For a healthier school environment, staff should also have the option to be vaccinated.

After the recent passing of freshman Carly Christenson from flu-related complications, local clinics partnered to provide more than 250 students with free influenza vaccinations.

Students aged 5 to 18 were eligible to receive the shot, provided they live in the district or attend a St. Louis Park public school. Central Clinic, with funding from Park Nicollet, provided the vaccinations.

The flu has spread across the nation more prevalently this year, and the Minnesota Department of Health reports 75 deaths in the state and 250 cases in 2012 in Minnesota schools alone.

We commend the school district and Central Clinic for their coordination to offer students, regardless of socioeconomic status, the chance to protect themselves from the flu.

According to Katherine Dettwyler, a professor at Texas A & M University, children do not fully develop their immune systems until the age of 6, leaving them more prone to illness.

Because of the success of this program, we encourage the school district and Central Clinic to continue this practice in future years to serve as a legacy to Christenson and to protect students from illness.

In addition to offering free vaccinations to students and children, we encourage the Central Clinic to make free or reduced cost shots available for staff of Park schools.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the main cause of the flu is droplets created by humans as they talk, cough and sneeze.

Because students are in close proximity with staff for most of the school day, everyone would be better protected from the flu if faculty and students were vaccinated.

Providing students and staff with free or reduced cost vaccinations could save clinics money in the long run as national flu outbreaks cost the healthcare system $87.1 billion annually according to the National Business Group on Health.

If properly implemented, a community-driven effort to provide annual complimentary flu vaccinations could not only save lives, but also greatly reduce medical expenditures.

An estimated cost of $10 to $16 per shot is negligible compared to the money vaccinations will save students and healthcare providers in the future.

Students should take the initiative to get vaccinated to inhibit the spread of the flu and keep themselves and those around them safe.