PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Masks will remain on for now in the Perkiomen Valley School District, after a federal appellate court declined to step in.
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals said it will not address a district court ruling that requires all students and staff in Perk Valley schools to continue wearing masks. Perk Valley remains the only public school district in Montgomery County that is still under a mandatory masking order.
Lawyers for Perkiomen Valley had asked the appellate court to step in, but the three-judge panel said they can’t address the issue until the district judge issues a ruling.
Judge Wendy Beetlestone issued the preliminary injunction last month, forcing all students and staff to wear masks during the school day. She has given plaintiffs until Friday to file their argument on why the mask requirement should stay in place.
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Several frustrated parents spoke out at a board meeting Monday night:
“They know how crazy it is that they can take their masks off at school at 3 o’clock. But they have to sit there for eight hours a day with their masks on.”
“The other day the kids were laughing at the fact that they don’t have to wear a mask on the bus. But once they go to school, they have to wear a mask.”
“It breaks my heart to know these children are being forced to wear masks when the rest of the world is now removing them.”
“This is just an insult to their intelligence.”
“I know our hands are tied with the court case, but this is just flat-out ridiculous.”
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Lawyers for the district argue the case is now moot, as the most recent guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lists Montgomery County in the “low” category, where masks are optional.
Lawyers for families of three children with asthma had originally argued lifting the mask mandate would violate the Americans with Disabilities Act. If lifted, they say their clients will be forced to either attend school virtually or risk “severe illness or death to access the school buildings.”
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