In their regular monthly meeting held on Tuesday, September 14, the Louisville Municipal School District Board of Trustees revisited the mask policy for the entire school district. Superintendent David Luke reported that COVID cases within the schools, as in the general population, are decreasing with only 11 positive cases at the time of the meeting.
He added that he had polled administrators at the seven different campuses concerning their thoughts on the mask policy, with five preferring a mask requirement, and two who were 'on the fence.'
Luke told the Board that one of the advantages to wearing masks is being able to keep students in school. For instance, if children are wearing masks and one student tests positive for the COVID virus, the masked students do not have to quarantine. However, the quarantine does come into effect if the students are unmasked, and one positive test can cause a number of students to have to be quarantined.
In response, board member Jacqueline Steele, made a motion to require all students to wear masks; the motion was seconded by board member Brenda Johnson. The motion was defeated on a 2-3 vote with members Roger Caperton, Robert Jones and Ronnie Ware voting against it.
Caperton put forth the idea of allowing administrators at the individual campuses to monitor their situation, and to decide whether or not masks should be required, however Luke stated that he thought there needed to be a district wide policy in place.
Jones made a motion that masks should be highly recommended, rather than required, and if there is a 10% increase in the COVID threshold masks will automatically be required, and will be required on buses regardless. This motion passed on a 3-2 vote with Jones, Caperton and Ware voting in favor, and Steele and Johnson voting against.
The next scheduled meeting of the LMSD Board of Trustees is on Tuesday, October 12, at 5:30 p.m.
