Primarily due to a lapse in vaccinations from earlier in life, incoming sixth- and ninth-grade students are now required to receive an additional shot before heading back to school.

Those students are now required to show proof of receiving the Tdap vaccine, a combination immunization against tetanus, diptheria and pertussis, commonly known as the whooping cough.

If the shot has not been received by the start of the school year, an appointment must be already set up or an approved medical or religious exemption must be on file. Students who did not receive the vaccination and do not have an appointment or exemption will not be allowed to attend school, according to a press release from the Illinois Department of Public Health.