FCS mask policy
The Messenger asks Northview students and parents to share their opinions on Fulton County Schools’ new mask policyBedansh Pandey, Copy Editor, Melissa Liu, Editor-in-Chief, Manasa Premanand, Multimedia Editor, Disha Kumar, Features Editor & Krystal Wu, Social Media Editor
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Graphic by Melissa Liu, Editor-in-Chief
The FCS mask policy strongly recommends mask wearing for students and staff. Under this policy, schools located in municipalities where the COVID-19 infection rate exceeds 100 per 100,000 residents must require students, personnel, and visitors to wear masks. As of now, Northview High School does not require masks because the infection rate in Johns Creek is 98.0 per 100,000 residents according to the Fulton County Board of Health epidemiology report released on Aug. 4. Read the opinions of 36 students and parents on the FCS mask policy below.
“[The FCS policy] is stupid. Not everyone’s vaccinated, and there’s the new delta variant, so it’s just like this is gonna happen again. We’re going to go into online school because of idiots who are like ‘you know what, let’s just go to school with no mask on’ and end up sick. And I’m just like ‘really?’ I’m sick and tired of online school and I don’t want it to happen again.”
- Chou Lu, junior
“[Masks] should be mandatory to each and everyone. [Someone’s] life can not be jeopardized just because of one individual think wearing mask is not important. Let’s act like a true educator.”
- Gargi Patel, parent
“[The FCS policy] is irresponsible. Cases of the coronavirus are increasing by the date due to the delta variant, which is sickening even the vaccinated. Not to mention the fact that it spreads so easily. It’s also not fair to our families. Who knows what we’re bringing home. Living with younger siblings who can’t get the vaccine is worrisome. I wouldn’t want to get them sick, or have them get their friends sick. One teenager’s ‘freedoms’ aren’t worth 10 people’s health.”
- Naomi Ikegwuonu, junior
“Great move.”
- Sebastian Rogers, senior
“[The FCS policy] is dumb. The Academy of Pediatrics recommends everyone to wear masks. What is Fulton County saying to students when they are not listening to experts. Science matters. We need to enforce that with the kids.”
- Diana Cole, parent
“The reason that this virus has spread so quickly is because there are individuals who take ‘recommended’ as ‘not for me’ because they believe others will protect them. It’s a classic example of the freeloader effect. If everyone who takes on this mindset comes to school unmasked, it will be [us], the students, who reap the consequences. Even if you don’t mask other places, at least do us students the common courtesy of reducing the risk of transmitting to us, especially since many of us have younger unvaccinated siblings or immunocompromised family.”
- Shruti Balamurugan, senior
“Good decision, let personal responsibility reign!”
- Robert Cohn, parent
“I disagree with [the FCS policy] obviously, especially considering how we don’t have everybody vaccinated and plus the vaccination not [guaranteeing] that you can’t give it to other people. A mask mandate is extremely important. Regardless, even if everybody is quote-unquote vaccinated there should be at least an effort to try and have everybody wear a mask.”
- Casey Wong, junior
“It is true that not to choose to wear a mask and risk to be dead is one’s freedom. People who care about their lives will choose to wear a mask in indoor with massive population, such as school and supermarkets.”
- Rin Ayachi, sophomore
“[The FCS policy] is dumb. We are still in a pandemic and not mandating [masks] is stupid and putting lives at risk. It’s not hard to wear a mask for a few hours to keep people alive.”
- Jenna Hannibal, freshman
“Simply recommending masks instead of mandating them is leaving a lot of holes for cases to rapidly increase. For the most part, people who choose not to get vaccinated will also choose against wearing masks, which can further spread the disease to people who want to get vaccinated but don't have the means to.”
- Maanvi Mohan, freshman
“[The FCS policy] is extremely reckless and dangerous.”
- Brooke Hartman, freshman
“Mandating mask should be the only common sense choice when it comes to everyone’s safety including students and their families, teachers and their families, faculty and their families. Even vaccinated people can get infected with the delta variant and can carry that home to unvaccinated people like more younger family members.”
- Kamlesh Patel, parent
“Fulton [County’s] decision was the most appropriate for all vaccinated and non-vaccinated individuals. Even though I personally believe everyone should wear masks at all times to prevent the spread, it is not an easy thing to mandate over everyone. Having strict mask mandates will only create more stress for staff and students and also frustrate some vaccinated individuals as well! Changes in school sports events from [COVID-19] will also be difficult for many athletes, from difficulty breathing during exercise and confusion with masks in different training locations (indoor/outdoor/etc).”
