This interview has been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.

Aaron Comforty: Senator Shelli Yoder is the State Senator for Indiana’s 40th Senate District. She’s calling for teachers to be included in the next round of the state’s Covid vaccinations. Senator Yoder, thanks for joining us on WHFB News.

Yoder: Thank you so much. First, thank you for all that you do. WFHB plays an important role in education our community. So, thank you.

Comforty: What’s inspired your call to include teachers in the next round of vaccinations? And, at this point, when is Indiana planning to actually vaccinate teachers?

Yoder: That has been a question that I’ve been wondering about, considering for the last ten months we have been scrambling to figure out how we can best protect out teachers and staff, as well as keep our children in school. I commend and thank the administrators and teachers for working so incredibly hard to do so, in a way that was thoughtful to public health concerns as well as how are we going to continue to provide the outstanding education that our public education system always provides. Our teachers are on the front lines. If that wasn’t the case then I would understand why the teachers would not be part of the conversation in terms of the economy, healthcare, and food insecurity–with so many of our children. They are on the front lines delivering exceptional care and education every single day. So I would expect that we would be talking about getting the this vaccination right away. Because we want our children back in school. We want our children to be getting the kind of education that our teachers want and that our families want. But there was no conversation. What I’m hearing now is that teachers still are not part of the roll out for vaccinations. There is no plan for teachers being part of that tiered system. And I would like teachers to be part of that conversation.

Coomforty: Governor Eric Holcomb announced last week that Indiana would prioritize vaccinating its elderly residents. The move goes against federal recommendations and the Governor’s original vaccine distribution plan. Does your district have the power to prioritize vaccinating teachers, even if the State Government chooses to go a different way?

Yoder: I know that there is a push to get those vaccinations out there, but we are not moving quickly enough. We should be propping up local governments to be able to administer the vaccine in arms as quickly as possible, and that is not happening.

Comforty: Unlike a some other states, the vast majority of schools in Indiana have remained open during this school year. What have you heard from teachers in your home district?

Yoder: I’ve heard commitment to our schools. I’ve heard fear for their own health. I’ve heard questioning whether or not they need to retire early or leave the profession. I’ve heard a real desire in our community to protect our teachers. I’ve heard a need to do all that we can so that our students are receiving the care and education that we want them to receive. So I’ve heard many different layers and complexities to this question. But when it comes down to it, the answer is that we have to make sure that our staff and teachers are vaccinated.

Comforty: You were recently elected to the State Senate. You’re one of ten Democrats, if I’m not mistaken. Is there enough political will amongst your colleagues at the Indiana State House to bring teachers to the front of the line for vaccination? What kind of conversation are you having with your colleagues both Democratic and Republican?

Yoder: First we are excited to say that we did expand our caucus. We have eleven Democratic members. I wanted to say thank you to Senator Mark Stoops, who served us so well. We also expanded our caucus,