By Alex Gross ‘24
THE ROUNDUP
Enforcement of a vaccination and testing program is the only way to ensure that we stay on campus with every student being healthy and safe. COVID-19 has caused Brophy to make some drastic changes, but these strict protocols allowed us to have in-person classes almost all of last year and into the beginning of this school year.
By working alongside and consulting medical professionals and COVID-19 experts, Brophy decided that this new vaccination and testing system is the safest and most effective way to ensure student and faculty safety. Every precaution made has been made around the goal to keep Brophy’s community healthy.
Not getting vaccinated jeopardizes not only your own health but the health of others in your community as well. Although you have the right to choose your medical services, you don’t have the right to sacrifice the health of your peers.
Brophy never infringes upon any rights by not mandating vaccines, as they also give students the option to be frequently tested and still attend school. The new on-site, no-cost testing program has been implemented for both vaccinated and unvaccinated students and staff, minimizing the amount of sick people on campus.
With the amount of loss that we’ve had to endure over these past two years, we should take all steps to prevent any further effect that COVID-19 has on our lives. We’ve finally been given a vaccine that minimizes symptoms and greatly reduces the rate of deaths from COVID-19, and yet we’ve seen an increase in hospitalizations and deaths.
Vaccination is a simple solution to these problems and can increase our personal and communal well-being.
Early on in the vaccine’s existence, people were skeptical of how effective or safe it was to get vaccinated, but now with 54% of Americans having received both doses, we have seen that this is not the case. Brophy is even offering on-site vaccines and testing as a convenience to students who haven’t gotten the vaccine yet.
“Our policy is framed by science, medicine and logic and includes input and monitoring by some of the best medical experts in our state. It is designed to give students the academic and extracurricular experience they need to reach their full potential,” said Principal Bob Ryan in his Arizona Republic op-ed.
As men for others, we must take it upon ourselves to get vaccinated for the purpose of this school and its people.
There has been plenty of opposition to Brophy’s new mandates, but as a private school, they have the authority to make their own decisions as to what they think is the best way to keep students safe and in school. Any families who refuse to cooperate with Brophy’s enforcements have the option to leave and attend another school.
After the craziness of the 2020-21 school year, Brophy is trying as hard as possible to give students a normal high school experience, but this cannot be possible without our cooperation by getting vaccinated and keeping the Brophy community safe.
