Broward school board chair supports face mask mandate; final decision pending - WPLG Local 10

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – The School Board of Broward County postponed the decision Tuesday on the use of facemasks in classrooms at Broward County Public Schools, but members were likely to vote on the issue Wednesday afternoon.

As the issue was being discussed, Rosalind Osgood, the school board chair, said she supports the facemask mandate. The first day of school for Broward is Aug. 18.

“There is no way in good conscience that I could bring anybody back into the school environment, on the bus, the cafeteria, and not have a mask mandate,” Osgood said.

Given the new evidence on the Delta variant, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated the guidance for fully vaccinated people to recommend universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status.

Broward County Steve Geller said the number of COVID cases has been roughly doubling every nine days.

A spokesperson for Miami-Dade County Public Schools said the district will be requiring K-12 students to wear face masks in school buses. The decision about an indoor mandate is pending. The first day of school in Dade is Aug. 23.

Government entities take on legal liability if they don’t mandate face masks under a CDC recommendation because should an employee or a student die from COVID the entity could be found liable.

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Assignment Desk Manager Kerry Weston contributed to this report.

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Broward school board chair supports face mask mandate; final decision pending - WPLG Local 10
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