Some school districts ready to go mask-optional, others not ready to say

Some local school districts already know what they’ll do next year when they regain control of mask mandates, while others expect more discussions before announcing a policy.

Pennsylvania school districts will be allowed to modify or end the mask mandate for K-12 students in January, Gov. Tom Wolf announced Monday.

The Democratic governor is turning over decisions about masking to local school officials Jan. 17, although the acting health secretary’s mask mandate will remain in place for early learning programs and child care facilities, according to officials at two school groups, speaking on condition of anonymity ahead of the official announcement.

Burrell School District Superintendent Shannon Wagner said her school district will go back to its original health and safety plan: Masks will be optional for staff and students — the same policy the district had before Wolf issued a masks-only mandate a few weeks after the school year started.

Norwin School District could go the same route, either this month or in December, after new board members take office.

Alex Detschelt, one of three newly elected members of the Norwin School Board, said the new school board likely would vote in December to make masks optional, if the current school board does not take up the issue this month.

“We would take a proactive stance on the issue,” so students in mid-January will have the option of wearing a mask, Detschelt said.

Detschelt along with fellow Republicans Christine Baverso and Shawna Ilagan all were elected to the school board last week. Each had criticized the current board for not fighting the state’s mask mandate.

A survey of school district families this summer found that 69% had favored making mask-wearing optional.

Parents should be permitted to choose whether they want their child to wear a mask, effective Jan. 17, or earlier, depending on the governor’s order, Norwin Superintendent Jeff Taylor said during a school board meeting Monday.

The school board is expected to vote on the revisions to the health and safety plan on Nov. 15. Taylor said he believes the vaccinations made available to younger children will have a positive impact on lowering covid cases.

The Wolf administration imposed a statewide mandate in early September, citing a surge in infections and hospitalizations from the highly contagious delta variant of the coronavirus. The order from acting Health Secretary Alison Beam required students, staff and visitors at K-12 schools and child care facilities wear masks while indoors, regardless of vaccination status.

The mandate sparked fierce backlash among some parents, and two lawsuits seeking to overturn it are pending.

The decision to end the statewide mandate comes days after federal officials approved the covid-19 vaccine for children 5 and older.

Wolf previously had vowed local school officials would be empowered to make decisions on masking, but later reversed, saying a universal, statewide order was warranted amid a coronavirus surge in late summer, and after most of the state’s 500 districts did not impose masking requirements.

Senate Majority Leader Kim Ward, R-Hempfield, said she appreciated the announcement that the mask mandate for K-12 schools and childcare facilities would be lifted.

“As we have stated from the beginning, the best approach to protecting the health and safety of Pennsylvanians from covid-19 is a personal and local decision,” Ward said. “(Monday’s) decision by Gov. Wolf is a step in the right direction for Pennsylvania as we continue to manage out of crisis and focus our efforts on moving our state’s economy in the right direction.”

Some districts, however, aren’t yet ready to throw out universal mask mandates, at least not without more information.

Hempfield Area Superintendent Tammy Wolicki anticipates the issue will be a major point of discussion between school directors and administrators come January and its impact on the district’s existing health and safety plan.

“I can tell you that our recent mitigation efforts throughout the district have resulted in a noticeable reduction in covid-19 cases over the past couple of weeks,” Wolicki said.

“Deer Lakes School District is aware of the governor’s announcement regarding masks being a local decision in January. Those are discussions we will have, but no decisions have been made as of this time.” said district spokesperson Shawn Annarelli.

Allegheny Valley School Board president Larry Pollick said the board will look at various health departments and their recommendations.

“As a board, we will be consistent to what we have done in the past and looking at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations. Our superintendent will gather appropriate info to share with the board.”

He went on to say no matter what decision the board comes to, there will be some who will disagree with it. He said this will not be a win-win situation.

“The only winners we have are the safety of our students who are coming back to school everyday. No hybrid, no virtual. Whatever steps we have to take to continue that education that we know is better than virtual, we will try to do that.”

Two pending lawsuits assert the Wolf administration had no legal right to impose the statewide mandate. The plaintiffs — among them the top leader of the state Senate, President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Centre — include parents who contend that masks interfere with their children’s breathing and cause other problems. Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court heard arguments in the suits last month but has yet to rule.

Beam’s order said school officials who do not enforce masking may face criminal penalties and could lose immunity from civil lawsuits.