Mixed reactions to school mask mandate removal

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s decision to lift the state’s school mask mandate on March 2 was met with mixed reactions in the Elmont and Franklin Square communities.

Hochul’s decision to remove the policy came two days after the Centers for Disease Control deemed Long Island part of a “green zone," where masking is no longer required in schools or indoor public places. Hochul said she is confident in her decision because the number of positive cases statewide has fallen since the Omicron wave that began last November.

On Saturday, the state announced a seven-day average rate of below 2 percent that tested positive for Covid-19, as well as fewer than 2,000 hospitalizations – a number that has not been reached since fall 2021. Statewide, an average of about 2,400 new coronavirus cases are being reported per day as of early March, a figure roughly similar to early August 2021 and much less than the 74,000 cases reported per day in mid-January amid the Omicron wave.

Hochul pointed to the school mask mandate as a reason for the rapid decrease in positive cases since the peak of mid-January.

“When I look back at what was going on just a short time ago, I am so happy that we did have a mask requirement in place for schools at the time,” she said following the announcement that the order would be revoked. “That’s how we kept these numbers from getting even worse.”

Some residents of Elmont and Franklin Square expressed support for the removal of the school mask mandate, which many see as a step in the right direction amid a lull in positive cases on Long Island and across New York state.

“I am thrilled that kids don’t have to wear a mask anymore,” said Lisa DelliPizzi, the president of the Franklin Square Chamber of Commerce. “They will be so much happier. The social aspect is so important,” she added, touching on a common theme of resistance expressed by those opposed to mask wearing in schools — a sense of harming the wellbeing of students, physically, emotionally and socially.

DelliPizzi shared a statement from three chamber members with children ages five to 12 who attend Franklin Square schools. “It’s about time… Kids are very happy that they don’t have to wear a mask. There are always risks but these children need to have their school experience back and need to see the educator's mouth movements when sounding out new words or counting syllables,” the statement read.

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who has vocally opposed mask mandates, agreed with the assessment of the chamber members in a Feb. 28 tweet. “While I believe the Governor’s decision to end her school mask mandate is too little too late, I am happy that parents will soon have the power to decide what is best for their kids and students will finally be able to return to normal and see the smiling faces of their friends again,” he wrote.

“The impact on their social, physical and mental state is far greater with a mask than the potential risks that we currently are at. Slow and steady and continue to evaluate the situation,” the statement by the chamber members concluded.

Counties and cities across New York can choose whether to formally lift the requirement, and individual students and school staff members can continue to wear masks. Additionally, school districts and private schools statewide can continue to require masks.

A recent poll by the Siena College Research Institute found that 58 percent of registered voters in New York said the state should have waited to remove the mandate until data from early March could be reviewed by schools.

Claudine Hall, the president of the Jamaica Square Improvement League, a local civic organization in Elmont, said many students at Elmont schools are choosing to continue wearing masks despite the removal of the mandate due to issues specific to communities of color.

Hall said that many Black Americans remain skeptical of demasking due to the higher levels of population density in communities of color, and that many students in these communities fear that poor ventilation systems require them to continue wearing masks at school.

She added that many of her colleagues whose children attend Elmont schools are telling their children to remain masked during the school day. Some students, Hall said, live with grandparents who have underlying conditions that put them at increased risk of death from Covid-19.

Dr. Uché Blackstock, who focuses on health equity in New York City, told the New York Times that variation in student vaccination rates between different neighborhoods in the city is driving many students to continue wearing masks.

“These are the same schools that are overcrowded and without adequate ventilation. Removing mask policies in these schools is dangerous,” Blackstock wrote on Twitter.

While Hall said she supports slowly rolling back pandemic restrictions, she expressed concern about the removal of the mask mandate in schools. “It’s too soon,” she said, adding that with people excited about the arrival of spring and summer weather and eager to attend large social gatherings, caution is necessary.

“I think we need to hold out a little bit longer,” Hall said.

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