NEW ORLEANS — Normally folks aren’t too excited to get a shot.
But for teachers and staff at Lake Forest Charter School, the COVID-19 vaccine was a welcome jab in the arm.
Director of Curriculum Diana Leban said she was overjoyed.
“It has freed my spirit in a great way," Leban said. “We can be about the business of what we do, what we’re supposed to be here to do and support our teachers and make sure that learning takes place.”
Lake Forest math teacher Amanda Isaacs says the vaccine gives her peace of mind.
“Our administration worked out for us to get it today,” Isaacs said. “I was elated. I was excited because that’s one step closer for us coming together with the kids and my fellow colleagues.”
Lake Forest Founding CEO Mardele Early thanked New Orleans East Hospital for supplying the vaccine.
Her staff received the shots on campus first thing Monday morning.
“They really feel appreciated and have an understanding that the community appreciates what they are doing for our children,” Early said. “It just solidifies our relationship with the New Orleans East Hospital.”
Support staffer Denotrice Smith said she appreciates the fact she was one of the first educators in the state to get the vaccine.
Governor John Bel Edwards just expanded eligibility to teachers.
“I thank the governor for opening it up to our state which gave us the opportunity to get it sooner than expected,” Smith said.
Teachers and staff at Lake Forest Charter said now that they’ve gotten the vaccine, they can finally see a light at the end of the tunnel and begin to plan for life after COVID.
“I just want to be in the classroom with my students again and my other colleagues and just to be able to talk about this experience in the past tense,” Isaacs said.
“This pandemic has allowed us to understand the importance of all of us working together as a community and we all need each other,” Early said.
Nearly half the estimated 1.2 million people already eligible for the COVID-19 immunizations in Louisiana have received at least one dose of the two-dose Moderna and Pfizer vaccines.