As was telegraphed over the weekend, Unionville-Chadds Ford School Board directors voted Monday night to amend the district’s Health and Safety Plan to make masks optional. The vote was 7-1. Director Rashi Akki did not attend the meeting. The lone vote against the measure came from board President Jeff Hellrung.
On Saturday, Superintendent of Schools John Sanville sent out an email saying the board decided what to do following changes from the CDC. Hellrung confirmed that the decision had already been made before the meeting but would be confirmed by a vote during the meeting.
When Monday’s meeting started, only two board members were wearing masks before the vote, and only two or three members of the audience wore them.
While many district parents had been calling strongly for masking to be optional, not everyone liked the idea.
“I would urge you to continue the current policy if there’s any possibility of doing so,” said Richard Dolan of Chadds Ford. “I realize there are downsides, but I believe the reasons in support of the mask requirements are stronger than the reasons otherwise.”
His reasoning, he said, is based on the unknown effects of what he termed “long COVID,” meaning extended illness with the virus. He specifically referred to the effects on children.
“There are no definitive studies that I’m aware of showing what that risk is, but we know from adults that long COVID is a very real illness. It occurs in 10 to 30 percent of COVID cases in adults and leaves the adults affected with lingering effects of COVID that can last for months or even years.”
Dolan was the only audience member who spoke in favor of keeping mask mandates. But even parents who urged for making masks optional were not necessarily pleased.
Sue Olivio, of Chadds Ford said she was happy to get the email from Sanville on Saturday. She said it meant the board was acting “appropriately.”
“Along with the joy is a sense of concern that is still with me and that I can’t shake. My right as a parent to make the best decision for my children was taken away from me for far too long. I need to tell you that your lack of proper boundaries has been a cause of harm not just for the children, but for parents as well,” she said.
Olivio continued saying the horror stories brought up during the last meeting of how mask mandates had been hurting children remain heart-breaking.
“One of the most important points I took away from that [Feb. 14] meeting was that in all of the calculations of metrics and science, the most overlooked priority is the human component, and how your decisions were affecting the mental health of our children and families,” she said.
East Marlborough resident Loren Henry said the board had fanned the flames of emotionalism.
“The ability for everyone to make their own decisions regarding what is right for their own family’s health and well-being is something that should never have been taken away. Going forward, I hope that every board member remembers the turmoil and damage caused with their decision-making,” she said.
Another Chadds Ford resident, Kim DiFelice, went straight to the point, saying the board should have acted sooner.
“I am not here to thank you for taking masks off these kids,” she said, “I’m here to ask why you didn’t do it two weeks ago. You had information. You had parents sitting here telling you horror stories. But you sat here and talked in circles.”
She said not one board member asked what could be done to get the masks off the children. But that wasn’t done, she said, and “That leads me to believe that we’ll find ourselves in the same position come September.”
Another parent, Brian Lamb of Pennsbury Township, said he was glad for the decision, that it’s a step in the right direction, but would like some clarification in the Health and Safety Plan. There should be definitions in the plan specifying a clear difference between guidance and a mandate.
Masking should be required “only if there’s a legally valid government mandate that forces us to adopt such a policy. Not simply guidance suggesting masks, but a legally valid government mandate such as a state-wide emergency declaration.”
For now, wearing masks in school district buildings or on buses is strictly optional.
About Rich Schwartzman
Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.
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