Masks are still optional in the HEB schools after trustees decline to issue a mandate
The Hurst-Euless-Bedford school board turned down a motion to issue a temporary mask mandate as a response to the spread of coronavirus in schools, citing concerns over potential lawsuits and ongoing court cases.
Trustees voted 6-1 during a specially called meeting Friday night, denying a motion calling for a proposed temporary mask mandate.
Chris Brown, who made the motion to deny the temporary mask mandate during the meeting which lasted for around five hours, said, “What would happen if we put a mask mandate in place given the Texas Supreme Court ruling?” “In Tarrant County, we have a road map of exactly where we would go if we put a mask mandate in place,” he said.
Brown was referring to Thursday’s Texas Supreme Court ruling barring San Antonio and Bexar County from issuing mask mandates, and in Fort Worth, a judge extended a temporary restraining order until Sept. 3 prohibiting the Fort Worth school district from going forward with its mask mandate.
The HEB school board met one day after the third-grade class at Meadow Creek Elementary was quarantined because of a high number of COVID cases at the school.
Trustee Rochelle Ross also said she could not support a mask mandate because of the legal turmoil it would cause.
“Kids are waiting for adults to finish this fight, and the kids are losing,” she said.
“I don’t believe in issuing a mask mandate and by Tuesday, it’s overturned,” she said.
“I’m in favor of every parent having a choice. I am not for a mask mandate; I want kids learning and teachers teaching,” Ross said.
But trustee Fred Campos, who favors a mask mandate, said he understands the legal hurdles but is concerned about the well-being of the community.
“I don’t understand why we can’t put a piece of cloth on our kids. The numbers are going in the wrong direction. You’ve got to take care of the neighbor who is affected by [COVID-19],” Campos said.
The trustees debated what to do about mask requirements after around 50 parents and teachers on both sides of the issue spoke.
Brittney Ruggeberg, an emergency medicine physician assistant, said she is concerned about the school district’s minority population and how the children and families are more vulnerable to COVID.
“I’m here for the fifty percent of the minority kids in the district,” she said.
But Adam Lacey, a parent with two children in the district, said he does not favor mask mandates. He said he does not believe that mask mandates, and the corresponding wearing of masks at schools, slow the spread of the virus.
Lacey said it is important for children to see their teachers’ and classmates’ faces, and he worries about the emotional and psychological damage to children.
This story was originally published August 28, 2021 at 12:33 AM.
CORRECTION: Brittney Ruggeberg is an emergency medicine physician assistant. Ruggerberg’s title was incorrect in a previous version of this story.