BOISE, Idaho — For the first time in over a year, many students in Southwest Idaho are now back in the classroom for full-time in-person learning. School districts are happy to have students back but there is an emphasis on keeping students and staff healthy.
“We are fully committed to the mask-wearing in the Boise School District," said Dan Hollar, the Boise School District (BSD) spokesperson. "When we talk about mask-wearing, it needs to cover the nose and mouth and that is for all students and staff including our students who ride the bus."
With students going back to school across the state, questions have been raised on social media about exemptions to mask use in schools and if schools are simply letting students opt-out of wearing one with no questions. One Twitter conversation, specifically about the West Ada School district which returned to full-time in-person learning this week, drew questions about what opting out of mask use required.
While the district does provide exemptions on a case-by-case basis, students cannot simply opt-out, according to a statement from a West Ada spokesperson. The statement said in part:
There are circumstances under which a medical exemption from wearing a face mask may be indicated, and in many of those circumstances, the underlying medical condition meriting the exemption may make it medically inadvisable for the student or staff member to be attending school in-person. A mask exemption must be supported by documentation from a medical provider and approved by a district administrator.”
Any student or staff in the school building without a face mask poses a significant threat to everyone else in the building and is at higher risk of personal exposure; therefore, it should be the case that most students or staff with mask exemptions should consider learning/working remotely, rather than through in-person attendance.
West Ada reports that less than 1% of their students have mask exemptions.
Other districts around Southwest Idaho also welcomed students back to the classroom this week, and like West Ada, COVID-19 safety protocols are in place for students and faculty.
Caldwell School District students will now spend four days a week in the classroom with remote Wednesdays.
The Nampa School District saw their secondary students return to in-person this week with remote Wednesdays. The elementary school students returned earlier this year.
Middle and high school students in the Kuna School District are set to return to in-person learning on Monday. Students in Kuna do have a choice of continuing on a hybrid schedule with some remote days or returning to five days a week in-person. Elementary schoolers in Kuna returned to full-time in-person learning last fall.
Twin Falls schools returned to full-time in-person learning on March 8 with a direct focus on COVID-19 protocols. Those protocols could change, however, as the Twin Falls School Board is set to meet on Wednesday night to discuss potential changes to the plans.
For now, Caldwell, Nampa, Kuna, and Twin Falls require masks at school with exceptions considered on a case-by-case basis.
During the first week back to full-time in-person learning at BSD, officials are seeing students and staff following protocols like mask use, distancing, and sanitizing, according to Hollar.
“We are fully committed to that," he said. "Making sure that we are following the science because we know the science is very strong when it comes to curbing the spread of COVID-19. By following all those safety protocols and certainly wearing a face-covering play a key role in mitigating the virus."
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