Reminder: Supporting Students to Obtain COVID Vaccination

As we have recently shared with the community, Hebron Academy will be requiring all eligible students (those ages 12 and older) and Hebron employees to obtain an FDA or WHO-approved COVID-19 vaccine.

As of today, the below vaccines are approved by both agencies.  We will update this list in every newsletter as needed.  If your student is scheduled to receive a vaccine and it is not one on this list, please contact the Director of Health Services, Deb Traub.  Please only use approved vaccines to avoid having to revaccinate your student.

WHO-approved vaccines are Pfizer (Comirnaty)(for 12 and above), AstraZeneca (Covishield), Sinopharm, and Sinovac for 18 and above.

FDA emergency approved vaccines are Pfizer (12 and above), Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson (18 and above).

For those of us who reside in the US, access to a vaccine is easy.  All states have a website that lists vaccine clinics and your family providers can help you locate one as well.  All vaccines are free. If for any reason you are having problems finding a clinic, please reach out to the Director of Health Services, Deb Traub and she and her team can provide you with assistance.

For our international families, access is not always as easy and we appreciate how difficult it can be.  We do ask that you make every effort to try to get your student fully vaccinated prior to arrival.  If there is any way we can be of assistance to you in this process, please contact the Director of Health Services, Deb Traub.

That being said, any student who is not vaccinated, or who has had only one dose, or whose second dose will not be obtained more than two weeks prior to arrival on campus, will be required to arrive on campus early to be tested and quarantined while we start the vaccination process, provide the second dose or wait for the required two weeks following a second dose to obtain full vaccination. 

Lara Butera, our local guardian, and her team at International Student Support will provide guardianship support to all students during this early arrival period. Students will be housed here on campus in a dorm and all meals will be provided by SAGE, Hebron’s dining services team. 

The arrival date for quarantine will be Friday, August 13.

All unvaccinated, partially vaccinated students or not fully vaccinated students will be required to obtain a PCR test within 72 hours prior to arrival.  They will be tested again upon arrival and required to quarantine for two weeks.  During that time the Hebron Health Services Team will assist students in obtaining full vaccination. 

During this quarantine period, students will be required to mask and socially distance at all times. Students will be tested again at day 5 post-arrival (per Maine state guidelines for international visitors) and then again at day 8. There will be social activities for the students to engage in while in the care of Laura Butera’s team during this two week period, as well as opportunities for students to get outside and engage in fun and active activities as they explore campus and local outdoor recreation areas, as they get to know each other and the school. That being said, protecting the health and safety of these students will be the priority during this quarantine period and various safety restrictions will be in place relative to their interaction with one another to mitigate the risk of transmission.  

All PCR testing will be billed to students’ school accounts at a cost of $75/test.

Please note that any student who is not fully vaccinated (at least two weeks post 2nd vaccination) will be required to spend the full two weeks in quarantine.

We ask that any families who foresee that their student will not be fully vaccinated (two weeks post 2nd vaccination) by August 28th contact the Director of Health Services, Deb Traub, by July 15th so we can arrange for quarantine and vaccination support for your student. If you have questions about whether your student will be required to participate in this two-week quarantine period, please also direct questions to the Director of Health Services, Deb Traub. Due to logistical constraints, we can not allow for any late arrivals to quarantine or make any exceptions.

Please note that Hebron is allowing for medical exemptions only.  If you feel your child qualifies for a medical exemption, please contact Director of Health Services, Deb Traub.