By Addison Wood, Emily Doolan, and Kathryn Burchfield
The future of masks in Mashpee schools may be decided today.
The Mashpee School Committee will be holding a meeting at 1:30 this afternoon to vote on if the school will continue to wear masks following the state lifting the mask mandate in school or not, according to an email from Mashpee Superintendent DeBoer. That means students should know by this afternoon whether masks will be required when we get back from February vacation.
The school committee will receive guidance from the Mashpee Board of Health, which met yesterday evening to discuss the possibility of lifting mask mandates in our school.
Other schools in Massachusetts have already chosen whether to lift their mandate following the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education updated policy on masks: that as of February 28, the state will not longer require masks in schools. One of these schools includes the Falmouth School district, which has decided not to require masks, as reported by an article from the Cape and Islands NPR station.
The Falconer has asked around within the Mashpee High School about if people want the school mandate to continue. Eight out of twelve students said they would opt to wear their masks despite the meeting’s decision. Three people answered that they’d like the mandate to end. One person was unsure and could see both the pros and cons of the decision.
The future of masks in Mashpee schools may be decided today.
The Mashpee School Committee will be holding a meeting at 1:30 this afternoon to vote on if the school will continue to wear masks following the state lifting the mask mandate in school or not, according to an email from Mashpee Superintendent DeBoer. That means students should know by this afternoon whether masks will be required when we get back from February vacation.
The school committee will receive guidance from the Mashpee Board of Health, which met yesterday evening to discuss the possibility of lifting mask mandates in our school.
Other schools in Massachusetts have already chosen whether to lift their mandate following the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education updated policy on masks: that as of February 28, the state will not longer require masks in schools. One of these schools includes the Falmouth School district, which has decided not to require masks, as reported by an article from the Cape and Islands NPR station.
The Falconer has asked around within the Mashpee High School about if people want the school mandate to continue. Eight out of twelve students said they would opt to wear their masks despite the meeting’s decision. Three people answered that they’d like the mandate to end. One person was unsure and could see both the pros and cons of the decision.
When we asked ninth grade student Ayesha Shafi how she would feel about the mask mandate being lifted, she said, “I really like my mask. I’d rather be safe than sorry with Covid going on. I don’t want to risk anything, not just for myself but for the people around me. I see my nieces and nephews a lot, so I don’t want them to get sick. Basically, I want to wear it to keep people healthy.”
Amari Pocknett, another freshman student, said this regarding wearing a mask, “Honestly, I like my mask. It feels disrespectful when people want to see me without my mask. It’s like my little shield, I like it. Even if they vote to take away masks, if I’m allowed, I’m probably still going to wear one. Especially if everyone else is taking their masks off, I’m going to be even more cautious. I like my mask.”
Mrs. Purdy stated, “I definitely want to keep my mask on, as far as the personal decision to keep my mask on. With vacation coming, I would want my mask on for at least a week to two weeks after vacation. I want to see a downward trend in cases after vacation before I feel comfortable not wearing a mask at school.”
Some students are hoping for the mandate to be lifted though, like 10th grader Lucas Dehelean. “I would not like to keep my mask on, it’s been too long with a mask on. I feel like it’s a good time to finally take them off and try to get back to normal school,” he said.
Likewise, 10th grade student Alina Doolan said, “I personally am sick of wearing masks. I think the time is right to be taking them off, I mean, we’ve been wearing them for over 2 years. Not to mention a lot of people don’t wear them correctly anyways. On the other hand, I think this ruling shouldn’t happen the day after break. A lot of people are traveling, and it’s more dangerous.”
It seems no matter what decision is made, there will be conflicting opinions within the student body. Though the state mask mandate has been lifted, it will be a difficult decision for the school committee with clashing views among Mashpee.