Baltimore County Public Schools released a statement this morning that requires universal masking for students, staff, and visitors in schools for the Fall of the 2021-22 school year.
BCPS sent out a twit, that “local leaders support universal masking in BCPS Schools and on school buses.”
Fifth County Councilman David Marks responded that he was not consulted about this decision and is upset he found out about the mandate on social media.
“Let me be very clear. This ‘local leader’ was never informed about another BCPS mask mandate. I found about it on Twitter,” Mark said.
“Over the past 16 months, the County Council and other units of government worked collaboratively to address public health concerns. Collaboration does not mean learning about an edict like this on social media.”
BCPS Board of Education Vice Chair Julie Henn said that operational decisions such as mask mandates are made by the Superintendent’s office but she was not expecting an announcement on a decision about masking until the special Board meeting for Aug. 3.
“The Board has neither discussed nor taken a position on universal masks. While individual Board members had opportunities to share input on masks, we have not discussed masking or other health and safety concerns around opening as a group. And there are many,” Henn said.
“We need to keep our schools open for safe, in-person instruction. But we also need to discuss what that means and what that looks like for all our learners. One size does not fit all”
