MUKILTEO, Wash. — A school district in Washington has already granted nearly 100 COVID-19 vaccine exemptions based on religious reasons.
As of Monday, the Mukilteo School District received 97 requests for religious exemptions and all 97 have been granted, according to Mukilteo School District Communications Diane Bradford.
The school district comprises 24 schools and has approximately 1,400 on staff, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
The 97 exemptions come as public schools statewide face a deadline for all school staff to be fully vaccinated by Oct. 18. It is unclear if Mukilteo schools have also approved medical exemption requests.
Students, teachers and staff, including football coaches, are dealing with the realities of in-person learning during a pandemic.
The homecoming game between Kamiak High School and Glacier Peak High School, for example, was canceled Friday due to COVID-19 exposure among the varsity football team.
Kamiak High School Principal Stephen Shurtleff sent a letter to families Thursday, announcing the move.
"In football, all participants are considered a close contact with all other players. With the number of students required to quarantine for ten days, we are left without enough players to participate in the football game on Friday," the announcement said.
Separately, regarding the exemptions, Bradford said the process includes filling out a form similar to the one provided by OSPI, which must be reviewed by the district's human resources staff and legal advisor.
"Depending on the staff person's role in the district, the accommodation may include increased personal protective equipment such as N95 masks, KN95 masks, face shields, etc. or eating away from communal areas such as staff or student lunchrooms," Bradford wrote in an email statement.
Granting such exemptions is done by individual school districts, rather than OSPI.
"The state has no involvement in evaluating and maintaining health records for school employees in Washington state. As their employer, it is the school district’s responsibility to maintain those records. Additionally, school districts’ Human Resources departments have their own protocols and processes to make accommodations in these and other situations," OSPI Digital Media and Brand Administrator Ben King said via email.