Bedford’s School Committee will continue to align with state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) directives in response to Covid-19. That means face coverings will be optional in schoolhouses as of Feb. 28.
Superintendent of Schools Philip Conrad informed students, staff, and parents of that policy last week after it was announced by state officials. And School Committee members, at their meeting Tuesday, said they support that position.
The lengthy discussion followed more than an hour of public comment, which, as expected, was polarized on the issue. Several speakers called for requiring masks through a week or two in March to gauge the impact of vacation-week travel.
Several high school students were among the speakers, most of them involved with the upcoming spring musical, “Mamma Mia,” which will be performed five times between March 16 and 19. They implored members to require face covering at the performances. The committee did not take action; it struggled with the issue, sympathetic to the concern but wary of precedent.
Conrad said that after the DESE announcement, he consulted with the town Health and Human Services Director, the chair of the School Committee, the school district’s physician, and the president of the teachers’ union before informing the community in his regular Friday email communication.
“We have been using DESE mandates all year,” he stated. “It was a decision that was looked at from as many angles as I could get input,” he told the committee. Conrad added that the schools and the town are now coterminous regarding face coverings, after the Board of Health’s vote on Monday. The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association mask mandate is also scheduled to relax on the 28th, he added.
“We continue to use all the other mitigation strategies,” he said, naming ventilation, filtration, vaccination, testing. “I strongly recommend testing on Sunday the 27th so we can keep everybody safe. We know we have people who have challenges and we have to help and support those people.
“We also made sure that people understand the importance of allowing anyone who needs or wants to wear a mask without repercussions,” Conrad stressed.
Committee member Brad Morrison observed that “what DESE has not done is tell us how to do this.” He asked about the effectiveness of messaging to students.
Bedford High School senior Prakhar Gupta, student representative to the School Committee, commented, “There is a disconnect.” He said it’s not clear to many students what ending the mask mandate will mean in school. “It has been addressed in classes to an extent. I don’t think it’s something that adults in the building are sure how to broach effectively. Bits and pieces get lost along the way.” Morrison replied, “Here’s an opportunity for us to do better.”
Morrison asked Conrad to report on the percentages of students and teachers who will continue to wear masks after the break, as well as testing numbers and any situations that require interventions. “I think we should all have faith in our children,” he said. “It’s an opportunity for Bedford to shine again.”
Since the onset of the pandemic, “this committee has not taken universal steps more restrictive than the state,” said member Dan Brosgol. “The state has made tough, correct calls along the way.” He did note that ultimately “the decision rests with this committee. The cart came shortly before the horse on this.”
Later in the meeting he added, “We’ve done a good job holding the community together while under constant duress. We are holding the center now.”
“I recommend we continue to follow the guidance,” agreed member Ann Guay. “I hope we will continue to follow DESE, and I’m sorry the procedure was difficult for some families,” She pointed out that when cases surged beginning in December, travel wasn’t the trigger; “people were getting sick at home.”
Committee Chair Sarah Scoville suggested that there will be a social-emotional impact when the mask requirement is relaxed. “It’s not going ‘back to normal.’ The information is out there and part of the responsibility is on families to read those thoroughly.” Scoville urged testing on Feb. 27, the day before classes resume.
Member JoAnn Santiago called for an atmosphere of mutual respect and concern. “Part of public health is wearing masks even when it is uncomfortable, to be mindful of the people around you and appreciate their situations.”
The only response approximating pushback was from Sarah McGinley, recently appointed the non-voting representative to the committee for Hanscom Air Force base families. She pointed out that the Lincoln schools, which operate the elementary and middle schools on the base, are still considering extending a mask mandate, and the Lexington schools already have done so. “I think it’s complicated if you are a family with multiple kids in multiple school districts,” she commented.
Regarding the musical, Conrad said, “There are lots of layers for resolution before a board policy would need to be implemented.” He added, “I think there are ways for it to be incentivized. I do believe it can be done in a collaborative manner.” There are no School Committee policies or school handbook provisions that would provide guidelines, he noted.
“I’m very wary of us getting into the business of particular events,” Brosgol remarked. “Would we have to evaluate every event? I don’t want to have kids and parents pitted against each other.”
Santiago continued to express concern about the hundreds of students not being tested for Covid-19, particularly at the high school. She inquired about making testing a prerequisite for participating in athletics or other activities, and for a general distribution of self-tests.
“We are doing everything we can to get the participation rates up,” Conrad said, adding that as of Tuesday morning, some 1,300 students and staff had signed up for at-home testing, an increase. He said he didn’t have updated information on pooled testing; “I don’t know if that has grown.” He told Santiago that the self-testing requires a parental opt-in. He noted that some parents have advised that they have other testing arrangements. Brosgol commented, “Some people will not test and we aren’t going to compel them to.”
Brosgol also asked, “What have we not thought about right now that’s going to come back and bite us?” Santiago recommended considering metrics that would guide response to future spikes, and a policy that could provide a vantage point from which to consider changes in state mandates.
The School Committee “should be meeting in person,” Brosgol added. “I think we should demonstrate and vote with our feet, because we’re making the kids do it. It’s a bad look for us.”
Mike Rosenberg can be reached at [email protected], or 781-983-1763
Loading ...
