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Students in Wichita, Kansas, public schools can ditch masks when class begins. Detroit public schools will likely need it unless everyone in a room is vaccinated. In Pittsburgh, masks will likely be required regardless of vaccination status. And in some states, schools cannot require the face covering under any circumstances.
With COVID-19 cases soaring nationwide, school districts across the United States are once again facing the realities of a polarized country and the lingering pandemic as they navigate mask requirements , vaccines and social distancing for the new school year which is fast approaching.
The spread of the delta variant and deep political divisions linked to the epidemic have complicated decisions in districts from coast to coast. Some conservative states lawmakers have banned districts from requiring masks despite outcry from medical professionals. Schools are evaluating a variety of plans for managing middle and high school classrooms filled with vaccinated and unvaccinated students.
“I’m so frustrated that this has become a political issue because it shouldn’t be. It’s science, ”said Mary Tuttle, who operates a home day care center in Indianapolis and hopes schools in the city will need masks for her daughters.
She worries that the Delta variant will lead to a return to virtual learning, which has left her 10-year-old daughter depressed and anxious last year. Another girl will be 12 six days after starting grade 6 and will be vaccinated as soon as possible.
An overall increase in cases adds to concerns – strongly in some states, including Arkansas, that will not let schools require masks. Public health researchers on Tuesday called Arkansas’ rapidly increasing infections and hospitalizations a “wildfire raging” and the state’s top health official warned of future major outbreaks in the provinces. schools.
Arkansas leads the country in the number of new cases per capita, according to figures compiled by researchers at Johns Hopkins University, and it has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the country, with just 35 % of the population fully vaccinated.
In Mississippi, the senior health official said on Tuesday that intensive care units were full in 13 hospitals due to an increase in the number of cases, and he issued a worrying warning in one of the least vaccinated states. of the country: “All of you, we’re going to have a tough few weeks,” said Dr Thomas Dobbs.
American Academy of Pediatrics weekly counts based on state reports show COVID-19 cases in children rose nationwide in July after a few months of decline. The most recent data shows a 1% increase from July 1 to July 15, accounting for an additional 43,000 cases.
The American Academy of Pediatrics on Monday recommended universal masking in schools, even for those who are vaccinated against the virus that causes COVID-19. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention earlier this month recommended wearing the mask indoors only for students and staff who are not fully immunized.
The vaccine has not been approved for children under 12 years old. If it proves safe and effective for younger people, vaccine makers can apply for emergency clearance this fall or winter.
The president of the American Federation of Teachers, Randi Weingarten, said that the fact that some states refuse to allow mask requirements “is simply not true.” She said the organization had adopted the CDC’s recommendations.
But school officials say the masking decisions have been complicated by conflicting advice from public health officials.
“It’s frustrating. Parents hear these are recommendations, and it becomes a tricky dance” because of differing opinions, said Steve Matthews, principal of community schools in Novi, outside Detroit.
He will likely recommend that the school board make masking optional, although he is concerned about potential outbreaks because people congregate for sporting events, family reunions and other activities.
“It would be very helpful if there was agreement within the medical community on what the approach should be,” Matthews said. When everyone wore masks last year, “it created a sense of community, the feeling that we are all in the same boat. Now it ends up dividing people.
This is part of the reason the academy recommended universal masking in schools, said Dr Sonja O’Leary, chair of the academy’s Council on School Health.
“People just wanted it to be clearer, masks or no masks,” O’Leary said. She said data shows COVID-19 infections have not been rampant in American schools, but “we know masks slow transmission.” Additionally, keeping track of who has been vaccinated and who has not can be difficult for schools.
School districts that can set their own policies take different approaches.
In Detroit public schools, everyone will likely have to wear a mask unless an entire room is vaccinated. Authorities are developing an identification system, possibly by wearing lanyards, Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said.
In Pittsburgh, administrators propose that all students and public school staff be required to wear masks indoors to protect young students and because of “concerns about unknowns in the variant,” the door said. lyrics by Ebony R. Pugh. Universal masking also protects the privacy of older students who have not been vaccinated, she said.
In Kansas, most school children and teachers will not be required to wear masks. The state’s largest district, Wichita, made masks optional starting July 6 and questioned parents before announcing its plan to reopen, Wichita Public Schools spokeswoman Susan Arensman said.
“A lot of them, their main talking points were about the emotional well-being of students and staff,” Arensman said. “They always wanted the kids to be safe, but they also wanted the kids to get back to normal. “
In Templeton, Calif., Jenny Grinager said she didn’t like masks and got an exemption for her 8-year-old son because he suffers from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and d ‘autism. She said her son has difficulty communicating with people who wear masks because he is unable to see their facial expressions. Last year he said he didn’t have friends in class and felt lonely.
“For him, it’s the relationship, the interaction that gets him to remember who someone is,” said Grinager, who also doesn’t think vaccination is necessary. She notes that children are less likely to become seriously ill with COVID-19, and she has not been vaccinated.
In Madison, Wisconsin, Sarah Jedd plans to send her 15 and 13-year-old sons back to class because both are vaccinated, but she will home school her 9-year-old son and 8-year-old daughter if masks are not required. The district is expected to announce its decision later this week.
“I’m just really concerned about (them) being inside a school building with lots and lots of kids without masks when they’re too young to be vaccinated,” Jedd said.
Jacky Frechette, who has a son who is vaccinated and a 4-year-old who is not, said every student in Madison should be required to wear a mask rather than having different rules for who is vaccinated and not vaccinated, especially when people can lie so easily about it.
“It’s sad (wearing masks) has become so confrontational that we’ve put our political thoughts and feelings above what the experts say,” she said.
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Associated Press writers Emily Wagster Pettus, Andrew DeMillo and Lindsey Tanner and contributed to this story.
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