NJ high school offers vaccine clinic so teens won’t miss senior trip, graduation

A school district in Gloucester County has set up a COVID-19 vaccine clinic for high schoolers old enough to get their shots, if they so choose.

Schools Superintendent Joe Bollendorf of the Washington Township district in the Sewell section said they certainly value residents’ “own ability to make personal decisions for their families,” while encouraging them to consider the option.

He said being fully vaccinated would prove helpful for seniors hoping to be able to take part in their end-of-year milestones like a traditional class trip and graduation, since if they happen to be exposed to coronavirus, they would not need to quarantine.

Fully vaccinated people do not need to quarantine or get tested after a known exposure to COVID, if they remain asymptomatic, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention protocol as of April 2.

In a video posted to Youtube, Bollendorf also said the state’s vaccine megasite at the campus of Rowan College of South Jersey is also “open for business,” and that for anyone who had tried to make an appointment before and failed — “now’s the time.”

The state’s current quarantine requirements remain at 14 days if exposed to a positive case or someone who is symptomatic, in any region that remains at a high risk of viral transmission.

That quarantine window can be reduced to 10 days if no symptoms have been reported, or seven days with a negative test once a region is at moderate or low risk, based on the state's weekly COVID-19 Activity Level Index (CALI) report.

With more in-person instruction meaning less distance between students in some cases, Bollendorf said, one student with symptoms or testing positive could conceivably force a quarantine for nine students sitting around them. He said he understands the frustration families feel in such situations, but he urged that they remain "kind" on the receiving end of such contact tracing news, from school district staff.