Bristol Twp. School Board Will Review Masking Policy In New Year

The Bristol Township School Board will review their in-building mask requirement in the new year.

School Board President James Morgan said the district will “maintain status-quo” until January.

“That’s our stance as of now,” he said.

The decision came in the wake of a Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling that struck down a mandate by the administration of Gov. Tom Wolf which required masks to be worn in all K-12 schools and childcare centers. The ruling allows for local school systems to implement their own COVID-19 mitigation measures and masking policies. The state continued to recommend students and staff be masked.

The Bristol Borough, Bristol Township, and Pennsbury school districts opted to stick with mask mandates inside buildings for now. The Neshaminy School District and Bucks County Technical High School decided to move to mask optional status, as this news organization reported at the start of the week.

Masks have been found to be effective at preventing the spread of COVID-19, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The end of the state’s mask mandate comes as most school-aged children are eligible for COVID-19 vaccines, which have been proven to be safe and effective at preventing infection and severe illness.

During Monday evening’s school board meeting, longtime teacher and township resident Jim Cristea addressed the masking issue.

Cristea questioned the district keeping its policy of masking students. He said the masks make it hard to recognize student faces, force kids to be less social, and have limited impact because students don’t have to wear them at lunch.

The teacher claimed administrators and Morgan have not worn masks at all times.

Morgan said Cristea was misrepresenting the situation.

“I am calling for the immediate cessation of masks at our schools,” Cristea said.

Cristea also raised concern about security policies and nonworking security equipment at the high school.

Several parents in favor of ending the mask requirement spoke.

Parent Crystal Dodaro asked the school board to take masks off students. She noted some students are still getting sick despite the mask order.

“This isn’t normal for our kids,” Dodaro said. “Why are we doing this to our kids?”

“This isn’t helping. This is making it worse,” she said.

Another parent who spoke said she didn’t under why the district is waiting until January to review the policy.

Morgan said the district will be able to review the latest numbers and make an informed decision.

“I have not worn my mask for months,” the parent said.

The parent stated wearing masks is impacting students’ social lives and masks were taking independence away from kids.

The woman warned she had spoken with a lawyer about the masking policy.

An argument broke out in the audience over mask wearing during her comments, but it was quickly calmed after Morgan called for the shouts to stop.

Another parent, Christina, told the school board she appreciated students were back in classrooms, but she said her child did not feel well due to wearing a mask and would be bullied if he wore a shield.

“You say until January because of Christmas. I get that, but what’s stopping us from making masks optional from now until Christmas?” she asked.

Resident Damian Simmons stated he believes in science and sees the district’s emails reporting new COVID-19 cases among students.

Simmons said there’s not enough information on the impacts of COVID-19 on kids. He added the mask mandate should stay in place.

Morgan said he appreciated the varying comments and debate during the meeting.

School police were in attendance for the meeting.

In other business, Gallus Obert, whose term ended earlier this month, will be appointed this month to fill a vacant seat.

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