Wenatchee, Eastmont School Districts Weather Vaccine Mandate

Eastmont and Wenatchee School Districts appear to have made it through the state's vaccine mandate deadline relatively unscathed.

Eastmont Superintendent Garn Christensen stated that 82% of district staff are fully vaccinated while the remainder, 145 people, were granted exemptions and can continue working.

"Is this the end of this? Boy I sure wish it were. However, all of the experiences to date would say that there is more to come." Christensen explained, "It just seems that every time we seem to think we're getting ahead of this something new occurs and we need to learn how to adapt and adjust."

Wenatchee Communications Director Diana Haglund said the district is pleased with staff for stepping up and creating a healthy and safe environment in their schools.

"For those individuals who did apply for an exemption, we did not alter their job responsibilities." detailed Haglund, "But we did put in place additional safety measures to make sure that those individuals are safe while working in our buildings."

Eastmont is employing similar safety measures for unvaccinated employees.

Of Wenatchee School District's roughly 1,200 employees, almost 88% are fully vaccinated. All 132 exemption applications were approved, and two staff members resigned due to the mandates.

Neither district is expecting to see a change in their functions, services or extracurricular activities.