Under ‘thumb of tyranny,’ Paso Robles school board votes to reopen with mask mandate
With nearly all members of the Paso Robles Joint Unified School District’s board of trustees expressing fervent opposition to state mask mandates, the board on Tuesday approved the district’s reopening plan for the 2021-22 school year.
The reopening plan, called the “Welcome Back to School Family Guide,” lays out how the school district plans to bring students back to full, in-person instruction while adhering to federal, state and local COVID-19 safety measures.
Those safety measures include mandating that students and staff wear face coverings while indoors, that students are screened daily for symptoms of coronavirus, and that COVID-19 contact tracing and testing methods are implemented.
Parents who do not want to have their kids follow the guidance can enroll them in the district’s fully online independent study program.
Paso Robles schools’ first day back is Aug. 19.
About 80 people showed up to the Paso Robles school board’s meeting Tuesday evening. Most of them were in opposition to the school mask mandate.
Some speakers called out the irony of the mostly maskless crowd sitting in a crowded room for several hours while the similarly maskless board approved a plan that would ban teachers and kids from doing the same while in a classroom.
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has the lawful authority under the state’s Health and Safety Code to enforce regulations, or “guidance,” to protect the public from disease. It has exercised this authority by mandating students wear masks while indoors at schools at all times, while teachers must wear masks when in shared spaces with the students.
The Paso Robles school board passed a “Let Them Breathe” resolution Tuesday evening expressing its desire for the CDPH to drop the statewide mask mandate and allow school districts to discuss COVID-19 safety measures with their local public health departments.
San Luis Obispo County Public Health Officer Dr. Penny Borenstein previously told The Tribune that she understands the state’s mask mandate because it protects those who are unvaccinated against COVID-19 and creates a level playing field for all with no room for bullying based on whether a student is wearing a mask or not.
“It is true that, in classrooms, transmission of disease is low,” she said. “But that has been able to be the case because of these protective measures.”
Over the 2020-21 school year, the Paso Robles school district reported about 111 COVID-19 cases involving students and 49 involving district employees. Countywide, 514 students and 260 school employees reportedly tested positive for the COVID-19 in the same time frame, according to data compiled by The Tribune.
What is state, federal guidance on face masks?
In its guidance issued July 12, the CDPH says masking is the best and simplest way to effectively mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in schools.
“SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, is transmitted primarily by aerosols (airborne transmission), and less frequently by droplets,” the CDPH guidance says. “Physical distancing is generally used to reduce only droplet transmission, whereas masks are one of the most effective measures for source control of both aerosols and droplets. Therefore, masks best promote both safety and in-person learning by reducing the need for physical distancing.”
The state’s mask mandate applies to all private, charter and public schools.
These guidelines are similar to a recommendation the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released on July 27 that schools implement “universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status.”
The CDPH has indicated that it will revisit the issue and may update its school guidance by Nov. 1.
Speakers at Paso Robles board meeting largely against mask mandate
Those who showed up to speak at Paso Robles’ school board meeting on Tuesday evening were angry that the school was enforcing the guidelines, and they asked for defiance from the board.
“I’m here to remind you about your oath of office,” said Jenny Grinager, chair of the San Luis Obispo County chapter of the nationwide Moms For Liberty organization. “You don’t have the legal authority to implement these mandates. Our rights come from God and not from government.”
Another speaker, Rebecca Fletcher, who teaches physical education at Daniel E. Lewis Middle School in Paso Robles, said she will not enforce the mask mandate because it is “inhumane” and hurts kids’ mental health.
“I will not wear a mask, and I will not enforce the mask mandate,” she said during Tuesday’s board meeting. “I’d rather have a millstone wrapped around my neck and be thrown into the ocean than knowingly go along with a mask mandate.”
Only one person out of the nine who spoke at Tuesday’s board meeting about the school district’s reopening plan supported it.
Shannon Gonzalez said the plan is “reasonable,” especially given the current state of the COVID-19 pandemic in San Luis Obispo County.
“I think you guys are doing the best you can in terms of what is being provided as guidance from the state,” she said. “Our (COVID-19 case) numbers are currently going up. They were going down.”
The San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department on Tuesday reported two additional coronavirus-related deaths, bringing the total number of people who have died due to COVID-19 since March 2020 to 269.
The county also reported 603 new cases of the virus on Tuesday, with the number of new cases in the area rising at a dramatic rate not seen since the height of the pandemic in January.
School district board acknowledges need to comply
Paso Robles Unified wasn’t the only North County school district on Tuesday to debate requiring masks in classrooms.
During its Tuesday meeting, the Atascadero Unified School District board of trustees voted 6-1, with trustee Mary Kay Mills dissenting, to approve a school reopening COVID-19 safety plan that incorporates the mask mandate.
Paso Robles school board members acknowledged during Tuesday’s meeting that following the guidance is smart considering they could lose insurance coverage should they defy the state.
Additionally, if the Paso Robles school district were to defy the public health mandates, it could face liability exposure should someone get sick, as well as misdemeanor charges, a public health order to close schools, a loss of future coronavirus-related public funding and a California Division of Occupational Safety and Health investigation, according to the district’s representing law firm, Lozano Smith.
“We’re under the thumb of tyranny,” trustee Dorian Baker said. “And I can’t stand it.”
Trustee Lance Gannon said the mask mandate is a “heartache” for everyone, regardless of whether they support it.
But he also noted that the school board’s mission is to educate kids. If that means following health and safety guidance imposed by the state, then so be it, he said.
“Our biggest concern is getting these kids back in school,” he said during Tuesday’s meeting.
This story was originally published August 11, 2021 at 8:52 AM.
