The Pella School Board overturned an employee COVID-19 vaccination policy at their meeting this evening.

Added to the agenda over the weekend, the board was able to reconsider the school’s new COVID-19 vaccination policy, which was overturned by a 5-0 vote after the Iowa Division of Labor announced they would not enforce the new Occupational Safety and Health Administration guidance.

Superintendent Greg Ebeling changed his initial recommendation to the board after the announcement, and expressed some frustration the announcement wasn’t made sooner by the State of Iowa, and that his previous recommendation was made in part to protect his standing and from potential discipline.

The board initially approved the measure 3-2 last Thursday at a special meeting as the Supreme Court was about to hear the rules released by OSHA and were set to begin on January 10th.