Waterloo Region District School Board (WRDSB) will vote for a masking requirement at tonight’s school board meeting as a possible answer to the increasing spread of respiratory illnesses in the region.
WRDSB requests all staff, students, and visitors to wear a mask, if they can and whenever they can, until the Region of Waterloo Public Health no longer recommends masks be worn inside public buildings.
The notice of motion was served at the Nov. 28 school board meeting by trustee Marie Snyder with support from trustee Scott Piatkowski.
The motion asks that the request for masking be routinely shared with all staff and students at WRDSB locations, which could look like a regular morning announcement that asks "all staff and students to please mask whenever you can."
The motion also asks that communication platforms be used to help circulate information from Region of Waterloo Public Health, about the benefits of wearing well-fitting masks, and that the policy to request masks be worn will take effect on the first school day after the motion is ratified by the board of trustees.
Snyder said that although a board mask mandate is not supported by the region’s medical officer of health, Dr. Hsiu-Li Wang, as "it could potentially create hostility and divisiveness in schools," there has been a significant increase of COVID-19 cases, influenza, RSV, and other serious respiratory and airborne diseases.
The increase is demonstrated by the levels of hospital admissions in the region, the extended wait times for access to the emergency room, and inconsistent access to emergency vehicles, the motion states.
Snyder also outlined recent statements from the Dr. Kieran Moore, Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health who strongly recommends wearing well-fitting masks.
The Region of Waterloo Public Health strongly advises masks "in any indoor space other than your home" to curb the spread of respiratory viruses that are having a damaging effect on community members.
The Government of Canada, Snyder says, recognizes that over 30 per cent of all COVID-19 cases are carriers without symptoms.
If approved, communications would occur as outlined in the motion.