Buffalo, NY (WBEN) Buffalo Public Schools' summer school program is underway, and while the waning COVID pandemic hasn't impacted enrollment, there will be a mask requirement.
School board president Lou Petrucci says "there is pretty much an amount level in past years when it comes to enrollment." Petrucci believes there will be a slight uptick when the final numbers are posted.
Petrucci explains why masks will be mandatory at summer school, at least indoors. "If students are outside, they won't have to wear a mask, and if a student has a medical issue that keeps them from wearing one, they can get an exemption," says Petrucci.
"The superintendent has been getting information from the medical advisory board that this is safest for our population, and the safest course for us."
Petrucci says even though the CDC has been lifting restrictions, "there's this disclaimer that you have to fit your mask wearing to your population. and many of these populations come from high-risk populations, multi-generation households. These are reasons we are doing this."
Sam Radford of We the Parents doesn't understand why Buffalo School are requiring masks. "When all other school districts opened up because they found a way to make sure they could keep their children safe, (Superintendent Kriner) Cash and his medical team decided it wasn't safe, that was the reason Buffalo was the last district to reopen. They obviously don't have a sense of urgency," says Radford.
Radford says parents need to start pressing Cash for answers as the district has not resolved his concerns about how the pandemic has affected children long term.
