| Greenville News
Schools could be used in a new way to help with the pandemic, state leaders said during a planning meeting on Wednesday.
Using school contact lists can be an effective way to reach people, from a place they trust, said Dr. Linda Bell, a state epidemiologist.
During a call with dozens of officials and representatives of various groups helping with the pandemic, Bell said that communicating COVID-19 vaccine routing through schools was a route she had not heard before being proposed.
School districts maintain some of the most comprehensive contact lists, usually with telephone numbers, e-mails and other information for most students.
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There are about 780,000 students in the state, and with the brothers it is still possible to reach over half a million students through the districts.
With the addition of teachers and staff, who could also be contacted, school districts could easily reach more than 10% of the state’s residents, said Ryan Brown, communications officer for the South Carolina Department of Education.
And it wouldn’t stop there, because people who hear from school districts would probably be sharing this information with neighbors and on social media, he said.
There are minor examples, during hurricanes and weather cancellations, schools will use automated phone calls and other ways to reach parents, as well as during blockades for security and other reasons.
“With the push of a button, it can go basically to everyone in the community,” said Brown.
Any plan to reach the districts would likely happen through local partners, with messages made by health agencies at the county level, rather than a single message from the state, he said.
Brown said school districts are eager to help.