Flathead Valley Schools Finalize Face Covering Policies

Flathead Valley public school districts have been solidifying their COVID-19 policies, including for face coverings, with Whitefish mandating masks indoors for some ages and other major districts encouraging but not requiring them.

By federal law, students in all districts are required, whether vaccinated or not, to wear face coverings on public transportation, which includes school and activity buses.

The school year kicks off at the end of this month or in early September, depending on the district. The semester coincides with a spike in cases and hospitalizations in Flathead County, which local health officials say is fueled by the Delta variant and a low vaccination rate.

Districts are encouraging but not requiring COVID-19 vaccination. According to state health data, 22% of children ages 12-17 in Flathead County had received at least one dose as of July 30. Children 12 and under are not yet eligible for a vaccine in the U.S.

The Whitefish School Board approved a plan on Thursday that requires face coverings indoors for students, staff and visitors in kindergarten through sixth grade, due to the unavailability of vaccines for younger kids. Face coverings are recommended indoors for students, staff and visitors in grades seven through 12.

On social media, a group called Montanans for Health and Family Rights quickly began organizing an “unmask our kids” demonstration in front of City Hall next week.

In an Aug. 13 letter to parents, Whitefish Superintendent of Schools Dave Means noted that “allegations of harassment of any person wearing or not wearing a face covering shall be promptly investigated” in accordance with district policy.

“We recognize how challenging the last 17 months have been during this global pandemic,” Means wrote. “While opinions certainly vary on mitigation strategies, we are all ultimately after the same goal — keep our kids healthy and learning together in our schools. We will continue to strive to make decisions that are in the best interest of the health and safety of our district.”

The Whitefish board will reconsider face-covering guidelines when vaccines are an option for children under 12 or by its Oct. 12 business meeting.

Kalispell Public Schools (KPS) is moving forward with Phase III of its COVID plan, which “strongly encourages” face coverings but does not mandate them for any grade levels. But the district points out that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) “currently recommends universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students and visitors, regardless of vaccination status.”

In the event that active COVID-19 cases increase to the point of threatening school closures, Kalispell’s policy gives Superintendent Micah Hill the authority to implement mandatory face coverings “in identified buildings as warranted,” according to a letter this week from Hill to parents.

Hill said in an interview that mandating masks would be highly controversial yet questionably effective in the current political climate, which includes no overriding state mask mandate plus Republican-led efforts at the state level to limit local control in COVID-19 decisions. He notes that current federal mask recommendations aren’t broadly followed in the Flathead Valley and few businesses require face coverings.

Furthermore, if masks were mandated at school, Hill said many children would still be going back to households and social lives where masking isn’t supported, leading to spread of the highly contagious Delta variant.

“Some of the feedback I’ve gotten since the decision was made is that the bullies have won and people are ignoring the science and data,” Hill said. “But I think if you look at the political will of the state from the governor to the office of public instruction to legislators, the laws that were passed, it’s pretty clear that whatever is in place is meant to prevent districts from taking action. In Kalispell, there’s a very strong sentiment toward that.”

“It’s hard for me to wrap my head around a community,” he continued, “where no one is requiring masks or taking that recommendation to heart, and then put the school district back in the middle of that political divide.”

Hill, who strongly believes in the efficacy of face coverings, notes that he “lost a little capital” with supporters of the district’s mask mandate and other COVID-19 protocols last year, but he ultimately didn’t think it was viable to recommend, let alone enforce, a face covering requirement in the current environment.

Hill says face coverings were a major reason that KPS was able to end last school year as the only AA district without school closures. But with limited local appetite for masks and a surging Delta variant, which is impacting younger people more than previous mutations, Hill isn’t sure the district can have a no-closure repeat of last year.

“I am worried about that,” he said.

In his Aug. 11 letter to parents, Hill asked for civility in regards to personal masking decisions. Similar to Whitefish, any allegations of harassment “will be promptly investigated and subject to discipline.”

“Staff, students and families are asked to be respectful of others relating to individual choices regarding face coverings,” the letter stated. 

In addition to measures such as social distancing, hand hygiene and increased sanitation and disinfection, the district is prioritizing increased air filtration while offering illness and temperature screening, as well as rapid testing, with more details forthcoming.

Kalispell’s stand-alone remote education platform will not be offered again this year, although the district is developing a “limited virtual platform for vulnerable students with health concerns or special circumstances.”

The Kalispell district’s COVID Advisory Council, composed of pediatricians, a school-based nurse practitioner and Logan Health’s chief executive officer, wrote a letter to the district recommending that face masks be worn in indoor school settings, in accordance with guidance from the CDC and American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

The CDC and AAP recommend face coverings in areas defined by high transmission, which includes Flathead County, and the council noted the “rapid spread of the Delta variant.” But the medical professionals acknowledged the societal and political constraints.

“As health care providers in this valley, we support these recommendations and feel that this is likely the safest way to proceed into the new school year,” the council wrote. “However, we recognize that taking into account the current community and state climate likely makes a mask mandate controversial and difficult to require.”

“We also recognize that masking during the school day is only one piece of a larger puzzle,” the council continued, “and if kids leave the school setting and are exposed to unmasked people in the evenings and on weekends, then this may limit the benefits of masking in schools.”

In addition to masking, the council’s other recommendations for protecting against the spread of COVID-19, which is a “layered process,” include vaccination; staying home if feeling ill; social distancing; good hand hygiene; and cleaning and disinfecting.

“The more methods that are implemented, the better protection we will have as a community,” the council stated.

Face coverings will be optional in the Columbia Falls School District, detailed in Phase III of the district’s COVID-19 plan approved by the board in June. In a recent letter to parents, Superintendent of Schools Dave Wick noted that “our local medical advisors continue to emphasize that vaccines are the best defense against the Delta variant of COVID-19.”

“We also understand that it is a personal choice, though we do recommend you talk to your doctor regarding your individual health and the vaccine,” Wick wrote. “These medical professionals recommend masking as one element of the prevention of COVID-19.”

While acknowledging that the Delta variant “has caused more cases to arise in the Flathead Valley,” Wick said at this time “we do not plan to move out of Phase III.”

“All of us have a desire to return to as much normalcy as possible,” Wick said.

Regardless of specific masking decisions, all major Flathead County districts say they will continue monitoring the latest information, data and guidance to determine if adjustments are necessary. They are also implementing precautions such as increased sanitation and disinfection; promotion of social distancing and hand hygiene; and encouraging students and staff to stay home when sick.

No information about Bigfork School District’s COVID-19 policies was immediately available.