Best Incentive To Vaccinate Kids Is Back From New York State

Remember that back in the spring, when New York State was offering a huge incentive for parents to get their 12 to 17 year-olds vaccinated for COVID-19 and there were 50 total winners of a full ride for four years of college to any SUNY or CUNY school? Talk about an incentive! I certainly entered my youngest son who was eligible at that time. He didn't win but a teen from Oneonta did in June - 14-year-old Jordan Gallusser. You can imagine how thrilled his family was considering the cost of four years of college!

Keeping in mind that valuable giveaway to those 50 teens, I have a feeling parents are going to be really excited to learn that New York is doing it again with the 5 to 11-year-old age group. Once again, 50 children will win college scholarships that include tuition, room, and board to a SUNY or CUNY school, but eligible children must receive their first COVID-19 vaccine by December 19, 2021 in order to qualify for the scholarship drawing.

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Governor Kathy Hochul's office will announce 10 scholarship winners for five consecutive weeks beginning on November 24 so start making appointments for your children to be vaccinated since the demand may be high.

Once your child is eligible to enter, visit forms.ny.gov/s3/Vaccinate-Educate-Graduate-Vaccine-Incentive.

As of November 9, the COVID-19 vaccination rate for the total state population is 75.1% according to the New York State Department of Health. The vaccination rate for 18 and older is 88.5%.

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KEEP READING: Here are the most popular baby names in every state

Using March 2019 data from the Social Security Administration, Stacker compiled a list of the most popular names in each of the 50 states and Washington D.C., according to their 2018 SSA rankings. The top five boy names and top five girl names are listed for each state, as well as the number of babies born in 2018 with that name. Historically common names like Michael only made the top five in three states, while the less common name Harper ranks in the top five for 22 states.

Curious what names are trending in your home state? Keep reading to see if your name made the top five -- or to find inspiration for naming your baby.