The Prairie Spirit School Division (PSSD) will implement an administrative procedure requiring proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a regular negative COVID-19 test for all staff, school board trustees and individuals interacting with students and staff at its schools and offices.

According to a news release issued by the PSSD office in late October, this measure is designed to provide another layer of protection for students and staff.

The decision to proceed with the development of an administrative procedure came at the direction of the Prairie Spirit Board of Education.

The full administrative procedure has been released and comes into effect on November 16, 2021. AP-520 COVID-19 Vaccination for Employees, Trustees and Other Individuals (spiritsd.ca)

The PSSD will ask employees to either show proof of being fully vaccinated for COVID-19 or provide weekly evidence of a negative COVID-19 test result.

This policy does not apply to Prairie Spirit students.

It also does not apply to parents dropping off students at school, spectators at extra-curricular activities and participants in after-hour school rentals.

Vaccination has been shown to effectively mitigate COVID-19 virus transmission and protect vaccinated individuals from severe consequences of COVID-19, including the variants currently circulating in Saskatchewan.

The Saskatchewan Health Authority strongly recommends vaccination for everyone who is eligible (both doses of a two-dose COVID-19 vaccine series).

The PSSD has over 11,000 students in communities in a wide geographic area: north to Leask, south to Hanley, east to Colonsay and west to Perdue. The school division includes nine Hutterite colonies, three First Nations communities, villages, towns and the cities of Warman and Martensville.