The Princeton Public Schools and the Princeton Health Department are teaming up to offer free COVID-19 vaccinations to the school district’s students, families and staff – including 5-11-year-old students, according to school district officials.
Superintendent of Schools Carole Kelley announced the two impending vaccination clinics at the Princeton Public Schools Board of Education’s Nov. 9 meeting. She said it was “really exciting” to see that the youngest students can receive a vaccination.
The appointment-only vaccination clinics, which are not open to the public, have been set for Nov. 30 and Dec. 21. They will be held between 4-8 p.m. at the Suzanne Patterson Building at 45 Stockton St. The building is across the parking lot from Monument Hall.
Appointments can be made through the New Jersey Vaccine Scheduling System online at https://covid19.nj.gov/pages/finder or by calling 855-568-0545, officials said.
The pediatric version of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine for 5-11-year-old children will be offered at both clinics. Children who receive their first dose of the pediatric Pfizer vaccine at the Nov. 30 clinic would be eligible to receive a second dose at the Dec. 21 clinic.
If a family misses the two clinics, pediatric vaccinations also will be offered at local pediatricians’ offices, some pharmacies and Princeton University. Those appointments can be made through the New Jersey Vaccine Scheduling System.
The Pfizer vaccine for 12-17-year-old children will be available at the Nov. 30 and Dec. 21 clinics. Vaccinations for adults also will be available at the clinics, including booster shots for all three brands – Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson.
Eligible adults who have received a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine are eligible for a booster shot six months after the second dose. Those who received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine are eligible two months after their initial dose.
As of Nov. 8, 97% of Princeton residents between 12 and 17 years old have received one dose and 82% have received the second dose, which makes them fully vaccinated, according to the Princeton Health Department.
All Princeton residents who are at least 65 years old have received both shots and are fully vaccinated, but only 24% of adults eligible for a booster shot had received one as of Nov. 8, the Princeton Health Department said.