Signs on the doors at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé remind those entering the building to wear masks. At Tuesday night’s Juneau School District Board of Education meeting, the school board unanimously approved a policy that requires masks inside school buildings and makes them optional outdoors. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

Signs on the doors at Juneau-Douglas High School: Yadaa.at Kalé remind those entering the building to wear masks. At Tuesday night’s Juneau School District Board of Education meeting, the school board unanimously approved a policy that requires masks inside school buildings and makes them optional outdoors. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

School board OKs mask plan for fall

Students to mask inside, optional outside

When students return to Juneau’s Public Schools on Monday, staff and students will wear masks inside but have the option to drop them when outside on school grounds.

In a packed Zoom meeting Tuesday night, parents and community members on both sides of the masking issue made passionate pleas before school board members voted unanimously in favor of the mask mandate to start the school year.

“Our number one priority is that we are open five days a week, all day. That’s our priority. We want to make sure that everything we do lines up with that goal. It’s hard work,” said Bridget Weiss, superintendent. “We have a collective responsibility to sustain in-person learning.”

School board candidate Thomas Buzzard was one of the community members who urged school officials to drop the requirement and let parents decide what to do.

“Sadly, some will get sick and die but there is no other way to beat this. Be reasonable and unmask the kids and let it move through,” he said, adding that he supports some mitigation measures, such as handwashing. “Being on the school board does not include tyranny.”

Cross country teams gaining speed and numbers

Public weighs in

Among the 15 callers, nine opposed the mask policy and six supported it.

Before opening the virtual floor to public comment, Elizabeth Siddon, school board president, said that board members had been researching the issue and reading email messages from the community, totaling 232 messages about the policy.

Siddon added that the American Academy of Pediatrics and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention both recommend that children wear masks at school.

Paul DeSlover urged the school board to maintain the mask policy.

“Kids are resilient,” he said. “A lot of the issues are not with the children but are with the parents.”

Stacy Diouf, principal at SayèikGastineau Community School, said that masks worked well when in-person school resumed in the spring of 2021.

“We could smile and enjoy each other’s company while staying safe,” she said.

Those opposed cited mental health concerns, with many saying there is insufficient evidence that masks are effective. Some suggested that sickness is part of life and should be allowed to play out naturally as the social and educational costs of masks are too high.

Sam Smith, a local veterinarian with Tongass Veterinary Services, said that masks don’t work.

“I am a doctor and as all doctors know, the masks don’t work. It’s analogous to throwing sand through a chain-link fence,” he said.

Smith said that parents promoting masks had “irrational fears” and that kids are unlikely to get COVID and that those who do are unlikely to die from it. “Our rights don’t die when these irrational fears begin. The mask is nothing more than a PC virtue signaler,” he said.

Alaska’s senators part of bipartisan push for big bill

What the experts say

The school district’s guidelines are consistent with the mitigation strategies in place for the City and Borough of Juneau and reflect the advice of the CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics.

There is a near-universal expert consensus on the efficacy of masks. The World Health Organization, the CDC, and the American Academy of Pediatrics all encourage mask use to stop the spread of COVID-19.

“Masks remain a simple but powerful tool to protect against COVID-19, especially for children too young to get the vaccine yet,” reads the website of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

According to the New York Times, 118,067 new COVID cases were reported across the country on Tuesday, an 86% increase over the past 14 days. In addition, 608 deaths were reported, a 102% increase. Cases rates are highest in states with low vaccination rates and weak mitigation measures.

City leaders reported 93 active cases in Juneau and a 3% positivity rate over a seven-day rolling average. The community risk level is currently high and city officials recently re-implemented a citywide mask requirement and other COVID-19 mitigation measures in light of rising case levels in the borough.

What’s next

Weiss said that she understands that masks generate a variety of opinions and that she expects mask guidance and policy to change as the year goes on.

“Where we are now is not where we will be in six months,” she said.

Siddon agreed.

“The decision tonight is not written in stone. This is not a decision that will last all year. Please know that decision tonight is not in perpetuity,” Siddon said before opening the floor to public comment.

In a phone interview Wednesday morning, Kristin Bartlett, chief of staff for the district, said that various factors would affect masking policy going forward. She said that the community risk level, the presence of the virus in schools and whether children under age 12 can be vaccinated are all factors that will weigh into future decisions.

Currently, vaccines are available to anyone over the age of 12. Federal officials are expected to approve COVID vaccines for younger children later this year.

Contact reporter Dana Zigmund at dana.zigmund@juneauempire.com or 907-308-4891.

More in News

Jasmine Chavez, a crew member aboard the Quantum of the Seas cruise ship, waves to her family during a cell phone conversation after disembarking from the ship at Marine Park on May 10. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
Ships in port for the week of Sept. 28

Here’s what to expect this week.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)
Police calls for Friday, Oct. 4, 2024

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

(Michael Penn / Juneau Empire file photo)
Police calls for Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024

This report contains public information from law enforcement and public safety agencies.

An early voting station is set up in the atrium of the State Office Building on Monday, Aug. 5, 2024, the first day of early voting for the 2024 Alaska primary election. (James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
Alaska records show no evidence of widespread noncitizen voting or registration

Trump and in-state Republicans have falsely claimed that noncitizens are voting in large numbers.

Four businesses and four apartments in a building owned by Mike Ward burn on Saturday, Oct. 5, 2024, in Haines. It’s not yet clear exactly how the fire started, but Ward and others on the scene said it appeared to have been set in one of the apartments. (Rashah McChesney/Chilkat Valley News)
Building fire destroys four businesses and four apartments in Haines

“I feel like I’m losing part of my life here,” Haines Quick Shop owner Mike Ward says.

A person seen at an entrance sign to the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area is being sought by the Juneau Police Department following several instances of swastikas being spray painted at locations in the Mendenhall Valley in recent days. (Juneau Police Department)
Man sought following multiple incidents of swastika graffiti in the Mendenhall Valley

Several incidents of swastikas being spray painted at locations in the Mendenhall… Continue reading

The Alaska State Museum is seen in the fall sun on Wednesday. (Claire Stremple/Alaska Beacon)
Grant increases museum access for Alaska Native artists and culture bearers

The Access to Alaska Native Collections grant is part of a broader movement.

A dropoff box for ballots at the Mendenhall Valley Public Library. (Laurie Craig / Juneau Empire file photo)
Updated election results show no change as turnout surpasses last year’s total vote

Ballots from 34.27% of voters tallied as of Friday, final results expected Oct 15; last year’s total 33.98%.

32 Chunk is competing in this year’s Fat Bear Week, after he made a lot of progress on his salmon-eating goals this summer. (E. Johnston/National Park Service)
Ten years in, Fat Bear Week has drawn millions of viewers to a live webcam in Alaska

Weeklong competition in Katmai National Park culminates Tuesday after delayed start due to a death.

Most Read