CONCERN OVER POTENTIAL COVID VACCINE MANDATE AT SACRED HEART GREENWICH

UPDATE: 8/27 - Thank you to all signers of the petition and to SHG for working with parents to clarify SHG’s stance on vaccination and the UCC.

Sacred Heart is a family and sometimes families disagree. As long as respect and open discussion exists a family grows, evolves, and stays together. Parental rights and choice are critical and at the same time SHG must run a successful school and business while protecting the school population.

On 8/27 petitioners received an email from Head of School and Chair of the Board. Based on this and conversations with parents, the school:

1. Will only mandate the COVID vaccine if the state mandates (and if they’d be required to shut their doors otherwise) “the School [that we] would not require a vaccine unless and until it is otherwise mandated by law” This gives parents reassurance that the school will do all in its’ power to respect the views of the parents.
2. Provides choice on whether or not to sign the UCC (If you signed the enrollment contract you already have a contract in place) “Whether you ultimately decide to sign the Community Contract, our expectation is that all enrolled students will abide by our policies as a condition of continued enrollment and that parents of enrolled students will support the School in our efforts to keep your children safe this year.” Please consult with your own attorney if you'd like further clarification on this.

Parents have every intention of following rules and policies as long as they’re in the best interest of our children.

Parents are encouraged to have open communication with the school to gain clarity on concerns. We’re looking forward to the start of the school year and to continued conversations.

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UPDATE: 8/18 – On 8/13 SHG added an Updated Community Contract (UCC) due 8/27 required to attend school. While the UCC may have been drafted to give as much authority to the school as possible, we obviously want to maintain our parental rights and our family’s freedoms. Please read below:

Parent Concerns With UCC:

1. Gives the school unilateral power to change or introduce anything, at any time (not just based on medical issues)
2. Gives no advance notice of proposed changes, nor does it provide prior parental review which removes our parental rights, control and freedom of choice
3. Allows for segregation and discrimination in our school and against our daughters
4. Violates our daughters’ medical privacy

Parent Proposal: Reword the UCC to address our concerns and address the current COVID situation in the same proven fashion as last year. Daily Magnus app to report symptoms plus either 1)Take the vaccine; or 2)Test more frequently if not vaccinated; or 3) Prove recovery from COVID/Antibodies

Action: Read your UCC and if this concerns you, please sign this petition and email and call Meg Frazier, Head of School, Nurse Elken, Kathleen O’Connor (Chairman of the Board of Trustees), the heads of LS, MS or US

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UPDATE: July 14 - SHG is now "encouraging" vaccination, but not mandating (pending updated guidance from the American Academy of Pediatrics early August). However, the concerns of our girls being discriminated against, segregated and being pressured socially and by SHG still exist. As an independent school SHG can make its own decision and does not have to comply with recommendations.

We are a group of Sacred Heart Greenwich (SHG) Parents, Grandparents & Alumnae, who want to preserve our Parental Rights and have the freedom of choice when it comes to the COVID vaccine for our children to attend SHG. We want to make a choice with our child’s doctor to accept or deny this vaccine, without the risk of expulsion, being forced to learn remotely or of discrimination and segregation. We are against SHG requiring/mandating this vaccine. We do not want our girls to be socially pressured into a forced medical procedure. We would like SHG to confirm they will not be mandating Covid vaccines for 2021-2022.

Parental concerns stem from the following:

1. The new clause in this year’s enrollment contract added for girls 12+ states that SHG may require Covid immunization if a vaccine is “approved.” The clause reads as follows: “I understand that current health information, including immunization records, are required for the Student’s enrollment. I further understand that all students must be immunized in accordance with Connecticut law and that the Student may not be permitted to be on campus or participate in in-person school activities until she meets mandated immunization requirements. In addition to legally mandated immunizations, I understand that the School reserves the right to require that Students be tested and/or immunized against influenza or other highly contagious diseases, such as COVID- 19, should health conditions and public health data support the need for such preventative measures and provided such vaccines are approved and available, subject to applicable exemptions. Financial obligations under this Contract are not waived or reduced if the Student is restricted from participation in school programs due to failure to comply with immunization requirements.”
2. A handful of other schools in CT are mandating and requiring the Covid vaccine.
3. SHG follows guidance from Yale, which is requiring Covid vaccinations for Fall. 1
4. This vaccine is NOT “approved” by the FDA. It only has Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) from the FDA 2 see definition below.
5. This vaccine is experimental, fast-tracked, with no long term safety studies.
6. This vaccine is not legally mandated, and as such, SHG has the choice not to require it.
7. This vaccine has risks including, but not limited to: anaphylaxis, cardiac arrest, body spasms, blood clotting, sinus thrombosis, and even death. See NY Times/CDC Investigation, NBC CT’s report of “At least 18 teens and young adults in CT with heart problems after receiving COVID vaccine”, Economic Times “Heart Inflammation in teens/young adults”, Tucker Carlson's report on increase in heart issues in young people from vaccine 3.
8. Vaccine manufacturers are not liable, in the event of a child’s death or injury.

We recognize SHG is charged with safeguarding health at school by slowing the spread of COVID and has done an incredible job this past year. However, scientific evidence shows children are:

• Not at risk (99.97% recovery rate)
• Not vectors/sources for spreading

UPDATE: Many people are uncomfortable signing the petition as they’re concerned about repercussions for their child as well as social/community repercussions overall. Please sign anonymously, with your first name or with initials if you feel more comfortable (however full names are always the most powerful).

Sources/Footnotes

1. https://covid19.yale.edu/community-messages/requir... and https://www.foxnews.com/us/yale-columbia-mandate-c...
2. https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/vacci..., https://www.10news.com/news/coronavirus/why-an-eme... and https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2021/05/1...,https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/09/health/myocarditis-..., https://childrenshealthdefense.org/defender/cdc-te..., https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/tucker-carlson-you...
3. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/22/health/cdc-hear... , https://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/coronavirus/co... , https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/pan...,