Don’t extend mask mandate in schools, province tells Hamilton board

The Hamilton-Wentworth school board must follow provincial guidelines and drop its mask mandate when classes resume next week, Education Minister Stephen Lecce told trustees Friday.

Leece sent a letter to the trustees after learning they planned to require face coverings for two additional weeks after March break.

However, the board does not plan to back down.

In a statement, board chair Dawn Danko said while the trustees welcomed Lecce’s letter, “supporting staff and families during this phased approach and time of transition is our priority. We are reminding staff and students to wear a mask until April 1 and to exercise their choice by completing the mask exemption process, if needed.”

The board had previously voted to require face coverings for an extended period. It received the letter from Lecce late Friday afternoon, in which he repeated the stance of Dr. Kieran Moore, the province’s chief medical officer of health.

With improvements ventilation and HEPA filters in schools, high vaccination rates and “continued stabilization or improvement in key public health and health system indicators, we are returning to more regular and routine ways of providing in-person learning while ensuring that individuals and families can make informed choices based on their own assessment of risk” which includes masking, Lecce’s letter said.

“There remain circumstances where mask wearing is recommended or required, and it will be very important to foster an environment that is kind, considerate and inclusive of those who choose to continue to wear a mask,” it says, referring to immune compromised or medically vulnerable youth.

Boards, including the Toronto District School Board, the country’s largest, have asked to extend the mask mandate and have already been informed they may not.

Provincial officials say Hamilton has no authority to enforce mandatory masking, and the local public health unit has not issued a special order that could allow the face coverings despite the provincial direction.

If students show up to school next week without a mask, their parents will be called and informed of the opt-out process, Danko has said.