BURNT HILLS – Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake Board of Education meeting on Feb. 2 had the largest crowded in attendance in 10 years, according to Superintendent of Schools Dr. Patrick McGrath. Community members were there to express how the updated mitigation plan should include optional masking.
Before the community members spoke, Superintendent McGrath addressed how administrators handled Tuesday, Jan. 25. He stated that “the district fully recognizes the confusion of that day”, and although they tried to avoid confrontation, some students still felt uncomfortable and were treated unfairly for not wearing a mask. In hindsight, Dr. McGrath said that had the ruling been in place for a second day, day two would have looked much different.
However, many community members, parents, and students – even as young as 8 years old – addressed the board to describe what they experienced on Jan. 25 and give evidence to how wearing a mask in school should be optional.
Several community members discussed how the burden of keeping adults [teachers] safe should not be placed on the children [students], and there is no science to back up that masks reduce the spread of COVID-19. They also discussed the severe mental health crisis going on amongst children and young adults in the nation right now, as a result of the isolation that students feel because of masking and other COVID-19 protocols. Many parents who spoke were questioning “when does this end” and asking for a “path to normalcy”, stating that the unintended consequences of the pandemic (i.e, mental health) are now a greater risk to kids than COVID-19.
“This is a community fractured by COVID – teachers concerned for their health, children desperate for normalcy and a district caught in the middle, trying to do what is best for everyone,” one speaker stated.
Another added that “Threatening them [students] with write-ups [for not wearing a mask] is threatening them with compliance.”
Several students also stood up to give their testimonials to the BOE. High schoolers and middle schoolers reported that when they walked into school without a mask on Jan. 25, as was their right that day, they were bullied and harassed by their peers. They don’t understand the hypocrisy, as student athletes don’t get bullied for wearing their masks on their chin during practice/games.
“We hear pull your mask up over your nose more than we hear, do you have any questions, or do you need any help [from teachers]” said one student.
These speakers provided the BOE with corroboration that the confusion around the mask mandate is creating a divide amongst students and they want respect for their choices. Parents and other community members urged the Board to update their mitigation plan to include a mask optional choice.
In response, the BOE is sending out a survey to all parents and high school students in the district within the next few days to get a sample regarding how they feel about masking as they update the tiered mitigation plan over the next few weeks. If the mandate is lifted and the masking decision is moved to locality, the BOE will be the one to make the decisions for the district. Superintendent McGrath stated that they plan to bring back the pandemic response community to help the BOE make decisions, as well as discuss with the school physician and school attorneys going forward. If masking becomes optional, they will look into getting N95 masks for those that still choose to wear them. Despite Superintendent McGrath’s statement that the mask mandate is no longer a health decision but a social decision, and the 15+ speakers who verified that, there was still contention among members of the BOE who believe that the survey and public opinions didn’t matter in their decision making.
Important Upcoming Dates
Feb. 10: Governor Kathy Hochul will address the mask mandate.
Feb. 21: Expiration of the emergency COVID-19 regulations that deals with school settings.
March 2: The Appellate Court deadline for filing all paperwork on the Supreme Court ruling that the mask mandate is unconstitutional.
