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Date: 2/24/2022
HAMPDEN-WILBRAHAM – Masks are coming off in schools, but not fast enough for some residents in the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD).
At a Feb. 17 meeting, the School Committee considered whether to extend the district’s mask requirement past the Feb. 28 expiration of the state’s mandate.
The meeting was controversial from the start. Committee Vice Chair Maura Ryan informed the roughly 40 people in the audience that the meeting would not begin until the half of them who were not already wearing a mask put one on, as required by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE). Unmasked audience members were offered masks but when one claimed to have an exemption, the other unmasked individuals began a chorus of, “Me, too.” The issue was dropped.
When asked about wearing a mask to school, Student Representative Jackie Dolaher said the majority of students would rather not wear a mask but would do so if the committee decided to extend it. The senior said the school had done a good job keeping everyone safe.
Superintendent Albert Ganem commented that the students “had done phenomenal,” in wearing masks every day and had set an example for adults.
Nurse Leader Kiara Fryer reported that COVID-19 cases had dropped from 127 in the period between Jan. 20 and Feb. 3, to 76 in the following two-week period. Wilbraham’s positivity rate was 8 percent, while Hampden’s was 9 percent. Fryer said 1,182 students and staff had signed up for the at-home testing kits. A similar number had previously signed up for in-school testing.
Fryer warned the district to expect a surge after February break.
Public Comment
Sixteen residents and one doctor practicing in Wilbraham spoke against extending the mandate. Nearly all of them claimed masks do not work in protecting people against COVID-19. Many of them said it should be a parent’s choice whether or not their children wear one because it is a medical decision.
A portion of the comments revolved around the inability to see mouths and difficulty interpreting facial expressions. A resident whose son has autism said masks have made it harder for him to communicate. Likewise, another parent said her sons have individual education plans (IEPs) for speech and haven’t progressed as well as they would have without masks.
Dr. John Diggs, a primary care physician practicing in Wilbraham, said the mask issue was “political theater” to “reduce humanity.” He said children are harmed by not learning facial expressions and social cues.
Another argument was made that society must learn to live with COVID-19. “We exist with the flu,” one parent said. Another said people “have to adjust to [COVID-19].”
Meredith Sample said her entire family had already had COVID-19, so they are immune and should not have to wear masks.
Elaine Courtney called it “the antithesis of freedom,” claimed it harmed children, and was a form of “social conditioning.” One person said masks were, “human experimentation,” because they had only received emergency approval from the federal Food and Drug Administration.
School Committee member Sean Kennedy reminded people that DESE was requiring masks until Feb. 28 and districts did not have the authority to end the mask mandate immediately, as some public had called for. One member of the audience commented to another, “He’s just saying that.”
One More Week
Ganem said that because the surge after the holiday break was “astronomical,” teachers, nurses and administrators were asking for one additional week of universal masking when children come back from February break.
“Everyone wants [masking] to end,” Ganem said. “It’s a question of when.”
School Committee member Patrick Kiernan asked to let the mask mandate lapse on Feb. 28, coinciding with the end of DESE’s mandate. Kennedy amended the date to March 4, pointing out that the district’s medical and educational professionals had asked for the extra time.
School Committee member Sherrill Caruana agreed with Kennedy and pointed out there had been a surge in cases after every school break over the previous six months. “What if 100 kids get sick,” because the committee withdrew masks too soon, she asked.
Kiernan countered and said no two breaks are the same. He said five days was an arbitrary amount of time, since the incubation period for COVID-19 can be that long,
Members of the audience interrupted the committee’s debate several times with comments and questions and had to be told by Chair Michal Boudreau that public comment had ended. “We listened to you quietly, respectfully,” she admonished them and requested the same respect in return.
The committee voted 4-2 in favor of a March 4 end to the mask mandate. Kiernan and Ryan voted against the extension, while school committee member Bill Bontempi was absent.
Transitions
Director of Student Services Gina Roy told the committee that guidance and adjustment counselors would be working with students who had raised anxiety about being in class with many unmasked people. Caruana asked if the schools would supply masks. Roy replied that masks and hand sanitizer would be available to all students.
When it comes to sports, Ganem said student athletes playing away games are required to follow the masking rules of the district they are visiting.
“We’re not sacrificing our children,” Ganem assured everyone. “We’re dealing with 4,000 individuals every day. Our job is to keep them safe.” He added that the district is addressing social-emotional struggles within the student body.