Hamden Board of Education votes to keep mask mandate

HAMDEN, CT (WFSB) - For the first time in over a year, masks were optional in some school districts Monday, but some schools are deciding to continue with the mandate, at least for now.

The Hamden Board of Education joined that list and voted to continue with the mandate, and while some were relieved to here masks will still be a requirement, others were disappointed.

“It does pass the vote to reinstate the governor’s mandate within the district,” Hamden Board of Education member Melissa Kaplan stated.

After a lengthy meeting, the Hamden Board of Education voted five to one to continue the mask mandate in schools.

They join other schools across the state who are also keeping their mask requirements for now, like Waterbury, New Haven, and Hartford.

“It’s my job as a dad and my job as a board member to try to keep our kids safe,” Hamden Board of Education member Dr. David Asbury explained.

“It is an inconvenience to have the mask on, but I think the harm that could come as a result is worse than the inconvenience it’s causing us,” Hamden Board of Education member Siobhan Carter-David said.

The Hamden school district has a medical sub committee and tonight the board heard their findings.

Superintendent Jody Goeler explained the case rate in Hamden over the last two weeks has been at 12.7 per 100,000.

He says the CDC community level in New Haven is considered low. He also went over vaccination rates for children 5-11.

“38.62% of children in this group are fully vaccinated, as of February 23, 2022,” Goeler noted.

Public comments were not read at the board meeting.

Instead, anyone with a comment was asked to submit a letter to the board of education… and board members say they read them before the meeting.

The Selearis family voiced their concerns tonight. They say they’re dissapointed the mandate will continue.

“If you asked 2019 me, I’d say, ‘Oh, I love school. School is amazing’, and I’m not sure I can say that anymore at this point,” Hamden student Alexios Selearis added.

“We know it’ll come off, but at this point, everyone’s really spent and they want their school back and their normalcy,” Deborah Selearis added.

The board says they could revisit the mandate in April.

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