Newsroom

A new bill would require all “licensed child development facilities’” staff AND students to be fully immunized against COVID-19. This would include public, charter, and private schools well as child care workers. The bill, introduced by At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson, would set a deadline of Dec. 15 for staff and students to reach full immunization, and would allow for medical and religious exemptions.

Right now, only student-athletes are required to have the shot. At-large D.C. Councilmember Christina Henderson and several other members of the council don't believe that is enough protection for students. "The number one tool we have to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 is vaccinations. Particularly as it pertains to our younger school community, where kids are in person and around each other for multiple hours of the day," said Henderson in an interview with WUSA9.

As more students become eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, the District’s officials are considering mandating the vaccine for students. Council member Christina Henderson (I- At-Large) introduced the {Coronavirus Immunization of School Students and Early Childhood Workers Amendment Act of 2021} on Oct.4, a bill that would require “all current and future students deemed eligible by the FDA to be fully vaccinated against the coronavirus on or before December 15, 2021”, according to the press release.

Vacant office spaces have emerged as targets for conversion efforts in downtown D.C., but it's unclear whether strategies to promote them will work. DC Councilmember Brooke Pinto introduced this bill and Councilmember Christina Henderson is a cosponsor.

“While college athletes will now have the chance to be paid for public appearances, autographs, or social media posts, there need to be basic safety measures around this activity,” at-large Council member Christina Henderson said.

At-large Council member Christina Henderson told WTOP this week that tasks such as contact tracing have become the responsibility of school administrators in addition to their traditional academic duties. Ferebee also wrote that schools will be assigned a full-time substitute teacher “to provide more consistent substitute support.” To add to its substitute pool, the city is also planning to increase financial incentives for former DCPS staff members to return as substitute teachers.

“The last 18 months have exposed longstanding inequities in our health systems, further placing an unjust burden on Black and Brown residents,” said Councilmember Christina Henderson. “This resolution urges Congress to act. The Affordable Care Act was a strong start, but now it’s time to go further and provide comprehensive access to health care regardless of employment status. It is past time we eliminate discriminatory barriers to health care in the United States.”

“To hear from the city administrator that we had an outsized number of religious exemption requests from one agency caught my attention,” said D.C. Council member Christina Henderson (I-At Large). “Across the country we believe in religious freedoms. But I think there is a high skepticism of individuals using religion for religion’s sake, as a shield to avoid something they don’t want to do.”

Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie, and At-Large Councilmember Elissa Silverman are all vaccinated, according to spokespeople. Ward 4’s Janeese Lewis George, Ward 1’s Brianne Nadeau, Ward 2’s Brooke Pinto, and At-Large Councilmember Christina Henderson are all fully vaccinated, as are 100% of their staff members, according to spokespeople in each office.

They say it would also ensure that the winner of a crowded contest actually has a majority of the vote, instead of a mere plurality. And they add that New York City’s experience with ranked-choice voting in this year’s mayoral election proves it can work. Advocates want D.C. lawmakers to follow suit and pass the bill introduced by Councilmember Christina Henderson (I-At Large) over the summer. (Under the bill, ranked-choice voting wouldn’t start until the 2024 election cycle.)

“One thing I won’t be considering in this process is parking,” said Henderson at today’s hearing, chuckling. “In fact, next week I’ll be introducing legislation to delink our residential parking permit program from our ward political boundaries. With that off the table, I think we can have a much more focused conversation … [towards] delivering equal and fair access to representation.” Ward 6 Councilmember Charles Allen later expressed his support for the proposed action.

“Ranked choice voting is a system that will allow voters to rank up to five candidates in order of their preference. Data shows RCV better supports women, people of color, and first-time candidates when running for office,” said Councilmember Christina Henderson. “With the unofficial results of New York City’s primary election — the largest jurisdiction to use RCV — voters elected the second Black Mayor in the city’s history, the first ever majority female City Council, and an overwhelming number of voters ranked three or more candidates. As DC’s elections become more competitive, it’s time to consider whether a new process for selecting our elected officials is needed.”