- Sunny Park, senior
“[Masks] need to be mandated. Masks are essential in preventing the spread of the virus which ultimately saves lives. It is also a way to get back to normal quicker. It’s stupid and ignorant to not be wearing masks. Additionally, [it] is mandated by the city of [Atlanta].”
- Nima Surani, senior
“I support the mask mandate rather than the strongly recommended stage that we are at right now because of the younger children that can't be vaccinated. And I know a couple of counties have already started mandating mask because of the delta variant and for people that can't get a vaccination. So I totally support the petition [for a mandate]. I signed that myself.”
- Kelly jeong, senior
“We definitely need everyone to wear masks no matter what. No explanation needed. We are in the middle of a pandemic, and if you are vaccinated or not you can still get the virus.”
- Sarah Cato, junior
“[Wearing masks] should be a choice.”
- Jaxon Deems, senior
“Please mandate masks, since we don’t know who is vaccinated and who is not.”
- Shresta Jha, senior
“[The FCS policy] does open the door for some unsafe practices [because] that gives some people a certain level of leeway that brings in the mindset of we are back to normal when we are still getting there.”
- Srivatsav Yaddanapudi, senior
“[FCS] made the right choice by recommending [masks] and not mandating it because right now the majority of the population has both doses of the [COVID-19] vaccine. Masks for vaccinated students would have no notable effect because the vaccine already protects them. Forcing the larger population to wear a mask for the sake of the unvaccinated would be unfair and unreasonable.”
- Joshua Jung, freshman
“[The FCS policy] is wrong. They should mandate. Even if you are vaccinated, it is still possible that you will spread the virus.”
- Junqing You, parent
“I would feel much better if people had to wear masks because not everyone is vaccinated, and it makes them feel safer, but I also like that if kids don’t want to wear it for medical reasons, they don’t have to. I’m more siding with the should have to wear masks instead of not.”
- Elizabeth Leffew, sophomore
“[Masks] should be mandated because we were thinking [COVID-19] is going down, but from mid-July to August the cases have gone really high. The CDC has released a graph showing the increase of the percentage, and we are almost reaching 93 percentage rate.”
- Lalitha Kothuru, parent
“I support the decision because people have to be responsible for themselves, as in if your unvaccinated you should wear a mask at school.”
- John Calvin, freshman
“I do not think [the FCS policy] is safe for the students or the faculty. We should all be following CDC guidance and requiring masks indoors at all times because of delta [variant].”
- Sara Garg, junior
“Masks should be mandatory until the spread of [COVID-19] is under control. This is not the case now. After virus is under control, [masks] should be recommended for vaccinated and mandatory for unvaccinated.”
- Luciana Ballura, parent
“This was a good decision as it does not force anybody to wear masks while also allowing people who still feel uncomfortable to wear masks if they please.”
- Trisha Gundugollu, freshman
“Fulton County Schools’ decision to only recommend masks isn’t a good decision because there are new strings of [COVID-19] being discovered. Vaccinated students should have the choice, but everyone who claims to be vaccinated needs to send a copy of their vaccination card for proof or have their vaccination card in their backpack. If we do not have proof of vaccination, a lot of students will probably lie about whether or not they were vaccinated.”
- Nora Daklouche, freshman
“[Masks] should be mandated since it is safe for everybody. If it’s optional only some people would wear it, and it wouldn’t be effective.”
- Rajeev Menon, parent
“I say to let [masks] be an option or have students put them on in big classes. [Masks] should be highly recommended but not needed unless cases are rising.”
- Erika Ferrero, freshman
“Masks should be mandated in order to protect not only oneself but others too.”
- Audrey Wei, sophomore
“[Masks] should be recommend only [because] mask can make people feel safe/safer, but also [COVID-19] will always be around even with the vaccine just like the flu, so mask shouldn’t be forced.”
- Caroline Liles, freshman
“Masks should be mandatory until [COVID-19] is vanished or all children of school age are vaccinated.”
- Deson Kim, parent
“With the delta variant cases increasing, it would be a better idea to make masks mandatory.”
- Keerthy Rangan, senior
“Masks should be mandated for the unvaccinated but optional for the vaccinated.”
- Neha Gurram, freshman
“Everyone has their own choice, but personally I think we should wear a mask because of the delta variant. It’s the best way to control it.”
- Matthew Tran, sophomore
