Wake schools will continue mask mandate, rejects adding children younger than 5

The board specifically voted in favor of the new recommendation for the district’s youngest children, instead of a district-requested mask mandate for that age group.

The North Carolina School Boards Association reports 89 school districts require masks and 26 make masks optional.

The board approved the mask mandate’s continuance after lengthy discussion about whether to add a mask requirement for children ages 2 to 4.

District Assistant Superintendent for Student Support Services Paul Koh repeatedly told the board enforcement would be lenient and that the requirement is an effort to comply with state guidance and to help children get used to wearing them, if needed in the future.

But six of the districts eight board members objected. They cited concern that the younger children would not keep the masks on and noted the district wasn’t planning to enforce the requirement to.

The district’s original proposal was meant to reflect new North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services guidance, which makes stronger recommendations for childcare settings.

The district’s proposal to the board also included exemptions for meal times and nap times for children ages 2 to 4.

The board’s vote comes as North Carolina has reached record-high COVID-19 infections and hospital capacity has been strained. Infections are high among the youngest populations, though hospitalization and death rates are lower for them than for older age groups.

Some members of the public spoke in favor of continuing the mask mandate Tuesday, while others called for it to end.

“We are still dealing with the surge of a more contagious variant and community transmission rates remain high,” said Sherry Porto. “We need to stay the course.”

Jessica Lewis has on several occasions asked for the board to change its mandates and said she was frustrated that her son, who has cyclical vomiting syndrome, can’t get a medical exemption from mask-wearing that his pediatrician supports.

Lewis said she filed a grievance and reached out to her board representative, Jim Martin, but hasn’t made any progress.

“I have no representation on this board,” she said.

Board Member Karen Carter suggested Tuesday that the district begin looking at the severity of the virus in its mask mandate decision.

“I’m just trying to understand what it will take to go in a different direction,” Carter said. In almost two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, the county is where near meeting district criteria, she said.

“I think that is worthy of a board discussion moving forward,” Superintendent Cathy Moore said. “Because it is optional to be mask optional now.”

Board Member Jim Martin cautioned against that thinking, arguing that the district has guidance but people aren’t following the health recommendations to help the community get there.

He noted the virus is continuing to cause high hospitalization rates and that young children have the highest current infection rates for the virus.

The school system’s goals for considering nixing the mask requirement include a vaccination rate of 70% to 90% for students and staff, a “significant” decline in positive case rate over 28 days, and a 7-day average of 10 cases or fewer per 100,000 in the county.

The district and Wake County are not meeting any of those goals currently.

The school system estimates about 80% to 90% of staff have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

As of Jan. 24, the Wake County Public School System estimates 66% of students 12 years old through 17 years old are fully vaccinated. The district estimates just 36% of students 5 years old through 11 years old are.

The federal government gave emergency approval to a vaccine for the younger age group in late October, and to the older age group in May. Vaccination rates haven’t changed much for either age group since about the first month of vaccine availability for each of them.

No vaccine is yet available for children younger than 5 years old.

Nearly 4,800 people are in North Carolina hospitals with COVID-19. Intensive care units nearly full.

About three in 10 tests are currently coming back positive.

About 60% of North Carolinians are fully vaccinated against the virus, and 63.8% of people nationwide are.