Phoenix Union High School District to mandate vaccinations or COVID testing for athletes, coaches

The Phoenix Union High School District announced Thursday that all student-athletes, coaches, staff and volunteers starting Nov. 1 will need to be vaccinated or undergo weekly COVID-19 testing in order to participate in sports and select extra-curricular activities.

They'll have to show proof of vaccination by Nov. 1 in order to compete or, otherwise, undergo a weekly test in order to participate. It will impact fall sports now taking place and continue when winter sports begin in late fall. 

Those who will be vaccinated beyond Nov. 1 will have to undergo the tests until they show proof of being vaccinated.

"PXU's promise to prioritize the health and safety of our staff, students, and families is unchanged," superintendent Chad Gestson said in a release. "We remain fully committed to what we call Uninterrupted A's: academics, athletics, arts, and activities. Requiring participants to be vaccinated or tested weekly will help avoid COVID-shortened seasons and reduce spread during in-person learning when students return from their practices and competition."

On Aug. 2, the district implemented a mask protocol for the approximately 28,000 students,  even though Gov. Doug Ducey signed into law a bill that would prevent districts from imposing such a mandate. That law was to take effect Wednesday, but a judge ruled the measure was unconstitutional because of the way it was included in a state budget bill.

Gestson said that with extracurricular activities it's almost impossible to have social distancing, it became imperative to do more to mitigate COVID-19, especially with the delta variant causing the 32 zip codes in the PXU to be in the red for positive cases.

"We know we must do our job to minimize," Gestson said in a news conference Thursday afternoon.

The PXU has free vaccine spots on all of its campuses, with vaccination shots available six days a week.

"As we look at the science and the spread of COVID on our campuses, the largest struggle that we have had is minimizing spread of COVID during sports and extracurricular activities," Gestson said.

Last week, Central, which is part of the district, had its football team return after having to quarantine because of positive cases. It had to cancel two games.

"We want to do all we can to not have COVID shorten a season," Gestson said. "But more importantly we want to do all we can to have student-athletes and other staff and students who engage in extracurricular sports not bring COVID back into our classrooms."

PXU has 11 large campuses and 10 small campuses.

He said of the 28,000 PXU students, the district is nearing 9,000 students who have submitted proof of vaccination.

Gestson said the goal is to have 100% of the student-athletes fully vaccinated in order to guarantee no spread of COVID-19.

"We are giving people a choice," he said. "We want to do all we can to keep athletes on the fields and the courts and, of course, in the classrooms. Our goal is somewhere between 85 and if possible 100%."

Phoenix Brophy Prep, a private school, was the first in Arizona to mandate all athletes and coaches to be vaccinated or undergo frequent testing in order to participate in extracurricular activities.

Brophy Prep uses Central's field to play its home football games.

"This decisions isn't about following what Brophy is doing, although I'm very proud of the work of Brophy College Prep," Gestson said. "What we're doing is following the science and the recommendations. And it is crystal clear, if we are going to have uninterrupted learning, we need to follow the science.

"When you talk about winter sports, indoor basketball and wrestling, outdoor soccer and girls cheer, we know that the only way to have full seasons is to have very high vaccination rates or constantly know the spread of COVID on our teams so we that don't have to go in to quarantine."

The district said it will soon send out a comprehensive list of impacted programs and criteria, along with implementation guidelines.

The district is relying on a "Vax to the Max" campaign to motivate student-athletes and staff to get vaccinated with both shots before Nov. 1, offering $100 gift cards to students and $200 given to staff on their December paycheck.

Gestson said that the district met with coaches and many students before this decision was made on what can be done to make sure sport seasons can continue.

"Our students, and our coaches, and our parents, have been really clear that they just want their kids back in school and back in competitions," Gestson said. "We know that vaccines are the best way to do that. But we also heard from some students and coaches and parents who feel getting the vaccine is not the right option for them. Which is why we have included the commitment to weekly testing. Our goal is not to lose a single coach and a single athlete."

To suggest human-interest story ideas and other news, reach Obert at richard.obert@arizonarepublic.com or 602-316-8827. Follow him on Twitter @azc_obert.

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