Local parents protest changes to school district mask policy
By Michael Piwowarski and Michael Westendorf
MIDLAND, Mich. — In light of the recent change to the Midland Public Schools mask policy, parents in the district are expressing concern and opposition.
The district announced the changes on Aug. 28. The change came after the district said there were documented classroom spreads in “a few” classrooms and positive cases of COVID-19 in each of the district’s school buildings. All K-6 students will now be required to wear masks indoors at all times, except while eating lunch, and masks will be strongly recommended outdoors.
Students in grade 7-12 will be “highly encouraged” to wear masks, the new policy says. The district said that masks will be available for students who need one. All individuals riding a school bus must wear a mask at all times, per a federal order.
The decision to change the policy, ultimately, was that of Superintendent Michael Sharrow. The policy change announcement was also signed by Midland County Department of Public Health Director Fred Yanoski, but it falls short of a public health order under Mr. Yanoski’s authority.
Mr. Sharrow is said to have made the decision to change the district’s mask policy after speaking with Mr. Yanoski and each member of the school board over the weekend, effectively causing the school district’s administration staff and board to face the brunt of angry parents over what has become a political hot potato.
Mr. Yanoski praised Mr. Sharrow’s decision to the City Paper as “responsible.”
Jacob Lewis, father of five children in Midland Public Schools, started the Facebook group “PARENTS AGAINST MPS MASK MANDATE” on the same day that Mr. Sharrow changed the mask policy. As of Sept. 1, the group has gained 636 members.
On Wednesday morning, concerned parents from the district gathered outside the M.P.S. administration building to protest the recent policy change on masks. Staying on the public sidewalk to avoid disruption, the group held up signs and chanted “Parent’s Choice” while Mr. Lewis made his voice heard.
“We are concerned for our basic human rights!” Mr. Lewis spoke through his megaphone as the group stood at the corner of Carpenter and George St. “The superintendent has no right to mandate and require a medical procedure on our children without our OK. There was no school board meeting. The school board had no say.”
Mr. Lewis told the City Paper that the group isn’t necessarily against the use of masks per se, but rather is against the district mandating masks and taking away freedom of choice.
“Once this mandate was sent out by the superintendent on a Saturday – a week into the school year – it struck a nerve and I felt that it was unfair to release it that way, and I decided that I’m going to create a Facebook group as an outlet for other parents that feel the same, to communicate and share information,” Mr. Lewis told the City Paper.
Will Zablocki, an admin of the Facebook group, told the City Paper that the group is also against such policy changes being enacted without an official board meeting or any opportunity for board members or the public to give input.
“We thought that was concerning, so that I think kind of took us up to the next level of trying to get a coordinated message out to the school system that we don’t agree,” Mr. Zablocki said.
Midland Public Schools Board of Education President Scott McFarland declined comment.
Multiple school board members who requested anonymity expressed frustration with Midland County officials for not issuing a public health order mandating masks and alleged that Mr. Yanoski would be fired if that happened.
Mr. Yanoski flatly denied that.
Midland County Board of Commissioners Chairman Mark Bone told the City Paper that he would support Mr. Yanoski if he issued a public health order mandating masks, deferring to his expertise.
In addition to the 636 members, Mr. Zablocki told the City Paper that there are approximately 400 other Facebook users in the group who are in “preview mode,” meaning they view the group’s posts without actually joining.
“A lot of people are actually afraid to indicate that they support our position, for fear of being called things or their kid being singled out at school, or any sort of negative attention,” Mr. Zablocki said. “There’s a lot of negative attention that comes with it.”
Mr. Zablocki said that he and Mr. Lewis are communicating with members for hours each day.
“Our phones are constantly going off with parents telling stories to us about what our kids are experiencing in our schools. Not just topic information, but specific cases of where their children are suffering,” Mr. Zablocki said.
Mr. Lewis told the City Paper that a majority of the group’s members are from the M.P.S. district, with a select few coming from other districts in Midland County, fearing that their districts will implement similar mandates.
M.P.S.’s policy covers K-6 students when they are indoors, except for when they are eating lunch. Those in grades 7-12 are “highly encouraged” to wear face masks. Masks are also strongly recommended outdoors.
Mr. Lewis told the City Paper that the group is committed to making their gatherings and protests peaceful, and that they will not gather in front of the schools.
“We have to hold ourselves accountable. We have to be bigger than the situation. We have to be respectful. We have to be sophisticated, authentic. There’s no confrontation, this is not a political debate. We are a growing force of concerned parents, and we want the right to choose,” Mr. Lewis said.
Without naming names, Mr. Lewis said that he reached out to some faculty and staff members from M.P.S., explaining what he is doing, and that he received a mostly positive response.
On Monday, Mr. Sharrow publicly responded to the district parents who called and sent e-mail messages.
“Thank you to the M.P.S. students, staff, family members and community members who have emailed the Midland Public Schools Board of Education and/or emailed me personally since the release of the Special Edition Communique Saturday evening,” he said. “As we stated in Saturday’s SE Communique, ‘M.P.S. will continue to review these protocols and current COVID case data with the MCDPH no less than weekly. Additional changes to our health protocols could be implemented at any time depending on community and in-school COVID tends.'”
Chemical City Paper is a nonprofit news organization covering local government, education, business, and the arts in Midland, Mich.