FCPS Masking Update

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm letting my kids unmask because we will literally never get to FCPS's version of when it's safe. "Substantial transmission" is 8-10% positivity!!! That is not a number I'm afraid of. We have to get to less than 8%positivity and fewer than 49 cases per 100,000 for 7 days and stay there to meet their metric. In the past year, that has only happened from May-July of 2021. Also, 73% of all Fairfax county residents are vaccinated - that includes the under 5s who aren't eligible.

For me, it's time to say that the benefits of school without a mask outweigh the chance of getting covid for my vaccinated kids.

I'm not unmasking my kids until they are allowed but you are right in saying the CDC metrics are so stringent that we will never get there. I think I heard CDC is updating their recommendations next week???

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm letting my kids unmask because we will literally never get to FCPS's version of when it's safe. "Substantial transmission" is 8-10% positivity!!! That is not a number I'm afraid of. We have to get to less than 8%positivity and fewer than 49 cases per 100,000 for 7 days and stay there to meet their metric. In the past year, that has only happened from May-July of 2021. Also, 73% of all Fairfax county residents are vaccinated - that includes the under 5s who aren't eligible.

For me, it's time to say that the benefits of school without a mask outweigh the chance of getting covid for my vaccinated kids.

I'm not unmasking my kids until they are allowed but you are right in saying the CDC metrics are so stringent that we will never get there. I think I heard CDC is updating their recommendations next week???

It’s about time to update metrics that were created BEFORE we had widespread availability of vaccines.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm letting my kids unmask because we will literally never get to FCPS's version of when it's safe. "Substantial transmission" is 8-10% positivity!!! That is not a number I'm afraid of. We have to get to less than 8%positivity and fewer than 49 cases per 100,000 for 7 days and stay there to meet their metric. In the past year, that has only happened from May-July of 2021. Also, 73% of all Fairfax county residents are vaccinated - that includes the under 5s who aren't eligible.

For me, it's time to say that the benefits of school without a mask outweigh the chance of getting covid for my vaccinated kids.

I'm not unmasking my kids until they are allowed but you are right in saying the CDC metrics are so stringent that we will never get there. I think I heard CDC is updating their recommendations next week???

They are allowed March 1.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They pretty much told principals that they acknowledge it’s the law and they can’t do anything about it. They just hope people keep masked. And they will work on how to deal with masked parents demanding seating next to other masked kids.

As a teacher I will be done March 1 telling a kid to mask. 🙂

Enjoy that part!

+2 happy for teachers to have that annoyance off their plates. My SIL is a HS teacher in another state where they went masks off at the beginning of this school year, and she really appreciated not having to tell the kids all the time to wear a mask or pull it up over their noses or whatever. Her administration was really enforcing it in 2020-2021 and it was a stressor for the teachers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:WTOP is reporting that FCPS will drop the mask mandate on March 1st. So I guess it's in FCPSs court if they want to correct that or not.
https://wtop.com/fairfax-county/2022/02/fairfax-co-to-drop-mask-mandate-march-1/

Why would they correct it. FCPS said the same in their notice.

Agree. WTOP read it the way most of us are reading it.

I agree with you, just pointing out that at this point it would be up to FCPS to correct if it's not the path forward, as some people are reading the letter differently.

Good. WTOP boxing FCPS in.

[Anonymous]

I really can't believe this was written by someone with a post-graduate degree. It is convoluted and content-free.

Really, they didn't even answer the question.

[Anonymous]

They probably paid Hunton and Williams 1000$/hour to draft it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:They probably paid Hunton and Williams 1000$/hour to draft it.

Maybe more like $700/hour, but absolutely the case.

It was crafted to express the following:

1. The mask mandates remains in effect in FCPS until March 1.

2. Absent further developments, FCPS will drop the mask requirement on March 1.

3. FCPS reserves the right to seek a judicial ruling before March 1 to extend the mask mandates after March 1.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I really can't believe this was written by someone with a post-graduate degree. It is convoluted and content-free.

Really, they didn't even answer the question.

This is exactly the kind of mealy-mouthed crap that results when you have multiple layers of management and consultants looking at something. I guarantee the emails had this attached as like, FCPS_mask_statement_021721 FINAL REDLINED REVISED REVISED(2) FINAL FOR SB APPROVAL .docx

[Anonymous]

I can here for some entertainment after reading the FCPS email. DCUM didn’t disappoint! Happy weekend, everyone!

[Anonymous]

Anyone see Jeff McKay's newsletter he just sent out? A [/b]10 paragraph rant[b] about the mask law. Followed up with Brabrand's email.

I've been onboard for him and like him a lot, but this was overboard.

And what was with that weird ending? Maybe if he hadn't gone on so long with his rant, he would have had time to check for errors.

Sincerely,
Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action)

Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining!"

Jeff McKay

[Anonymous]

Can you paste the content of the newsletter here?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They pretty much told principals that they acknowledge it’s the law and they can’t do anything about it. They just hope people keep masked. And they will work on how to deal with masked parents demanding seating next to other masked kids.

As a teacher I will be done March 1 telling a kid to mask. 🙂

Enjoy that part!

+2 happy for teachers to have that annoyance off their plates. My SIL is a HS teacher in another state where they went masks off at the beginning of this school year, and she really appreciated not having to tell the kids all the time to wear a mask or pull it up over their noses or whatever. Her administration was really enforcing it in 2020-2021 and it was a stressor for the teachers.

For us, mask enforcement has been easy. We really haven’t had to say much because the students really have been doing a good job. We only need to give the occasional reminder for a mask that has slid down.

What we don’t want to do is attempt to keep masked from unmasked or make enforce for parents mask wearing for their kids. That’s not going to be doable.

Speaking just for the 2 of us, we’d like to have the same option to unmask.

2 ES Teachers

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:They pretty much told principals that they acknowledge it’s the law and they can’t do anything about it. They just hope people keep masked. And they will work on how to deal with masked parents demanding seating next to other masked kids.

As a teacher I will be done March 1 telling a kid to mask. 🙂

Enjoy that part!

+2 happy for teachers to have that annoyance off their plates. My SIL is a HS teacher in another state where they went masks off at the beginning of this school year, and she really appreciated not having to tell the kids all the time to wear a mask or pull it up over their noses or whatever. Her administration was really enforcing it in 2020-2021 and it was a stressor for the teachers.

For us, mask enforcement has been easy. We really haven’t had to say much because the students really have been doing a good job. We only need to give the occasional reminder for a mask that has slid down.

What we don’t want to do is attempt to keep masked from unmasked or make enforce for parents mask wearing for their kids. That’s not going to be doable.

Speaking just for the 2 of us, we’d like to have the same option to unmask.

2 ES Teachers

I hope you get the option soon!

[Anonymous]

Wow! The FCPS letter to parents sucked and was as clear as mud. I know it was intentional to dissuade parents from unmasking their children.

That said, the letter really made me question what writing skills my children are learning when this is how the top leaders of the school system write.