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Guilford County Schools to consider making masks optional at Monday meeting

Superintendent Sharon Contreras recommends that the district make masks optional in schools immediately.

GUILFORD COUNTY, N.C. — The Guilford County BOE will hold a special virtual meeting at 6 p.m. on Monday to consider making face coverings optional in schools. 

Guilford County Schools Superintendent Sharon Contreras recommended that the Board of Education votes to make face coverings optional. 

The opinions on masks in schools has been a divisive topic since day one. Parents are both for and against it. Come Monday, the mask mandate in Guilford County Schools could be lifted. While some students will be taking their masks off, others, like Jackson Miller, are leaving them on.

A baseball and soccer player, 17-year-old Jackson Miller is a GCS student and has personal reasons as to why he will keep his mask on.

“Last summer my baseball coach got Covid then he died. He was perfectly healthy, he was (in his) mid-40s, no health problems or anything he got Covid and he died, so it’s not like it’s not a risk,” Miller explained. 

His mother, Megan Miller agrees with his decision.

"I think it would be best for most of the school children to still be masked but Jackson is thankfully at an age where he can make his own decision and he wants to protect himself and I’m proud of him for that," Mrs. Miller said.

Another parent believes this should’ve been a parent's choice from the beginning, whether their child wears a mask or not.

“This is a clear-cut case that parents should have the right. Anything health-related about their children, their parent should decide and nobody else. If masks work so great why do you care if my kid doesn’t wear one and your kid does,” GCS parent Cindy Hammer asks? 

The school administration said if they vote to make masks optional, it will apply to anyone inside school buildings and other school-related settings starting immediately. However, while on GCS transportation and other public transportation, everyone must wear a face covering as required by the CDC.

The school district also said they are considering rescinding COVID-19 testing for unvaccinated athletes and coaches.  

   

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