Schools across New York state await updated guidance from state and local Health Departments as to what to do about COVID-19, and that guidance is even more anticipated because of the expiration of the mask mandate.
According to Gowanda Superintendent Dr. Robert Anderson, it’s likely that the school mask mandate will see an extension — at least until early March.
“The state is looking to see what happens after the winter breaks come up and see how the parameters are state wide,” Anderson said. “We’ll see how the next few days progress.”
If the mask mandate does expire, it could fall on school administrators to decide how they want to proceed with masks, and nderson wants to make sure that he and the board are on the same page when considering what to do. “Personally, I wouldn’t want to go more restrictive than what’s recommended,” said school board Vice President Max Graham. “If the state decides masks are optional, I think it’s best to put the power back in the hands of the parents. Obviously, there are going to be people who have to take extra precautions, and as a district, we can help alleviate some of that… I think there’s an area of personal responsibility when it comes to your personal health.”
While the board has the best interest of the students in mind, and will do whatever they see fit for their benefit, one thing they may not have to worry about is how the students react. In other districts, like Forestville, school officials had nothing but praise for how their students have handled the pandemic.
“Shout out to our kids,” said Forestville High School Principal Dan Grande.
“There’s a lot put on their shoulders with academics and the amount of work they’re doing at home and here, they are playing catch up.”
Grande acknowledged how hard it is for the students, given how little control they have over the situation, but the students at Forestville have done nothing but cooperate with the ever-changing guidelines.
“They have a reason to complain, they do,” said Grande. “But ever since they’ve come back from Christmas break, they’ve been very cooperative. We’ve heard very few complaints about masks. I don’t know if they’re just getting used to them.”
Grande acknowledged there were some sentiments going around online encouraging kids to not wear masks in school, and Grande said that Forestville did not experience anything like that. Grande said he’s proud of how the students have reacted, and he believes that one of the reasons the kids have been so cooperative is because of how much the district communicates to the students.
“I’m doing regular Zoom sessions with the kids,” said Grande. “The governor talks about masks and talks about the differences between Local Health Departments and the state and (Centers for Disease Control) and the kids want this information. If they understand what’s going on, it’s more likely they’re going to cooperate.”
FEW CASES REPORTED
Fewer cases of COVID-19 are being documented in Chautauqua County.
The health department on Wednesday said there were 253 new cases for the week ending Feb. 19. It’s the sixth straight week cases have been trending downward, with average daily cases currently around 36.
Health officials have noted that because positive test results through use of at-home kits are not always reported, the county’s information represents the minimum number of cases.
To date there have been at least 26,801 confirmed cases in the county as well as 26,289 recoveries and 320 virus-related deaths. As of Saturday there were 11 people admitted to local hospitals being treated for COVID or virus-related complications, a drop of four from the previous week.
At present, 61.5% of the county’s population over the age of 5 is considered fully vaccinated while 68.9% has received at least one dose.
