ELWOOD — A public walk-in clinic to give doses of vaccine against the H1N1 flu this week at Elwood High School will be the first of its kind in Madison County, but won’t disrupt the school day, Superintendent Tom Austin reassured the Elwood Community School Board Tuesday.

“This is going to be a significant logistical challenge,” Austin said of the walk-in clinic that will run from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the high school.

To allow room for the expected crowd, the student parking lot south of the high school will be closed at 6 a.m. Thursday morning, Austin said. He said students would be able to park at the Elwood Armory, where shuttle buses would deliver them to the high school.

Austin said more information on plans to facilitate the clinic would be made available today.

For the Madison County Health Department, it will be the first clinic that is not a drive-through. Previous drive-through clinics have been conducted in past weeks at the Madison County 4-H Fairgrounds in Alexandria and at Hoosier Park in Anderson.

Austin said that the Health Department anticipates administering 1,500 doses of vaccine against the virus commonly referred to as swine flu during Thursday’s clinic.

Separately Tuesday, the board adopted a policy setting parameters on when registered sex offenders may be allowed on school property. The policy bars sex offenders from schools unless they have a child in school and have registered with the school a plan that sets parameters when and how an offender may be on school property.

“This is such a pervasive problem that permeates every community,” Austin told the board.

Austin said the policy was recommended by the Indiana School Board Association at about the same time parents were inquiring about a registered offender who appeared on school property taking his child to school. “It’s responsible and proactive to do what’s right to deal with a sensitive situation,” he told the board.

The policy is modeled on a policy adopted by Vigo County schools. Austin said that while state law forbids registered offenders from living within 1,000 feet of a school, there are instances in which they have legitimate rights to be on school property. The policy attempts to protect children at the same time, he said.

Contact Dave Stafford: 648-4250, dave.stafford@heraldbulletin.com