Del Norte County Unified School District trustees will consider eliminating its indoor masking requirement for students on Thursday.

This discussion is based on a request the district received from a member of the community on Feb. 14, according to DNUSD Superintendent Jeff Harris. It also follows a Feb. 11 decision by Roseville Joint Union High School District to make masks optional for students, Harris said Wednesday.

According to Harris, the sample resolution DNUSD trustees will consider is based on the one the Roseville Joint Union High School District board approved.

“The resolution calls for a shift in masking enforcement to include only a reminder to students to mask, providing masks for those who want them and no longer placing students who do not mask in an alternative setting,” Harris told the community. “The board will discuss the issue and hold public comment on the continued masking of students and on the resolution Thursday night.”

However, since the California Department of Public Health is set to announce updated mask guidance for K12 settings on Monday, Harris said, the DNUSD Board of Trustees may elect to wait on adopting new mask guidelines for students.

The Board of Trustees could also make changes to the resolution or choose not to adopt it at all, Harris said.

DNUSD’s sample resolution acknowledges a growing mental health crisis among children and “will in all decisions weigh the need for normalcy” and points out that COVID-19 vaccines are available for children 5 years and older as well as adults.

The Board’s resolution refers to the safety mitigations it’s made including installing MERV-13 filters in schools since September 2020.

The resolution also referred to a statement from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stating that cloth masks “provide the least protection.”

CDPH no longer recommends cloth masks and Los Angeles Unified School District has banned them, “acknowledging they are ineffective to prevent the transmission of SARS-CoV-2,” the resolution states.

“The state has failed to provide any clear data regarding mask efficacy in California schools, benchmarks for determining masking effectiveness and elimination, or support for masking (other than protecting others at home, protecting students from bullying if they choose tow ear masks or protecting administrators from having to enforce complex masking guidance, the DNUSD Board of Trustees cannot support a policy, with no proven safety benchmarks or outcomes, that impacts student access to a full and complete education,” the resolution states.

The resolution also refers to changing mask guidance, including relaxing requirements that face coverings be worn outdoors, and to California Governor Gavin Newsom’s announcement last week that the state will treat COVID-19 as an endemic risk.

DNUSD’s meeting comes about a week after Del Norte County Public Health Officer Dr. Aaron Stutz relaxed his indoor masking requirement.

The Del Norte County Unified School District Board of Trustees will meet in open session at 4:30 p.m. Thursday at the district office, 301 W. Washington Boulevard in Crescent City. The public can participate via Zoom and can view the meeting on the district’s Facebook page.

Documents:

• Sample Mask Resolution

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