On this Monday, October 18, a statewide sit-out was organized for those in opposition to the vaccine mandate. A protest was also held the same day at Chino Valley Unified School District. There were triple the usual amount of absences and 30 of them were confirmed to be associated with the protest.

California schools receive money for students that are present and/or have an excused absence. The goal of the sit-out was for parents to call out their child from school not as sick but because they are protesting the vaccine mandate. These absences would be unexcused and the schools would end up losing money which was the ultimate objective, to send a message. The 30 parents that called to confirm their kids would not be coming to school were counted as unexcused absences and their objective was met.

” Just like with my body, my choice it’s the same thing,” said Emily Baucher. As a student, she felt strongly about the matter. The absence in her eyes was well worth it to exercise her first amendment right.

In addition to students, the principal is aware of the recent absences and how it has affected Don Lugo. “With those absences is also a loss of education,” said Dr. Wong. He understood the matter and why the students had to prove their point, but it resulted in a day of learning loss.

At the end of the day, the absences of students who went to the protest set a shocking number and were recognized. With nearly triple the amount of absences, the protesters hope to set the tone and are ready to hear what the CVUSD Board has to say about the matter, this upcoming Thursday. The risk of the mandated vaccines affects students, teachers, and any other staff within the campus.

The pressure is on when students are already taken out of class because they have or could have Covid. The recent absences have shown the importance of the first amendment. But with that, academic education would be affected by absences caused by the protest.

The protest proved to be an important issue by affecting the attendance and the academic education received at school. A point was made and now the effects are well known. With many differing opinions on campus, only time will tell how the passing of the vaccine mandate will affect campus life.