Masks or no masks -- Gov. Phil Murphy said Monday he is still
leaving the decision to individual school districts, despite recommendations from the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention.
“Most of
our cases we are seeing right now are in the 20, 30, 40 range group
right now,” says Ocean
County Public Health Coordinator Dan Regenye.
Regenye supports
the decision to leave masking up to each individual district, saying risks to
school-aged children remain low but that they
also must be mindful of others.
“Everybody’s
circumstances are different,” says Regenye. “They have
to take those circumstances into consideration and do what’s best for
themselves."
Lakewood Township
Public Schools Spokesperson Michael Inzelbuch says masks are coming back. Since
reopening in September of 2020, classes never closed, and students remained
learning in person for a full five day a week schedule.
Brick Township
Superintendent Tom Farrell has told an online publication that masks
will be optional for children during the upcoming school year.
Farrell and other superintendents wrote
letters back in the spring to Murphy, asking to unmask their children as
temperatures increased and positive cases dropped.
Central Regional School District, whose
superintendent penned the well-publicized letter to the governor against the
mask policy, remains mask-optional, but a representative says they fully
expect new guidelines from the state before school starts.
Even though health experts continue to say COVID-19 poses minimal
risk to kids, the CDC released its recommendations to mask up all kids grade K
through 12.
In Chatham, some
parents continue to push for optional masking. A decision in Wall
Township could be made by the end of this week.