Coronavirus concerns will keep Wake students at home into February

Wake County Pharmacy Director Jason Wittes said a lack of coronavirus vaccines means it could take weeks or months to get teachers and employees in the county vaccinated.

Parents and school leaders hope the sooner employees get vaccinated, the sooner students can be back in class.

"Students are failing, and that's a reality," parent Brian Groesser said. "There's no substitute for being in a classroom and absorbing that information all day long and being able to ask questions and be with your peers and consume all of that on a daily basis.”

It's a reality Groesser and his family have dealt with for months as students stick to remote learning for a little while longer.

He said that vaccinating teachers will pave the way for schools to reopen.

"They're the keys to getting the kids back in school, which is a key thing in this state," he added.

All Wake students to remain in remote learning until mid-February

Frontline essential workers, such as teachers, fall into Phase 3 of who's next in line to receive the vaccine in Wake County.

The county doesn’t have enough doses to vaccinate the 180,000 people included in Groups 1 and 2, which includes health care workers, long-term care residents and staff and adults ages 65 and up. But some employees in the district do qualify for the vaccine.

"We are messaging to our employees directly who are in the categories that are eligible about how to access and getting on if they're interested in getting the vaccine," said Cathy Moore, the superintendent for the Wake County Public School System.

Both Cumberland County Schools and Wayne County Public Schools said they’re holding off on the next step of in-person learning until teachers get vaccinated.

On Tuesday, Johnston County Public Schools began vaccinating its employees who are 65 or older.

Wake County is struggling to meet the soaring demand.

"Teachers, frankly, should have been near the very front," said Groesser.

Students will remain in all-remote learning until the district can get a decent amount of employees vaccinated.

Health officials said it’s hard to provide a timetable because it depends how many doses the county receives.

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