Mo Green, the Democratic candidate for schools chief in North Carolina, speaks during a debate with GOP candidate Michele Morrow at the Heart Institute at East Carolina University in Greenville on Sept. 24. Green defeated Morrow.
Scott Davis/The Daily Reflector via AP
States The Number of States That Require 69´«Ã½ to Teach Cursive Is Growing
Here are the states that require schools to teach cursive handwriting.
1 min read
Photo of child practicing cursive writing.
iStock / Getty Images Plus