North Hills school board deadlocks on mask rules

A deadlocked North Hills school board failed Thursday to approve a health and safety plan for the upcoming school year.

The board considered several options, and all failed without receiving at least five votes. The meeting was suspended and will resume at 6 p.m. Aug. 17.

The holdup concerns masks to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Superintendent Patrick Mannarino’s proposal was to make masking optional in all grades unless mandated by the state. That motion failed with only three votes: Kathryn Poniatowski, Rachael Rennebeck and Helen “Dee” Spade.

Voting against were Sandra Kozera, Phil Little, Deanna Philpott, Kathy Reid and board President Allison Mathis. Annette Nolish was absent.

None of the subsequent motions received more than three positive votes. One proposal only mandated masks for students in kindergarten through fifth grade until vaccines become available for children under age 12. Another mandated masks for all when the transmission rate in Allegheny County is high or substantial, as it is right now.

Ms. Rennebeck said that she is against treating elementary children differently than the upper grades.

“If you have a house with four children, two will have to wear a mask and two not,” she said. “Anyone with multiple children will know that that is not going to fly.”

She, Ms. Poniatowski and Ms. Spade said they will be against any proposal that mandates masks for any grade level.

Mr. Little said he can see both sides.

“You can be scared for your kids. And you can wonder when is this going to end,” he said. “The community is being ripped apart. We are insulting each other. And you wonder where our kids get it.”

Parents who spoke at the meetingwere divided as well.

“Children belong first to their parents and families, not to any government or school district,” said Samantha Moyer. “Masks do little or nothing to protect children’s health.”

Both Ms. Moyer and Andrew Hatalski said that elementary children need to see how their teachers form their words to help with their speech.

“Let the parents make those decisions about what is best for our kids,” Mr. Hatalski said. “We will deal with any health issues that come up.”

Other parents supported masking at least unvaccinated elementary students.

“Follow the science. Don’t bow to the pressure,” said Lynne Finnerty. “We teach our kids, you do the right thing, even when it is hard. Even when it is unpopular, you do the right thing.”

Dr.Jessica Price, a pediatrician, noted that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Allegheny County Health Department all recommend that unvaccinated children andadults wear masks.

“As hopeful as we are that we have safe and effective vaccines and as much as we long to be back to normal, the pandemic is not over yet,” she said.

She added that, if students are distanced and wearing masks, they will not have to quarantine if one of their classmates tests positive for the virus.

“The public health guidelines are clear. Masks decrease the spread of respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19,” Dr. Price said.

Mr. Mannarino and board members frequently expressed frustration with the decisions being left to local school boards.

“My biggest frustration: our state government and our county government have said that they think we should follow the guidelines, but they are not going to require it,” Ms. Kozera said. “Having their backing would give more teeth to a decision.”

Other, less controversial, parts of the health and safety plan include students seated at least 3 feet apart, even in the cafeteria, and frequent cleaning of all surfaces.

North Hills students begin school on Aug. 25.