A petition advocating for the mandatory usage of masks in all grades within SD57 schools has gained traction as it now has 450 signatures.
The petition was created on January 5th and has been publically supported by Prince George District Teachers Association (PGDTA) President, Joanne Hapke.
During the school board meeting last night (Tuesday) SD57 parent, Trina Fyfe made a plea to board members.
“We know that variants of the virus are in our province and we know that a vaccine is here, but it is still a long way from protecting our communities as a whole,” said Fyfe,” and we know that physical distancing and good ventilation is not always a reality in our classrooms.”
During her presentation, Fyfe also explained the unique ventilation challenges Prince George faces from the extremely cold weather the community endures during the winter.
“In other parts of the province, classrooms can open their windows and doors to improve ventilation but this is not possible for all classrooms in SD57,” she noted.
She explained implementing masks would also teach students to trust science and be mindful of others in their community.
Fyfe also explained that the new COVID-19 variant identified in BC has put additional stress on members of the school community and should be considered when discussing the possible policy change.
Additionally, Hapke requested that trustees speak to teachers within each of their schools regarding the current COVID-19 safety protocols in place.
She also requested SD57’s Restart Plan from September be reviewed and altered to support a mandatory mask policy.
Following Fyfe’s report, acting superintendent, Cindy Heitman presented on overall safety report on SD57 schools COVID-19 response.
“The superintendent’s report showed that schools are safe and transmission is very low, out of over 15,000 staff and employees, we’ve had a total of 32 contact notifications since the beginning of September, so the numbers are still relatively low,” explained Board Chair, Trent Derrick.
The most recent SD57 School added to the Potential COVID-19 Exposure List was DP Todd Secondary School, with potential exposure dates listed as January 11th to 12th.