Pittsfield Schools Lifting Mask Mandate in March
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Pittsfield Public Schools' mask mandate will be lifted in either the second or third week of March following this week's school vacation.
Superintendent Joseph Curtis released a timeline to transition out of masking that he said is a compromise of conversations with the community and polling data. The communication is dated Friday, Feb. 18, when it was released to the school community but it was not publicly posted until Tuesday.
There are two possible dates for the requirement to lift, based on case numbers when students return to school next week:
If all schools remain open with safe staffing levels and COVID-19 case counts don't rise above previously documented counts between Feb. 28 and March 4, the mandate will be lifted on Monday, March 7.
If schools have to close due to inadequate staffing levels or rising case counts between Feb. 28 and March 4, the lifting will be delayed until Monday, March 14.
During the week of Feb. 28 to March 4, all students and staff will be required to continue masking.
"In my role as superintendent, I must ensure that the removal of the mask requirement is done responsibly, equally important is my responsibility that our schools remain open with adequate staffing," Curtis said in a video and written communication dated Feb. 18.
"No matter what opinion one might hold of the COVID-19 virus, those who test positive must still quarantine, if an abundance of students and staff test positive from activities over the vacation and spread occurs from unmasking, closing schools becomes a reality as it did for two of our schools after December vacation."
"Once the mask mandate in schools is lifted, it is critical that families and staff and students work together to reinforce the importance of respecting individual choice regarding mask-wearing if a person or group of people choose to not respect someone else's choice to wear or not wear a mask, a consistent response will be in place across all schools, which will be communicated with you today."
This decision is in response to Gov. Charlie Baker's recent announcement that the state school mask mandate will expire on Feb. 28. He left the decision on mask-wearing in schools to local districts.
The district has had a mask policy in place since August 2020.
Curtis said more than 2,500 participants provided opinions about masking in PPS and overall, 63.8 percent of participants expressed that the mask mandate should no longer be in effect in Pittsfield schools.
"As to when that should occur, results varied by group," he added. "In addition to reviewing poll data, meetings and discussions were held with members of our local board of health, health experts, our school nurse leader, our school adjustment counselors and psychologists, and school leadership."
Once the mandate is lifted, Curtis said it is critical for families, staff, and students to work together to reinforce the importance of respecting individual choice regarding mask-wearing.
"If a person or group of people choose to not respect someone else's choice to wear or not wear a mask, a consistent response will be in place across all schools, which will be communicated with you today," he wrote.
"Honoring choice means that we recognize that individuals have differing reasons for their choice and are entitled to make that choice in either direction, either to wear a mask or to not wear a mask, we recognize that unmasking could cause anxiety for some members of the educational community, PPS is preparing a support plan for any student or staff member that experiences elevated levels of anxiety, as always, parents with a concern about their child's individual's situation can reach out to building administrators and support staff."
Curtis said that if any student violates the district's rule four that states "I respect and value everyone's individual and group identity" three levels of infractions will be issued with the last being a Level 3 infraction for bullying.
With this, the school will conduct a bullying investigation and in school or out-of-school suspension and/or restorative intervention could be assigned.
Pool testing and at-home testing programs will remain in place after the requirement is lifted and the district will continue to ask students and staff that are showing symptoms of COVID-19 to stay home and self-test.
Other procedures such as distancing and sanitizing practices will remain as well.
"In closing, and certainly with respect, I ask everyone to avoid comparing the PPS decision to other surrounding school districts as each school district has unique circumstances that affect their decision-making process," Curtis concluded.
"For example, only 42 percent of students are currently vaccinated with at least one shot which is unlike other surrounding school districts, as a result of our current student vaccination rate, PPS will have more information about the possible school-based vaccination clinics that will occur after February vacation, and finally, for some, this is another difficult step forward, for others, this next step will bring a sense of relief, I would suggest we move forward together we try to overcome some of the biases that we all have, we work together and ensure all feel respected during this transition."
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