In a press briefing given by the White House COVID-19 response team, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) Director Dr. Anthony Fauci said that he believes that U.S. high school students might be able to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

“There are vaccine safety and immunogenicity studies in adolescents and children that are either ongoing and or planned. For example, the Pfizer BioNTech’s study in persons age 12 to 15 is fully enrolled as is the teen COVID study from Moderna in individuals 12 to 17 — this led me to tell you last time that we would know likely by the beginning of the fall, whether or not we can and I believe we will be able to vaccinate children of high school age.”

This is welcoming news for Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, who tells Yahoo Finance that when it comes to tackling COVID-19 in schools, vaccines have been a “game-changer.”

“I think that the vaccines have become a game-changer ... We could open schools before the vaccines open in school, learning before the vaccines, as long as you have the mitigation strategies that stop the spread of the virus, like masks and physical distancing, cleaning ventilation, and, basic sanitation like hand washing those things are what stops the transmission of this respiratory virus,” she said.

“But in addition to that, the vaccines are a real game-changer because what happens after you have a vaccine. Whatever happens in your life with COVID, you’re not going to die. These vaccines have been that effective, that if you get sick, you’re not going to die,” she said.

New York high school teacher Mark Luxemberg supports the plan to vaccinate high school students.

“I like this plan better than the talk going around regarding districts cherry-picking CDC guidance on distance in the classroom. To me it’s most prudent to stay the current course until summer, then plan again for next fall and student vaccinations. I’m worried that bringing all kids back this spring would be too risky due to lack of vaccinated students and family members,” he said.

One key component to getting kids back in the classroom is government funding. The $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan signed into law by President Biden provides more funding for K-12 schools than the $2.2 trillion CARES Act. Under the new law, $130 billion will be allocated to schools through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER). The ARP also requires the states to set aside 5% to tackle learning loss. Local school districts must reserve 20% to address the issue.

For many, the possibility of older children getting vaccinated brings the nation one step closer to normalcy.

“What it will do in terms of high school kids is it will mean that we’re one step closer to herd immunity. You’re not going to get herd immunity if you don’t get kids vaccinated as well. So it was really, really good news,” said Weingarten.

Reggie Wade is a writer for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter at @ReggieWade.

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