With two doses down, Youngstown schools staff prepares for in-person learning

YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown City School District teachers and staff are ready to return to the classroom after getting the second dose of the coronavirus vaccine.

The district administered 700 second doses of the Moderna coronavirus vaccine to teachers and staff from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Friday at East and Chaney high schools.

Classes were canceled Friday so teachers and staff would have time to get the vaccine.

Maureen Donofrio, assistant principal at Harding Elementary School, said district teachers and staff have missed working with students in-person. District employees along with students and families have adapted to make the best of the situation during the pandemic, she said.

"They know how to adapt," Donofrio said. "They're resilient ... and we always step up to the challenge."

She said she was honored that teachers and staff were put so high up on the list to receive the vaccine.

"It's kind of a feeling of a little bit of confidence," Donofrio said.

Kenyetta Burr, supervisor of nursing for Youngstown schools, said the district expects to vaccinate 900 of 1,350 employees in total.

Burr said the district received 1,100 doses of the vaccine again to administer the second dose.

The remainder of the vaccines will be given to 200 teachers and staff who missed the initial sign-up for the vaccine and have a later date to receive the second dose, Burr said.

The district offered leftover doses to the family of staff members who qualified under state guidelines before Phase 2 and 1C were available. It included those who are 65 and older, are immunocompromised or have other pre-existing conditions. They will also receive a second dose from the district.

The clinic locations vaccinated 10 people every 15 minutes to be able to do everyone in one day, Burr said.

Burr said she has heard both positive and negative reactions to the plans for students to return in-person beginning March 15.

"We've had it from both sides," Burr said, noting some are concerned about safety protocols but others are eager to get back into the classroom with their students.

All students will have the option to return to in-person instruction beginning the week of March 15. Families will have the option to continue with remote instruction full time.

Pre-kindergarten through fifth-grade students will return Tuesdays and Thursdays starting March 16.

All students at Rayen Early College Middle School, regardless of grade level, will return to in-person instruction Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning March 16.

Sixth- through 12th-grade students will return Mondays and Fridays beginning March 15.

Austen Reiser, a teacher for grades 6-8, said returning back will be good for the students to have in-person interaction. He said some students have adjusted well to virtual classes, but others are still struggling.

"I think bringing them back, even if it's just for two days is going to be a big benefit for them," Reiser said.

Reiser said the district installed equipment to keep students and staff safe, such as thermometers and desk shields.

"They're taking the steps in the right direction," Reiser said.

CEO Justin Jennings said the district has been ordering PPE equipment since March 2020 and is prepared to return with PPE and equipment for social distancing.

Savannah Boals, a kindergarten teacher, said she is excited to be back in the classroom with students. She said the day classes return in-person will be exactly a full year since she taught them in-person before the pandemic.

"I love teaching, and it makes a huge difference to do it in the classroom," Boals said.

Boals said a couple of her students are planning to continue virtual classes for various reasons.

"As a teacher, you ensure that those children are learning alongside the ones who are going hybrid," Boals said.

This story was originally published March 6, 2021 at 8:24 AM with the headline "With two doses down, Youngstown schools staff prepares for in-person learning."