Important Immunization Requirement: Do You Have a Student Entering Seventh Grade or Twelfth Grade This Fall?

By Communications and Community Relations Staff
For Parents
May 01, 2023

If yes, your student may need one or more of the following immunizations:

7th Grade:

  • One dose of Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis) given at age 7 or older.
  • One dose of Meningococcal Vaccine (MenACWY, Menactra, or Menveo) given at age 10 or older.
  • Two doses of HPV (Human Papillomavirus) vaccine. The first dose shall be administered before the child enters the 7th grade. After reviewing educational materials approved by the Board of Health, the parent or guardian, at the parents or guardians’ sole discretion, may elect for the child not to receive the HPV vaccine. FCPS does not require opt-out documentation for the HPV vaccine.  

12th Grade:

  • One dose of Meningococcal Vaccine (MenACWY, Menactra, or Menveo) given at age 16 or older.

Effective July 1, 2021, these immunizations are required for all students entering seventh and twelfth grades. Parents or guardians should ask their private healthcare provider, or the health department, to review their student's immunization record to ensure that their student has received these required immunizations. 

Seventh grade students cannot begin school in August without documentation of the Tdap and Meningococcal vaccines. 

Twelfth grade students cannot begin school in August without documentation of the Meningococcal vaccine.

Documentation must be provided to the student information assistant (SIA) or registrar at the school your student is currently attending or will be attending in the fall as soon as possible. 

Acceptable documentation can be one of the following:

  1. A copy of your student's immunization record showing the date the immunization was given.
  2. A note on a healthcare provider’s letterhead stating the date the immunization was given.
  3. A healthcare provider’s written statement of a permanent or temporary medical exemption for a student who cannot receive the immunization due to medical reasons.
  4. A notarized Religious Exemption Form which is available online at: http://www.doe.virginia.gov/support/health_medical/certificate_religious_exemption.pdf.

These immunizations are available from your student’s healthcare provider or the Fairfax County Health Department. Immunizations are also available at local pharmacies, such as CVS and Walgreens, and urgent care centers, such as Patient First. 

The following clinics provide immunizations to low income families or those families with or without insurance:

More information about immunization requirements and exemptions can be found in the current version of FCPS Regulation 2101 and on the General Registration Immunization section of the FCPS website. 

The complete list of mandated vaccines can be found on the Virginia Department of Health-School and Day Care minimum immunization requirements

The following websites provide information and educational materials about the Tdap, Meningococcal, and HPV immunizations:

If you have any questions, please contact one of the school health specialists for Fairfax County Public Schools: