Previously, Sea to Sky school district policy, like many across B.C., said it would prefer parents to provide vaccination records if available. Since the measles outbreak in the Lower Mainland in early 2019, the Ministry of Education is making it mandatory for schools to ask for the record of immunization if a child has been immunized.
Trustee Celeste Bickford said she is concerned the immunization records policy will make it sound like students are required to be vaccinated.
"Are we saying kids need to be immunized to attend our schools?" Bickford asked. She added that while she is a proponent of vaccinations and documenting, Bickford said she is concerned the policy may cause anxiety in parents of unvaccinated children.
Lisa McCullough, the SD48 superintendent, said, "No child will ever be removed from a school. No child will be told they can't attend our school. It's more a documentation effort."
When Bickford mentioned getting immunization documents may be difficult for families coming from outside the country, McCullough said those families are already required to have that documentation to enter Canada. It's mostly local families, McCullough said, who don't come with documentation.
