SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — Seniors and front line health care workers are still the priority, but despite a push from school district leaders Gov. Ron DeSantis said Monday teachers and school staff should not expect to be prioritized for vaccination.

Teachers returning from virtual learning say they’re exposing themselves more than ever since the start of the pandemic.

Many say the lack of plan to get them vaccinated is concerning.

Justin Hughes is a middle school drama teacher in Seminole County.

While he’s ready for the curtain to fall on the COVID-19 pandemic, he hoped teachers would be included when it came to casting the first wave of eligible vaccine recipients.            

"The chain of exposure is very fragile in the school setting," Hughes said. "So being able to sever one of those ties completely by vaccinating the teachers allows that system to operate more seamlessly, and without that sort of risk of collapse.”

“I would say overwhelmingly, a lot of teachers are like, ‘If we are going to be on campus, then we should be first in line to receive the vaccine,'" said Bobby Agagnina, vice president of the Seminole Educators Association.

Even Seminole County leaders have been pushing for teachers to jump up on the priority list.

“We understand and completely respect that health care and medical are the first tier, and are essential," said Dr. Walt Griffin, Superintendent of Seminole County Public Schools. "But we have many teachers who would love to be vaccinated, would invite that opportunity, and they are out there with our children every single day.”

Hughes says he just hopes state leaders will carry the same tune.

“They clearly understand that teachers are the sort of front line important system, but we don’t see that happening in this rollout," Hughes said.

Griffin said this comes, as 7,600 additional students in the county returned to face to face learning.

Now, nearly two-thirds of students in the Seminole County public school system are doing some sort of face-to-face learning.