[ST. PAUL, MN] — Today, Governor Tim Walz announced that nearly 55% of Minnesota’s educators, school staff, and child care providers have received the COVID-19 vaccine.

“Minnesota’s teachers and child care workers have made extraordinary sacrifices throughout the COVID-19 pandemic for the benefit of our students and children,” said Governor Walz. “Vaccinating more and more of our teachers and child care workers means that our students are able to return to in-person learning. As a parent and a former classroom teacher, I am proud of our state’s vaccination progress and I look forward to building on this success until all of our educators have received the vaccine.”

“We know our students learn best when they’re in person with their teachers, and in order to keep our educators safe, we have made it a priority to get them the COVID-19 vaccine as quickly as possible,” said Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan. “Our state’s teachers and child care providers play vital roles in our kids’ lives. I’m tremendously grateful for them every day. Providing vaccines to nearly 55% of our educators, school staff, and child care providers is an incredible achievement, and we will keep moving forward to reach 100%.”

In addition to making the COVID-19 vaccine available to teachers and child care providers, the State of Minnesota has prioritized COVID-19 testing for educators. On January 4, the state began its first-in-the-nation testing program in which testing supplies are delivered every two weeks directly from the state warehouse to each school district at no cost to staff or schools. Since then, more than 96 percent of Minnesota’s school districts have signed up to participate. Forty-one percent of nonpublic schools and two out of four tribal schools are also participating.

In December, Governor Walz updated the Safe Learning Plan to allow every elementary school across the state to operate in person as long as they are able to implement additional mitigation strategies, which include a strong recommendation for staff to wear face shields and masks together and offering no-cost regular COVID-19 testing for school staff. Last month, middle and high schools were allowed to implement an in-person or hybrid learning model if they are able to implement similar health and safety strategies, including updated physical distancing requirements. Safe in-person learning is a public health imperative, and the state has learned more about how to reduce the potential for spread in schools.