One Valley school district wants to give vaccinated employees a bonus heading into the new school year.

With the return of classes only three weeks away and the continuous rise in COVID-19 numbers, schools are doing whatever they can to encourage people in their community to get vaccinated.

The Roma Independent School District announced employees will receive $350 if they receive their COVID-19 vaccine by Sept. 1, adding that those who can’t get vaccinated because of a medical condition are exempt from getting the shot and will still qualify to receive the bonus.

Roma ISD Federal Programs Director Dr. Adrian Guerra said the district offers the incentive to create a safer school environment.

“We want to keep our staff and our students safe,“ Guerra said. “We want our community to feel safe. We want our kids to come back to school in a safe manner. We want to get back to the purpose that we have, which is educating our students.“

Roma ISD officials said the money comes from a federal relief grant under the American Rescue Plan. Guerra said that the goal is to get as many of their employees vaccinated against COVID-19 before starting the new school year.