While some school districts have mandated mask wearing for the 2021-2022 school year, most Cincinnati area schools are keeping masks optional.
But what happens if your child opts not to wear a mask?
Sending your child to school maskless could result in missed instruction time if they are exposed to COVID-19, according to state guidelines. Some students could face disciplinary action for not wearingmasks at schools with universal mask mandates, or even be moved to a virtual classroom.
Mandates:Mask policies are changing at Southwest Ohio schools; here's an updated list
Masks for back to school:How to fit and where to buy kid-sized masks
Required or not, school officials and health experts are encouraging everyone to mask up this fall due to the highly contagious delta variant of COVID-19. In counties around Cincinnati, the number of infections now is back at the higher levels we saw in February, just as vaccines became more widely available. The rising cases prompted Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear to issue a statewide mask mandate for K-12 schools earlier this month.
But in Ohio, school districts and parents are dealing with the decision of whether or not to mask their students all on their own. While parents and teachers have cited mental health and relationship building concerns withmask wearing, there are some other factors that might get in the way of a safe and productive school year should your student refrain from wearing a mask at school.
Here's what might happen if your student goes to school without a mask.
More:COVID-19 cases rise in hospitals as more schools impose mask requirements
More:'We’re at a new stage of the pandemic:' 98% of Ohioans hospitalized with COVID-19 are unvaccinated
In districts where masks are required
It's not clear exactly how students may be disciplined if they refuse to wear masks at schools that require them– policies differ by district, and in some cases, by school.
At Forest Hills School District, where only students in grades pre-K through 6are required to wear masks, spokesperson Angela Ingram said principals at each elementary building will handle any refusal to wear a mask "as any other disregard of student code of conduct."
These students will face consequences on a case-by-case basis. Ingram said Forest Hills did not deal with any such incidents during the last school year.
Lakota Local Schools will consider violations of their universal mask policyas a dress code violation, according to spokesperson Lauren Boettcher. Such violations will result in disciplinary action, and the district "also has the option to reassign the student to a virtual learning environment."
At Mason City Schools, public information officer Tracey Carson said the district will work with a child's parents if they refuse to wear a mask.
"If a child would regularlyrefuse to wear their mask, we would reach out to the familyand partner with them to help support the child with the mask," Carson said. "We have honestly not had this come up though."
Carson said parents were worried about students refusing to wear masks last fall, when everyone at Mason City Schools was required to wear a mask. But once the school year began, Carson said, Mason didn't end up having any issues. This year masks are required for Mason students in grades pre-K through 6, but are optional for grades 7-12.
"Remember, our kids all wear masks on the bus, so it is very natural to keep their masks on," Carson said. "We also give mask breaks and this year studentsdo not have to wear masks outdoors, like when they are at recess – it's so nice tosee kids running around and playing with their friends in fresh air."
Middletown City Schools communications specialist Elizabeth Beadle said the district will be understanding of students who refuse to wear masks, though the district recently switched to a universal mask policy.
"We lean on our good relationships with students when it comes to matters of discipline," Beadle said."We're all navigating this pandemic together and we believe in giving grace and understanding during these changes to the norm."
Students who cannot wear a mask for medical reasons can ask their district about an exemption form.
In districts where masks are optional
Though there will be no disciplinary action taken against students who refuse to wear masks in mask-optional districts, unmasked students could be subject to 10-day quarantines if they come into close contact with a person with COVID-19 in the classroom.
According to the Ohio Department of Health's guidelines, unvaccinated, unmasked students who are exposed to someone with the virus will need to quarantine for seven days if they test negative for the virus, and for at least 10 days if they test positive.
"Basically if a student is masked or vaccinated, they do not have to quarantine," Milford Exempted Village School District communications director Wendy Planicka said. Milford students in grades K-6 are required to wear masks.
Most educatorsacross the Cincinnati regionagree that in-person learning five days per week is best for students' education and mental health.
