Will Merced County schools enforce California’s mask requirement? Here’s what we know
Will face masks be required at my child’s school this fall, as a precaution against the spread of COVID-19?
It’s a question many Merced County parents are asking after the California Department of Public Health issued new guidance Monday, stating that schools should turn away students who come to campus and refuse to wear masks.
State health officials later shifted gears, saying while masks will still be required to be worn in public schools, individual school districts can figure out how to enforce the policy.
So what does this mean for Merced County school districts?
Nathan Quevedo, spokesperson for the Merced County Office of Education, said because the latest guidance from the state was just released a few days ago, it’s going to take some time to delve into and identify the nuances of the policy.
“The county superintendent, along with other district superintendents, are reviewing the updated guidance,” Quevedo said.
Superintendents at some of the county’s larger school districts, like Alan Peterson at Merced Union High School District and Mark Marshall at Los Banos Unified School District, said they will require face masks and coverings to be worn indoors, regardless of vaccination status.
Masks will be optional outdoors.
They also expect to fully comply with the state and local health department guidelines on masks. In the meantime, they too will examine how to enforce the state’s updated policy.
Marshall said in the event that a student refuses to wear a mask or the appropriate face covering, the district will attempt to work with the student and their family, in order to keep students and staff members safe — and schools open for in-person learning.
Under the state’s guidelines, those students who are exempt from wearing a mask due to a medical condition must wear a face shield with a drape on the bottom edge.
Schools must have masks available on site for students who don’t bring one. Schools must develop and implement local protocols to enforce the state’s mask requirements, according to the CDHP’s guidelines.
Independent study optional at some districts
Students who decline to wear a face covering — or parents who wish to keep their children from in person learning — will be offered alternative forms of education, like independent study, at Merced Union High School District, Merced City School District, and Los Banos Unified School District.
MCSD’s independent study program is not the same as distance learning. A key difference is that students participating in independent study will not engage in a virtual classroom.
“Students will complete the work on their own, at home, based on a standards-aligned online curriculum. Student attendance will be monitored through virtual check-ins and completion of independent work,” according to a statement on the district’s website.
Parents of MCSD students who are interested in the independent study program must fill out an interest form and submit it no later than July 19 on the district’s website.
Quevedo said Merced County Office of Education will work with smaller school districts across the county who may not have the capacity to have an independent study program.
“We’re taking a look at how MCOE can support those students,” Quevedo said.
”I think that’s one of the most important components of this is to ensure that all of our staff and students are safe, that’s why they’re implementing this masking policy, because they and we as schools do care about the safety of all our students and staff and everyone in our school communities.”
While an independent study option will be offered at districts across the county, superintendents like Peterson say participation in in-person classes is encouraged.
“We strongly recommend and encourage all students to attend in person instruction, and it will be as normal as possible, and if we have to wear masks, so be it,” Peterson said. “We will have a very good, and fairly normal year, even if it is a requirement.”