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Montgomery Township parents and board debate masks as district plans full in-person reopening
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Summary
At a July board meeting, parents urged both optional and mandatory mask policies while Superintendent Mary McLaughlin said the district will wait for county health guidance and tier building protocols before finalizing masking rules for full-time in-person instruction.
The Montgomery Township School District board heard sharply contrasting public comments on masks as it prepares to reopen for full, in-person instruction in September.
Two parents urged the board to allow optional masking for students and staff, while another urged a mask requirement. Gabriela Zayova told the board she was "surprised" the district planned to follow the CDC and said the CDC data she brought showed "kids 5 to 17, that's 0 deaths of COVID since 01/2020," and asked the board to "show us data that provide proof that masks benefit the children physically and mentally" before mandating them. Jennifer Dressler, a parent who said she graduated from the district, asked the board to "consider making masks optional for all staff and students and allow parents to make the choice for their own children."
By contrast, Francine Pfeffer, a parent, said the delta variant increases risk and urged the board to "use all possible mitigation strategies including masking," adding that masking plus testing had helped other schools "nip the cases in the bud."
Superintendent Mary McLaughlin told the meeting the district will await a uniform letter and recommendations being prepared by county health departments and that the district will "tier our protocols based on our status" at each school rather than acting solely on national guidance. She said details on masking, lunch protocols and quarantine rules will be communicated once the county recommendations arrive. Jim Dolan, president of the Montgomery Township Education Association, said staff and families are anxious for clarity and praised the district's collaborative planning.
The board did not adopt a masking policy at the meeting; McLaughlin said a district leadership team will meet later in July to solidify plans and that the district expects to communicate school- and age-appropriate protocols to families when county guidance is available.
Next steps: the district leadership team will continue work on protocols this month, and the board signaled it will hold further public conversations and a planned public forum to collect questions from families.
