Stephen Murley
GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — Green Bay Area School District Superintendent Stephen Murley is weighing in on why the school board reversed course and mandated that all students and staff wear masks to start the school year.
“The pace and the acceleration of the Delta Variant, and certainly the recommendations from the federal, state, and local governments and healthcare providers,” explained Murley. “The best way for us to ensure our students start class on September 1st, and more importantly stay in class, are masks for students and staff.
He says he’s aware, though, that some parents might opt to send their kids elsewhere as a result.
“This is an issue that is deeply personal for students and families. We respect their right to make decisions that meet their family needs,” Murley told Fox 11 News. “We’ve had people who have open enrolled into the district specifically because of the policies the board has implemented, and we might have people open enroll out for the same rationale.”
They were going to make masks optional for older students who qualified for the vaccine. That changed in a unanimous vote during a special meeting Wednesday night. Murley says the latest CDC quarantine recommendations mean that masked students won’t need to quarantine even if exposed to COVID-19, saying that means there’s a greater chance for students to remain in class.
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