Letter: School Committee members are setting a bad example

Posted 12/2/21

To the editor:Some of us stay home from public events, such as School Committee Meetings, when we are ill in order to keep our neighbors safe. We follow protocols and mandates to curb the spread of …

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Letter: School Committee members are setting a bad example

Posted

To the editor:

Some of us stay home from public events, such as School Committee Meetings, when we are ill in order to keep our neighbors safe. We follow protocols and mandates to curb the spread of disease. We did those things prior to the Covid-19 pandemic and we have gotten stricter in our outlook since the pandemic took hold here in New England in March of 2020.

It is unconscionable that those holding leadership positions in our community refuse to take even the most basic precautions, follow the simplest of rules, and wear masks to public gatherings in a public K – 12 building as mandated by the Governor’s office. We have seen this scenario play out in the most recent (and several previous) School Committee meetings.

If our School Committee leaders cannot follow the rules, how can we expect students to follow those same rules? What kind of example is being set when these rules and mandates are not enforced? What kind of message is being sent when individuals demonstrate that their own personal beliefs supersede the responsibility of all to contribute to our community’s well-being?

This is not the first meeting at which SC members prioritized themselves over the school community. They were elected to support and protect. Last week they 'honored' our students with unmasked hugs and handshakes. Now, days after this meeting (which happened shortly after COVID cases spiked at KMS and which had notable student and family attendance), we all got a call informing us of a cluster of cases at Mt Hope. This is a terrible outcome and potentially devastating to our community.

We know we are not alone in our sincerest hope that no serious cases present, but this is also epidemiology 101. The Bristol Warren School District should not be a case study in "how to spread infectious disease." We owe it to our children to be better role models and to our community to be better neighbors.

Margaret Richards
Jessalyn Jarest
15 Ambrose Dr.
Bristol

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