Zeta Charter Schools – a charter school network serving pre-K through fourth grade across five campuses in the Bronx and upper Manhattan – announced Thursday that 98.5% of all Zeta teachers and staff have been fully vaccinated, with 1.5% submitting medical exemptions.
Zeta has also reported zero cases of school-based spread and no shut down of any classrooms since the start of the school year on Aug. 23. The announcement comes as a federal appeals court ruled recently to remove a block on NYC’s vaccine mandate for city Department of Education employees, paving the way for officials to require all school staff to receive a vaccine dose by Oct. 4 or be put on unpaid leave.
Zeta Charter Schools’ successful vaccination efforts are in large part due to their dedication to educate and inform their school staff and families around the importance of getting vaccinated and how safe it is. Beginning last year, as soon as vaccines were available and eligibility requirements were met, all teachers and staff were encouraged to get vaccinated. This school year, Zeta formally required vaccinations for staff and the vaccine mandates went into effect the day staff returned for the school year.
“We are extremely proud of our dedicated teachers and school staff who continually go above and beyond for our students and are the reason we have such a remarkably high vaccination rate and zero cases of school-based spread today,” said Emily Kim, founder and CEO of Zeta Charter Schools. “At Zeta, we knew that getting our staff vaccinated was the best way to ensure the safety of all and that our students could safely return to the classroom. As the school year progresses, Zeta will continue to adapt to the latest information and implement proven COVID mitigation strategies to support the health and safety of our students, staff, and families.”
Key Facts
- 98.5% of Zeta school staff are vaccinated, with the remaining 1.5% (3/200 total staff) submitting a medical exemption.
- There have been zero cases of school-based spread in Zeta schools since the start of school on Aug. 23, and zero classroom shutdowns.
- 0.6% of Zeta students and 1% of school staff have tested positive for COVID-19 since the start of school on August 23.
- Staff must provide date of and proof of vaccination — for both doses of Pfizer or Moderna.
Zeta continues to adapt and implement new COVID mitigation strategies, medical expert guidance, and quarantine protocols based on updated contract tracing and close contact policies that are informed by the CDC and other health officials.
