During COVID-19 pandemic, Wayne children and families have struggled with changing school environments, particularly closures that left students with no option but virtual learning. Despite the best efforts of our hardworking Wayne teachers and staff, evidence is mounting that school closures and limited in-person learning have a serious impact on the learning and social development of children and adolescents. We believe that mandatory masking for students, teachers, staff, and visitors to our public schools, as required by Executive Order 251, is a critical part of a layered prevention strategy to ensure that Wayne students can attend school in person.

We base this on facts, including the following:

-The B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant of the COVID-19 virus has had severe consequences across the country, shutting down schools in states without masking requirements and putting tens of thousands of children and teachers in quarantine and lockdown. 

-The CDC recommends universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status.

-The 67,000 physicians who are members of the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that students K - 12 wear masks at school, whether vaccinated or not. 

-Children under the age of 12--as well as many immunocompromised students, staff, and teachers--are not eligible for vaccination.  

-In parts of the country where mask requirements have been eliminated, elective surgeries have been canceled, hospitals filled to capacity, and individuals have had to be sent out of state for treatment due to resulting surges in COVID cases. We do not want this happening in our community!

Working parents are severely impacted by the need to find childcare for children doing virtual learning, disproportionately impacting working mothers and single parents, so the consequences of school closures and quarantines have a financial impact on our local economy and families.

How can we as a school district ignore the recommendations by medical experts? How can we keep our students who are under 12 and those with medical contraindications-- who don't have a choice for vaccination--safe? How many casualties of children, teachers, or staff are acceptable to the Board of Education, especially knowing you have the power to prevent this?  

We, the undersigned concerned citizens, urge you to consider the grave consequences to the health of our community, as well as the legal and economic risk of defying NJ Executive Order 251, and ask you to follow the advice of medical experts, not the vocal minority by enforcing mandatory masking for all students, teachers, staff, and visitors to our Wayne public schools. We need to protect our students and community.