Masking plans draw ire at Fox Chapel Area School Board meeting

Fox Chapel Area students in pre-kindergarten through sixth grade could be required to wear masks when they return to school Aug. 24.

The school board Monday night was bombarded with pleas from parents who alternately demanded mask-wearing for students and those seeking mask choice.

Superintendent Mary Catherine Reljac said, under the proposed plan, all students and staff are expected to wear masks but they are not required.

“If an individual is not going to wear a mask then their parent will need to complete a form to do so,” Reljac said.

Masks are required by the CDC to be worn on all district transportation.

After hearing from several audience members, the board shifted its plan to mandate masks for elementary-aged children, pending approval.

The school board is expected to vote on its health and safety plan during a meeting at 7 p.m. on Aug. 9 in the large group instruction room at the high school.

The proposed back-to-school plan includes guidelines that Reljac said could shift quickly amid the evolving covid-19 rates in Allegheny County.

When administrators compiled the plan just two weeks ago, there were high vaccination rates and a low number of covid-19 cases in the county, Reljac said.

On Monday, Allegheny County moved into the substantial level of transmission.

Reljac said mask recommendations can change upon local guidelines, active cases or transmission rates.

“If the school district doesn’t mandate masks, I either can’t send my children or they need to wear a powered air-purifying respirator,” said immune-compromised resident Alicia Brasfield.

“While I have chosen to be vaccinated, we don’t know it’s efficacy in people with immune deficiency and covid could still kill me.

“I’m begging you to listen to the science, doctors and public health authorities and just mandate masks in all buildings.”

Parent Jessica Simms said health and safety choices should be left to families.

“I won’t tell anyone how to parent their child and I expect the same respect,” Simms said.

“Last year, we complied to keep teachers and grandparents safe but, by now, those who want the vaccine have received it so your job of protecting the adults in students’ lives has ended.”

Simms said that forcing children to wear masks will be detrimental to their development and leave them living in fear of discipline and virus development.

“Kids need to speak to each other without hiding their faces and they need to interact with their peers. The effects of keeping their smiles hidden is unquantifiable,” she said. “We must stop trying to make everyone happy to avoid controversy.”

Mandy Seidel supported mask choice, saying that the CDC has turned into more of a political organization than a science-based group.

“People are losing sight of the fact that innocent children are stuck in the middle of this,” she said. “They’re not allowed to be comfortable in a learning environment for almost two years. My children will not be voiceless petri dishes all year again.”

Her 7-year-old daughter, Addie, also made a plea to the board to “stop all this nonsense,” saying masks make her sick and annoyed.

Among the several physicians and experts that spoke was Michael Aziz, who said “masking protects those around us, it’s not just a personal choice.”

“It’s only a matter of time before unvaccinated people get the delta variant,” he said. “We need to trust the experts. My children do not always like to wear their seatbelts but I make that decision for them.”

Health experts that spoke said masking will also protect students’ mental health by avoiding another school shutdown.

Board member Eric Hamilton said the highest priority is to keep students in school and he would hope to mandate masks for all students but would agree to the requirement for younger students.

“All we have to do is follow a common sense precaution that our kids followed every day last year,” he said. “We need to stand up to fear-mongering. I respect those who believe differently but I don’t think it is a choice. If you choose not to wear a mask, you are choosing to let the virus rage.”

Board member Marybeth Dadd also supported a mask mandate, saying that is what kept schools open last year and will keep instruction in-person this year.

“I’m concerned that we have four buildings of unvaccinated children (in the elementary schools) that would be much more susceptible to this variant and would put the teachers and staff at risk if we’re not requiring masks,” she said.

“I agree that, as things change, we can re-evaluate this. Things have changed quite a bit in the last few weeks and I’m very concerned where it’s going to go as we run into the beginning of school.”

The district will be open for 5-day-per-week, in-person instruction and will offer an online option as well. The digital option will be largely asynchronous.

Families are asked to complete a survey this week if they choose the online model.

Instructional models can be switched at the end of each nine-week grading period.

Reljac said students will be required to physically distance and reminded to regularly wash hands. Buildings will be ventilated at increased levels and HVAC systems will run 24/7 to maximize fresh air exchanges.

“I recognize that there are many different opinions but we all want our children to be healthy, happy and in school,” Reljac said.

“We all adjusted last year so that our schools could remain open as much as possible. This is tiring and we all want it to be over, but we have much more ahead of us. We will do our best to make measured decisions, and we will not hesitate to change our approach but we are asking everyone to model calmness and provide reassurance for our children.”