Education professionals, children and parents alike are eager to return to in-person instruction more than a year after the pandemic shuttered schools and childcare centers across the country. With safety the clear priority, the push to reopen coincides with a simultaneous drive to ensure all childhood education staff receive the opportunity to get their COVID-19 vaccine.
The pandemic forced Lutheran Services Florida to shut down its Duval Head Start Program in November. Formed in 2014, the program prepares children — particularly those from underserved communities — for kindergarten with high-quality early childhood education. More than 1,400 children from low-income households in Jacksonville are enrolled in the program.
In an effort to control the spread of the virus, LSF partnered with Agape Family Health to vaccinate the program’s teachers and their families. The health center ultimately administered 200 doses of the vaccine! The shots undoubtedly provide a new semblance of normality for LSF staff and the families for which they provide services.
Lutheran Services Florida is a member of Lutheran Services in America, a network of 300 health and human service organizations located in more than 1,400 communities across the United States. Together, the network makes a difference in the lives of one in 50 Americans every year.
Learn more about Lutheran Services Florida.
By Christopher Findlay, Senior Marketing Manager