McCallie School requiring age-eligible students, faculty to take COVID-19 vaccine for next school year
McCallie School announced Monday it will require faculty, staff and students in eligible age groups to take the COVID-19 vaccine for the 2021-22 school year.
The school cited the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Food and Drug Administration and other authorities.
"This is a logical, socially responsible extension of our general student health policy," said head of school Lee Burns in a statement to students and parents. "The CDC, the FDA, the Hamilton County Health Department, the National Association of Independent Schools, physicians with whom we've consulted and many other health and educational professionals - all of them strongly recommend vaccinations."
As of late April, most Chattanooga-area schools and colleges stated they would not require students to take the vaccine before the upcoming school year.
Several of these schools, both public and private, do encourage taking the COVID-19 vaccine, and some have held on-campus events and clinics for students and staff.
McCallie hosted two vaccination events so far this spring for students in the eligible age groups, with another coming up on Thursday, May 20.
Signal Mountain student among three Tennessee students named U.S. Presidential Scholars
Staff photo by C.B. Schmelter / Signal Mountain Middle/High School, located at 2650 Sam Powell Drive, is seen on Monday, July 29, 2019, in Signal Mountain, Tenn.Seo Yoon Yang of Signal Mountain Middle High School is among three Tennessee high school students named to the 57th U.S. Presidential Scholars list this year.
Nationwide, 161 high school seniors made the list, selected by the White House Commission on Presidential Scholars, based on a variety of criteria including academics, arts and technical skills, community service, leadership and transcripts.
One male student and one female student are chosen from each state, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and U.S. families living abroad, along with 15 students chosen at-large, 20 students chosen as scholars in the arts and 20 chosen as scholars in career and technical education.
Rounding out the three students from Tennessee on this year's list are Nelson D. Rose of Brentwood High School in Brentwood and Alora E. Young - a U.S. Presidential Scholar in Arts - from Hillsboro High School in Nashville.
"The 2021 Presidential Scholars represent extraordinary achievements for our extraordinary times," said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in a statement. "I am delighted to join President Biden in saluting these outstanding young people for their achievements, service, character and continued pursuit of excellence. Their examples make me proud and hopeful about the future. Honoring them can remind us all of the great potential in each new generation and renew our commitment to helping them achieve their dreams."
The scholars will be recognized this summer, and a full list of U.S. Presidential Scholars for 2021 is available on the U.S. Department of Education website.
Two Cleveland State College nursing students receive scholarship from Board of Regents
Two nursing students from Cleveland State Community College - Alyssa Silva and Cassie Webb - received the Sam H. Odom Scholarship from the Tennessee Board of Regents.
The scholarship, established in 2015, aids students enrolled in a Tennessee community college who are pursuing an associate of applied science in nursing degree.
Silva and Webb plan to graduate in spring and fall 2022. For Vickie Still, assistant professor of nursing at Cleveland State who taught Silva and Webb in the fundamentals of nursing course, the awards can help them with their future careers.
"We are very pleased to have these students represent Cleveland State nursing by winning this prestigious scholarship," Still said in a statement.
Chattanooga State Community College hosting accessibility summit this week
Chattanooga State will host the third Signal Centers Accessibility Awareness Summit virtually at 10 a.m. on Thursday.
The free event includes six sessions featuring experts in accessibility, beginning with a keynote speech from San Francisco architect Chris Downey. Another session, called "accessibility accesses, challenges and a path forward," includes Chattanooga State president Rebecca Ashford and Hamilton County Schools superintendent Bryan Johnson.
Event sponsors include BlueCross BlueShield Tennessee; the Council on Developmental Disabilities; EPB; eSight; McKee Family Bakery; the Partnership for Family, Children and Adults; TVA and UNUM. To register, visit the event page on Zoom.
Contact Anika Chaturvedi at achaturvedi@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592.