Photo Courtesy of the LA Times
Many may know that on February 16 the San Luis Obispo County indoor mask mandate was lifted. However, that was not the case in schools of San Luis Obispo County. The mandate was lifted at San Luis Obispo High School after last Friday.
This first week of the final trimester will be mask optional.
With the mandate being lifted, there are many views arising on whether or not students or staff will continue to wear their masks.
“My guess is 65 to 75 percent of students will not wear a mask, and 60 to 65 percent of teachers and staff will not wear a mask when we return,” said school nurse Grace Van Doren.
While most students and staff will start not wearing their masks in the last stretch of the year, there are still some people who will. It is important that we respect everyone’s opinions regardless if they are wearing a mask or not.
“I will probably stop wearing a mask, but I don’t know I think that it will be half and half regarding people wearing a mask and not wearing one,” said an anonymous freshman.
Lot’s of the students at SLOHS have very different views of this mandate being lifted.
“I think I will keep my mask on for the first couple days just so I can get a feel for how many people aren’t wearing a mask, in order to see how comfortable I am. I think that maybe half or three quarters of people will stop wearing masks since a lot of people are vaccinated and everyone is over wearing them,” said another anonymous freshman.
Although masks are no longer being required, they are highly suggested for students and staff who aren’t yet vaccinated.
“In another major move, California officials also said masks will be strongly recommended but no longer required for unvaccinated individuals in most indoor settings starting Tuesday,” said an article in the LA Times.
Despite the fact that almost every person at SLOHS won’t be wearing a mask, it is still important to stay safe in riskier situations.
“I plan to stop wearing masks. However, I may put one on if a student comes into the health office with an active cough or fever,” said Van Doren.
As everyone is learning to navigate this “new normal” again be sure to be respectful of everyone’s feelings and thoughts.
Source: latimes.com
