50.0°,
Mostly Cloudy Hochuls lifts New York state school mask mandate
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced on Sunday that the state directive requiring children in schools and child care facilities to wear masks indoors would end on Wednesday.
“With more New Yorkers getting vaccinated, and the steady decline over the past several weeks in cases and hospitalizations from Omicron, we are now entering a new phase of the pandemic,” Hochul said at a news conference. “Because New Yorkers have stepped up, we can confidently remove the statewide mask requirement in our schools. This is a huge step forward for our kids and communities, and I am grateful to the students, educators and parents for their dedication to keeping us all safe — we’ve reached this milestone because of your hard work.”
In the Five Towns, the reaction to the news was largely positive, though there were expressions of caution as well. “We are happy to see Covid numbers continue to significantly decrease, and are encouraged by the decisions being made in the best interests of our children,” Ari Solomon, executive director of the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway, wrote in an email. “We appreciate the support and partnership of our school community and neighbors in helping us get to this point.”
Hochul said she based her decision on the analysis of several key Covid-19 data trends, and consultations with health and education experts as well as parents, teachers and school administrators.
The announcement also followed recent changes in metrics used by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to determine communities’ risk and transmission levels.
Hochul defended her pro-mask stance, saying that when she was sworn into office six months ago, her priority was to get children back to school, but that wearing masks was the best guarantee that they would be safe, especially since no pediatric vaccine was available until November.
“We’re going to talk about where we came from in these last six months,” the governor said, “and you see the spikes and the infection rates that really validated the rationale and the logic behind ensuring that we had those masks in place through those spikes, especially the Omicron variant.”
Her nemesis in the debate over mask mandates was Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who signed three anti-mask executive orders in January, including one that sparked a legal battle.
On Jan. 31, a state appellate court ruled that Hochul’s mask mandate for indoor places, such as businesses, stores and schools, would remain in effect until March 2.
“While I believe the governor’s decision to end her unconstitutional mandate is too little too late,” Blakeman said in a statement, “I am happy that parents will soon have the power to decide what is best for their kids, and our students will finally be able to return to normal and see the smiling faces of their friends again.”
Ric Stark, president of the Hewlett-Woodmere Faculty Association, said he hoped Hochul would answer a few lingering questions, including whether the state requirements governing those who test positive for Covid-19 would be adjusted.
As things stand now, someone who tests positive must quarantine for five days, and an unvaccinated student must quarantine if exposed to a Covid-positive classmate.
“And remember that many of our younger students are not vaccinated,” Stark wrote in an email. “If that regulation remains in effect and all that happens on Wednesday is that masks can become optional, then it is possible we may again see entire classes quarantined at once. In my view, the governor jumped the gun terribly by not providing answers to these and other questions before simply announcing an end to the mask mandate 72 hours ahead of time. School districts need clarity and time to prepare, and were given neither.”
Hewlett-Woodmere School District Superintendent Dr. Ralph Marino Jr. sent out updated information in a March 1 letter to the school community.
"Beginning tomorrow, Wednesday, March 2, the wearing of masks will be optional for all students, staff, and visitors to Hewlett-Woodmere Public Schools. Masks are also optional on school buses. While the new joint guidance is being reviewed and analyzed, ALL previously announced health and safety protocols will remain in place. All parents and guardian are strobly encourgaged to speak with their children about whether or not they should wear a mask wjile in school or on the bus. District staff will be unable to enforce individual family decisions."
In the Lawrence School District, the feeling was somewhat more upbeat. Superintendent Dr. Ann Pedersen sent out a districtwide text on Sunday and spoke with the Herald on Monday, remarking on how close the lifting of the mask mandate is to the two-year anniversary of when schools first closed as the coronavirus pandemic spread.
“I’m optimistic,” Pedersen said, noting that’s masks will be optional. “I think we really reached that point where we need a reprieve from the virus. The biggest emotion is one of relief and gratitude. Now we can reflect on how challenging this was for everyone, and the kids keep doing it, and they’ve been amazing.”
At The Brandeis School in Lawrence, masks will also be optional Head of School Raz Levin wrote in a letter to parents. “Parents may still choose to provide face coverings for their children, and extra masks will also be available in the front office for those students who wish to continue wearing them,” he wrote.
Lawrence Teachers Association President Rachel Kreiss said that ending the mask mandate, “will hopefully be the beginning of a return to ‘normalcy.’ It’s hard to know what this will mean in terms of infection rates since we have just returned from a vacation,” she wrote in an email. “It’s imperative that everyone respects the choices that the faculty and students make in regards to continuing to wear a mask or to take it off. No one should be judged for their choice.”
Have an opinion on the end of the mask mandate? Send a letter to jbessen@liherald.com.
This story is an updated version of the one that appears in the March 3 Nassau Herald.
