Coast school district ends a COVID protocol. Why are some anti-mask parents upset?
The Pass Christian School District on Tuesday agreed to end its mandatory mask requirement with the option to reinstate it if COVID-19 transmission rates increase.
Following nine consecutive weeks of 10 or fewer COVID cases among students and staff in Pass Christian schools, the School Board unanimously voted to immediately drop the mask requirement but agreed to move again to mandatory masking if COVID numbers spike above a 2.5% positivity rate for staff; a 1% positivity rate in students; staff and student quarantine rates over 7%, and a Harrison County positivity rate of 8% or higher.
That flexibility didn’t sit well with some. Two residents spoke out against any mask wearing, and criticized the board’s decision to reverse mandates later in the school year if the numbers were not to their liking.
“There’s plenty of other schools around here that haven’t had a mask mandate all year … here we are on November 9th and we’re just taking them off. What took so long?” asked parent Greg Robertson.
Pass Christian School District has been a leader in COVID mitigation for schools across the MS Gulf Coast and is one of the last districts to phase out a mask mandate. The district also has one of the highest vaccination rates among staff members, at 83%.
Robertson, and the only other parent who addressed the new policy, also spoke against the plan’s provision that allows the district to reverse itself if rates go up.
“I’m glad y’all took the mask off,” he said. “But from what I’ve seen, y’all seem to want to lean toward putting them back on.”
Board President Margaret Jean Kalif defended the district’s decision, stating that their decisions were based on expert guidelines.
“We are in the business of protecting our children and staff first. That is our highest priority. ... If we did not have children we would not have a school,” Kalif said.
According to CDC guidance updated on Nov. 5, the agency still recommends universal indoor masking by all students and staff, regardless of vaccination status.
Most other districts drop masks
The district joins the Biloxi and Gulfport school districts, which are this week moving away from mask mandates.
School districts in Long Beach, Ocean Springs, Pearl River County, Hancock County and the Catholic Diocese of Biloxi last month all moved to optional mask policies. Jackson County was always a mask-optional district, along with Bay-Waveland and Harrison County.
Biloxi on Monday officially dropped its mask mandate, making wearing face coverings optional for teachers and staff because of “low transmission levels” in the district and expanded vaccine eligibility for school-aged children.
“Data shows a drastic decline in the number of positive Covid-19 cases in Harrison County and especially within the Biloxi Public School District. Additionally, the CDC has now approved the emergency use authorization of the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 5-11,” Superintendent Marcus Boudreaux said in a letter to parents last Thursday, explaining the school board’s unanimous decision to make masks optional.
Gulfport Superintendent Glen East told WLOX News that masks will be recommended, but no longer required, starting Nov. 29 when students and teachers return from Thanksgiving break.
This story was originally published November 10, 2021 at 11:51 AM.
