Ontario’s chief medical officer of health has denied the Toronto District School Board’s request to maintain a mask mandate when students return to classrooms next week.
In a letter to the chair of the board on Thursday, Kieran Moore wrote that many of the safety measures, including masks, can be gradually removed with “the peak of Omicron behind us.”
“As we continue on this path, we are able to take a more balanced and longer-term approach to the province’s pandemic response, including in Ontario schools, by removing many of the emergency measures that have been in place over the past two years,” Dr. Moore wrote in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Globe and Mail.
Alexander Brown, chair of the TDSB, said in an interview on Thursday that he wasn’t surprised by Dr. Moore’s letter, given it was consistent with comments made recently. The board had sent a letter to the province asking for “additional time to approach the removal of protections within schools.”
Mr. Brown said the school board will encourage students and staff to keep their masks on. Staff would also highlight the importance of respecting individual choices, he said.
“We made an effort as a school board to ask for an extra week or two … it’s now in the governments’s lap. This is something they’re going to have to wear if there are issues with this,” Mr. Brown said.
Ontario was the first jurisdiction in the country to require masks in schools when COVID-19 hit, and although many parents understand why the safety measure was put in place, they are divided about whether their children will continue wearing masks when they are no longer required to do so.
Several school boards asked the government to extend the mask mandate in schools for a few weeks after the province’s two million students returned to classrooms from travel and other activities during March Break.
Scott Piatkowski, chair of the Waterloo Region District School Board, had written to Dr. Moore and Education Minister Stephen Lecce requesting masks be mandated in schools for two more weeks following March Break. He wrote that this would allow for more time to for the elementary school-age population to be vaccinated.
“I’m hopeful that many of our staff and students will continue to wear masks in indoor settings, and strongly encourage them to do so,” Mr. Piatkowski said on Thursday.
Last week, Premier Doug Ford said school boards are expected to follow the province’s lead in lifting the mask mandate, and that the advice came from Dr. Moore. Grace Lee, a spokeswoman for Mr. Lecce, said in a statement on Thursday that the province is one of the last to lift mask requirements in schools. “As we learn to live with and manage COVID-19, we are supporting children and students as they get back to more normal classrooms, which is critical for their mental health following two disruptive years due to COVID-19,” she said.
Despite the province lifting the mask mandate, the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board said it plans to continue having students and staff wear masks for a “transition period” of two weeks.
Dawn Danko, chair of the board, said on Thursday that the two weeks will allow students to shift to remote learning, if they chose to do so. Ms. Danko said that students who choose not to wear masks can apply for an exemption. It is unclear if the mandate can be enforced.
“We expect the majority of students and staff will wish to continue to wear mask over the short term,” Ms. Danko said. “We are maintaining the requirement.”
At least one private school has kept the mask requirement in place. A spokesman for St. Michael’s College School, Mr. Lecce’s alma mater, said that masks will be worn at school, and the requirement will be revisited after the Easter weekend.
Ontario is one of the last provinces to lift masks requirements both in schools and in public indoor settings. Nova Scotia and British Columbia will also be lifting its school mask mandate after their respective spring breaks.
Article From: Globe and Mail
Author: CAROLINE ALPHONSO, DUSTIN COOK
