Chiefs for Change – an educational advocacy group made up of school system leaders such as commissioners, superintendents, and CEOs – has come out in support of President Joe Biden’s new executive order on vaccine mandates. Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Education, Penny Schwinn, is a part of the group.
In a statement on Thursday, the group applauded the President’s executive order, saying, “The COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective – and they are what will finally end this pandemic. We commend the Biden Administration for requiring staff at all Head Start programs, Department of Defense schools, and Bureau of Indian Education-operated schools to get vaccinated, and we echo the president’s request that states require vaccines for their K-12 employees.”
The statement goes on with a request for the Biden administration, saying, “The Administration’s plan represents a very important step forward for our nation. As a bipartisan network of state and district education leaders, we now ask the federal government to provide the timeline for the FDA review of the Covid vaccine for children under the age of 12.”
The group, which has over 40 members from across the United States, also posted a tweet in support of President Biden’s new vaccine mandates. The tweet reads, “The #Covid #vaccines are safe and effective – and they are what will finally end this pandemic. We appreciate new federal actions, and ask every American to help vaccinate our communities and keep schools safe and open this year.”
The #Covid #vaccines are safe and effective—and they are what will finally end this pandemic. We appreciate new federal actions, and ask every American to help vaccinate our communities and keep schools safe and open this year. Full statement here: https://t.co/TX6s1fbo6k
— Chiefs for Change (@chiefsforchange) September 11, 2021
Schwinn, who was sworn in as the Tennessee Education Commissioner in 2019, has not publicly supported or dismissed the statements from Chiefs for Change.
President Joe Biden’s new executive order on vaccine mandates, which impacts over 100 million Americans, directs the Labor Department to require all businesses with 100 or more employees ensure their workers are either vaccinated or tested once a week.
On Twitter, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee called the president’s vaccine mandate a “power grab” and vowed to “stand up for all Tennesseans.”
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to kaitlinhousler.reports@gmail.
