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Parents of students in the Jackson-Madison County School System will have stronger options in their approach to COVID-19 related procedures, according to a Tuesday afternoon news release from the Jackson-Madison County School System. An executive order by Governor Bill Lee Monday will allow families to opt out of masks requirements and return JMCSS to a mask optional district.
“We have to be mindful of parent choice in our efforts to keep students safe. The governor’s decision is another reminder of that. Parents who wish to continue with CDC advice on masks can absolutely continue to do so and we will continue to support them in that effort,” Superintendent Dr. Marlon King said.
Additional relief will also be provided to JMCSS parents and students in the area of quarantines. Students who have been identified as a close contact, but are not showing COVID-related symptoms, will be allowed to continue in-person learning. They will, however, continue to be evaluated for good health.
“There are several unintended consequences when students, many of them healthy, are told to stay out of school for two-weeks or more at a time. In many cases, they’re forfeiting once in a lifetime experiences for learning and social development. Today’s announcement makes room for the social, mental and emotional well-being of students,” Deputy Superintendent Dr. Vivian Williams said.
With the governor’s announcement, JMCSS will transition back to a mask optional protocol, district-wide, by Monday, August 23. Parents who choose to follow local health department guidance on quarantines will need to contact the school to confirm excused absences.
“We’ve been asked or required to adjust several times since March 2020 by local and state officials. This is simply another adjustment made with the interests of children. We will continue to work with parents and community stakeholders to educate students in safe and supportive environments,” Dr. King said.
In a statement and televised announcement Monday, Lee said the following:
“I want to acknowledge the frustration and fear that many are feeling – fear of COVID and its effects on your family, fear of government intervention and its effect, and frustration over everything from masks to information that changes by the day.
Right now, some of the greatest frustration is occurring in our K-12 schools, especially around the issue of mask mandates. While local decision-making is important, individual decision-making by a parent on issues regarding the health and well-being of their child is the most important.
No one cares about the health and well-being of a child more than a parent. I am signing an executive order today that allows parents to opt their children out of a school mask mandate if either a school board or health board enacts one over a district.
Districts will make the decision they believe are best for their schools, but parents will have the ultimate decision-making for their individual child’s health and well-being. I will not be calling a special session at this time.
Our hospitals are struggling under the weight of COVID but those hospital beds are filled with adults. Requiring parents to make their children wear masks to solve an adult problem is in my view the wrong approach.”