Hempfield school board member balks at mask scofflaws as opposition to mandate continues

A Hempfield Area School Board member left last week’s in-person meeting and joined virtually after several people in the audience were asked to wear their masks correctly.

“I’m not putting up with this,” Jeanne Smith said as she left the Oct. 18 session.

She later joined the meeting online.

Her decision to leave came after several audience members were warned they would need to wear face coverings for the meeting to continue. Several wore their masks below their chins and noses until they were asked to pull them up. One person who did not have a mask was given a face shield. A few wore masks made of mesh-like fabric.

Board President Tony Bompiani told audience members as they walked into the board room that the meeting could not be held if they did not comply with the mandate.

District Solicitor Michael Korns asked people to pull their mask over their noses and mouths because of the state mandate requiring masks in schools.

“I left because people were not wearing their masks and there’s a law,” Smith said. “We all took oaths to follow the law and uphold the law and that’s why I left because there were people sitting there with their masks below their chin or their masks below their nose. Dr. Bompiani kindly asked them to not do that as they were coming in and they came in and did it.”

This is the first month district officials are enforcing the mask mandate at board meetings. In September, attendees were permitted to attend meetings without wearing a face covering. The Oct. 4 meeting, which had time-sensitive agenda items, was held virtually because of concerns people would not comply with the mandate.

Face masks were offered at the door, and face shields were given to people who did not want to wear a mask.

“We aren’t making the rules for this. Unfortunately, we have to enforce the rules,” Bompiani said. “If we don’t enforce the mask policy here at our meeting, then the mask policy can’t be enforced at our children’s events. And by not being enforced at children’s events, we aren’t going to have basketball games, we’re not going to have anything. We have to be able to have that.”

The district relaxed its mask policy during meetings last month to allow for public comment once the statue-issued mask mandate went into place, Bompiani said.

Other districts, including Norwin and North Allegheny, canceled meetings last month because people wouldn’t comply with the mandate.

“I would really encourage all of you to put your mask on, keep them on, keep them up so we can go on because if you don’t then we’ll just discontinue the meeting,” Bompiani said.

Attendees largely complied, but most parents who spoke said they were concerned over the mask mandate and rules for quarantining students when they are exposed to someone with covid-19.

For Smith, allowing attendees to speak was part of the reason for her frustration.

“That’s why I came home and listened because we all are very committed to (public comment) but we’re also responsible for following the law,” Smith said. “I just felt that that wasn’t going to happen.”