Nashoba committee votes to create its own mask mandate to retain local decision-making

BOLTON - The Nashoba Regional School District will continue its mask mandate, even if the state education secretary ends earlier, so local officials can come up with their own system for dealing with masks.

The School Committee voted on creating its own masking mandate at its Wednesday, Oct. 22, meeting, and to not to make students wear masks indefinitely, but to create more local control. A second question - allowing the superintendent to make the decision on masks building-to-building - was put off until the Nov. 3 meeting, which gives him time to meet with the Nashoba Associated Boards of Health to determine the exact matrix to determine when it is safe.

Currently, state Education Commissioner Jeffrey Riley has tentatively set an 80% vaccination rate for a building (students and teachers) and the schools have been using a measure of 70% consent for pool testing so they can monitor spread in the schools to determine if a school can allow those vaccinated to go unmasked.

Riley extended his Oct. 1 state mask mandate to Nov. 1, and that has been extended to at least Jan. 15.

This eliminates elementary schools from consideration at this time because the vaccine is not currently available to those under 12.

Staff vaccination rates range from 94.37% at Mary Rowlandson Elementary School, in Lancaster, to 88.1% at Hale Middle School, in Stow, as of the latest update on the school's data dashboard, which is dated Oct. 6.

For student vaccinations, the lowest middle school rate is Florence Sawyer School, in Bolton, since the building includes elementary-aged students, keeping the rate at 18.9%. Luther Burbank Middle School, in Lancaster, has 46.72% students vaccinated, while Hale Middle School has 61.21%.

The high school student vaccination rate is 85.46%, with ninth-graders nudging out seniors for the top vaccination rate, 87.2% vs. 87.15%. Student vaccination rates were last updated on the dashboard Oct. 6.

School Committee members said they wanted to hear what metrics the NABOH might suggest before voting to allow the superintendent to use a set metric to determine masking.

"I feel that for the decision to be made, it should only be local data," said School Committee representative Michael Horesh, of Bolton, who said he is worried about the consent for pool testing metric since he thinks the number may have plateaued.

"With a school like Florence Sawyer, we may be waiting for a train that never comes," Horesh said.

Consent is at a high of 73.13% at the Center School, in Stow, to a low of 45.74% at Luther Burbank Middle School, in Lancaster. The high school, which draws from all three towns, is at 57.5%.

When the question comes back up at the Nov. 3 meeting, the motion will likely include a clause allowing the superintendent to re-instate a mask mandate, after one is lifted, if local figures warrant it, and in consultation with local health officials. But that clause will allow the mandate to be lifted and reinstated without having to wait for a Nashoba School Committee meeting to be called.

"What worries me is under what incidence might it be reinstituted," School Committee member Karen Devine, of Stow, said. "I am concerned we would react too quickly."