Few San Diego Educators Using Allocated Vaccine Appointments

METRO SAN DIEGO — Despite the teachers union saying it would not return to the classroom until members are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, the San Diego Union-Tribune found less than a third of the county's educators have taken advantage of vaccination appointments specifically allocated for school employees.

One in five vaccine doses in San Diego County have been set aside for school employees — but out of the 90,000 people who are eligible, about 23,000 have been vaccinated, the paper reported. County officials said it wasn't for a lack of trying to inform employees about the vaccinations, and they haven't heard any complaints from people who might have been unable to set up their appointment.

Bob Mueller, a coordinator at the San Diego County Office of Education, told the Union-Tribune that the low numbers could mean that school employees have been vaccinated elsewhere already or they just don't want it.

Read Kristen Taketa's story, on the low number of county educators taking advantage of COVID-19 vaccine appointments, on the paper's website.

So Long To San Diego Stadium

Demolition continues on San Diego Stadium, former home to both the San Diego Padres and Chargers. Built in 1965, the sports arena was known by several names until it closed last year — Jack Murphy, Qualcomm and SDCCU.

Troy Johnson, writing for San Diego Magazine, offers one final goodbye for the stadium, saying "its humorless immensity made it stand out in a city full of sunny, relaxing objects."

Metro San Diego Headlines

• COVID-19 Appeared Earlier Than Believed: Researchers at the UC San Diego School of Medicine said the COVID-19 virus was circulating in China undetected two months before the first cases in humans were reported.
• Red Tier Not Enough: A dance studio in San Diego says it needs to have more than the 10 percent capacity currently allowed under the state's reopening guidelines in order to remain open.
• St. Paddy's Day Robber: The FBI is hunting for a man who robbed a bank inside a Miramar Ranch North supermarket on Wednesday.
• Exhibit On Black Homesteader: The San Diego History Center opened a new virtual exhibit about Nathan Harrison, a Black homesteader who lived in the San Diego area during the 1800s.

"While it has been a long year, particularly for our gyms and restaurants, the vaccine has given us hope that we cannot only save lives, but get our way of life back."

— San Diego County Board of Supervisors Chair Nathan Fletcher said about the area's declining coronavirus case rate.

SPORTS TALK: San Diego State University announced Tuesday that it has postponed the start of its spring practice for football because of a potential COVID-19 exposure on campus. The athletic department said the exposure is unrelated to the football program.

WEATHER IN A WORD: Clear.

LET'S MAKE PLANS: Jurassic Quest will hold a drive-thru dinosaur exhibit at the Del Mar Fairgrounds from March 26 to April 4. The exhibit will take motorists along a route filled with animatronic dinosaurs displayed as if they were in their natural habitat. Tickets are required for the exhibit.

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