As children return to school across the country, most of them will do so without being required to wear a mask in class, but that's not the case for students in two South Bay school districts.
Alum Rock Union School District and Franklin-McKinley School District say they have the authority to implement the health rules. The pandemic has hit both districts hard, and they say they can't start the school year by taking a chance.
At Franklin-McKinley, the mask requirement will stay in place at least for the next few days.
"We’ll revisit that next week as we get results this week from everybody testing," Superintendent Juan Cruz said. "All students and staff received rapid home testing kits before school started."
Most parents in the district applauded the move. Maritza Munoz said masks are a good idea because infection levels are still high in her neighborhood.
But over in Alum Rock, Maria Alvarado said she's fed up and irritated by the mandatory mask rule.
Superintendent Dr. Hilaria Bauer said she had no choice, noting she had to fill several classrooms with substitutes on the first day because some of her teachers just tested positive.
The district said it will monitor the data frequently to decide when it can lift the mandate.
"When there's a fire, when there's an earthquake, we have the authority to implement certain measures to be able to keep people safe," Bauer said. "This is no different from that."
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Alvarado said she understands that rationale and although she dislikes the mask, she supports the mandate.
