SCHOOL TRUSTEES UNITE AGAINST MANDATES

Coalition of 21 local board members argues for district autonomy, wants COVID to be treated as endemic

A new coalition of San Diego County school board members is calling on the state to end its school mask mandate and stop forcing COVID-19 rules onto school districts and charter schools.

The group, which calls itself School Board Members for Local Control, argues that the state has been taking away districts’ selfrule.

“We are all elected in our local communities; we’re not elected in

Sacramento,” said Andrew Hayes, a member of Lakeside Union Elementary’s school board and a spokesperson for the coalition. “We know our communities best.”

Group members said they are tired of ever-changing COVID-19 school rules from the state, which they believe are out of touch with what local communities want and put the burden of enforcement on school districts.

“I don’t feel like the onus should be on school board members or teachers or administration at the schools to be the police on some of these issues,” said Tamara Otero, coalition member and president of the Cajon Valley school board. “We have enough on our plate to handle with the education of America’s children.”

The coalition includes 21 board members from 12 of the county’s 42 school districts, mostly in North and East counties: Alpine, Cajon Valley, Coronado, Escondido Elementary, Escondido High, Julian High, Lakeside, La Mesa-Spring Valley, Poway, Ramona, Rancho Santa Fe and Santee.

Many of these districts reopened early in the 2020-2021 school year after the initial COVID-19 closures.

The group is calling for the state to end its requirement that students and school staff wear masks indoors.

On Monday, the state announced it will keep the indoor school mask requirement until at least Feb. 28, when it will reassess COVID-19 data and consider modifying or lifting the mandate.

State officials could not be reached for comment about the

coalition, but have repeatedly said that its school mask mandate and other COVID-19 rules are supported by studies that show masking helps lower COVID-19 transmission.

Experts have said no safety measure can entirely eliminate the chances of spreading COVID-19. But, they say, having several measures such as masking, vaccinations and quarantines helps lower the chances of spread and, more importantly, the chances of hospitalization and death from COVID-19.

And while some of the most vocal school parents are those who say they’re tired of masks and other COVID-19 measures, there are other parents who are fearful of COVID-19 spreading in schools and of it coming home to their vulnerable family members.

The coalition also is calling for Gov. Gavin Newsom to end the COVID-19 state of emergency, which has allowed Newsom to enforce sweeping executive orders in the name of public safety. The group says it’s time to treat COVID-19 as an endemic and a normal part of life, rather than a pandemic.

“Two years is not an emergency action. It’s something else,” said coalition member Rodger Dohm, who sits on the Ramona school board.

Hayes said the group also wants Newsom to veto proposed legislation that would prevent students from receiving personal belief exemptions to the COVID-19 vaccine and add the vaccine to the state’s list of required school immunizations.

Here are the members of the coalition:

• Alpine: Joe Perricone

• Cajon Valley: Tamara Otero, Jill Barto, Jim Miller, Jo Alegria, Karen Clark-Mejia

• Coronado: Esther Valdes Clayton

• Escondido Union: Joan Gardner

• Escondido Union High: Dane White

• Julian Union High: Katy Moretti

• Lakeside: Andrew Hayes, Lara Hoefer-Moir

• La Mesa-Spring Valley: Megan Epperson, Sarah Rhiley

• Poway: Ginger Couvrette

• Ramona: Bob Stoody, Rodger Dohm, Dawn Perfect

• Rancho Santa Fe: Jee Manghani, Rose Rohatgi, Annette Ross

• Santee: Dustin Burns