GRUNDY COUNTY, Iowa — The Beaman-Conrad-Liscomb-Union-Whitten (BCLUW) School Board has voted to lift the school district's mask mandate for students and staff beginning next month.
According to The Grundy Register, the board's Monday meeting consisted of revisiting the monthly topic of mask mandates.
Members voted unanimously to rescind the mask mandate starting April 9, and simply encourage students and staff to wear a face covering.
“What we’re doing is checking boxes by wearing a mask,” board member L.J. Kopsa said, the paper reported. “To me, that doesn’t say science, it just says paperwork.”
During the previous board meeting, district nurse Gayle Barkema told members the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) "still strongly recommends that masks be worn by all people," according to the meeting notes.
At that time, board members agreed to continue the mask mandate.
It is unclear what changed the minds of the six board members since then.
Multiple requests for comment from Local 5 were not immediately returned.
Grundy County Public Health Director Katie Thornton-Lang told Local 5 her office was not consulted on the matter.
Lang said the positivity rate for the Conrad area is shared weekly with the BCLUW superintendent. However, the superintendent does not make the rules regarding mask-wearing.
"GCPH still recommends mask usage in accordance with IDPH and CDC guidance," Thornton-Lang said.
Iowa medical experts, the CDC and IDPH leaders continue to support mask-wearing by everyone, even if they get the vaccine.
"As we see lowering infection rates in certain areas, it's going to be very tempting for school districts and businesses and others to sort of want to back off some of the suggested mitigation measures," Iowa Medical Society President Dr. Brian Privett said. "But I think it's important to remember that we really have to stick with it, we really have to get positivity rates down to fight off this virus."
Privett also pointed to the need to continue following public health measures because of an increase in variants of COVID-19 circulating in Iowa.
IDPH spokesman Matt Highland responded to the school board's decision on masks by writing, "The Iowa Department of Public Health encourages all Iowans to continue following mitigation measures that we know work. Wash your hands frequently. Practice social distancing. Wear a mask. And get vaccinated when you are able."
Watch: Here's what the latest CDC guidance for schools says about social distancing