Content Accordion

Public Comment 641
Public Comment 642

Submitted by: Kerrie Smith

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: I can understand how many parents are split with the decision of what is safest for their children with some fearing COVID and others not. But for the parents that have children or family members with compromised immune systems or other health issues, they too have a choice to have their children wear masks, get vaccinated, homeschool or do online school. Masks will not prevent the spread of covid, colds or even the common flu. Are we to shut down our schools or lives every time a different strain of a flu virus occurs every year? Masks, just like getting vaccinated should be a choice and those that fear the common flu/ covid or other viruses have the choice: wear a mask, get vaccinated, stay home. But don’t impose your choice on others and make it a mandated issue removing the choice from others. Masks create more fear than they protect against the virus. Do we want our children to grow up living in fear or do we want them to have choices and understand freedom
Public Comment 643
Public Comment 644
Public Comment 645
Public Comment 646
Public Comment 647

Submitted by: Elizabeth Farnsworth

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: I am writing in hopes that you will please finally consider the emotional and mental anxiety that this pandemic is unnecessarily causing our children. The constant bombardment of negativity, judgment, health and fear are taxing and damaging to these little ones that simply want to learn to read and swing on the swing. Implementing a mask mandate will only emotionally harm our children. It creates an atmosphere of fear. "Who is really under the mask?" "Can I trust someone I don't even know what they look like?" "Is a teacher upset or smiling?" "What are you saying, I can't hear you?" Children need to see the faces of others to learn to trust and be able to fully connect to another individual. Additionally, it is so difficult to hear someone's voice with a mask on. The academic understanding and ability to thrive in a classroom with masks is simply too difficult and frustrating that children are losing interested, falling behind, and becoming disconnected to the classroom environment that should be inviting, loving and focused. Please do not make masks mandatory. Give people the choice. Give children the best opportunity possible to thrive at school!
Public Comment 648

Submitted by: Joe Turner

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Mandating masks for all children is not appropriate and has not been shown to statistically lower risks unless the proper mask is worn. Using cloth or paper masks increases potential upper respiratory illnesses. Allowing children to use masks is okay, FORCING children to wear them is negating my rights as a parent to consult with family medical professionals and do what is best for my child. The board needs to stick to education and allow medical decisions to be made by the parents.
Public Comment 649
Public Comment 650

Submitted by: Karlynne Martin

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Working in the medical industry, I understand how important it is to wear masks and follow all precautions due to COVID-19. By that, I mean wearing masks whether or not you have been vaccinated, always washing your hands for at least 20 seconds, and or using hand sanitizer. I also believe in social distancing and know that all of these remedies work to help prevent COVID-19. Please ensure that our students are safe as they are children and do not fully understand the impact of what is happening. Please require masks in the schools so that some of our kids and family members that are vulnerable are protected from this deadly virus. Thank you.
Public Comment 651
Public Comment 652
Public Comment 653

Submitted by: Ian Nyberg

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: If we are serious about teaching our children to learn to apply empirical science to live better lives, then we must teach them how to identify experts in different fields and to learn to evaluate and follow their advice. The top epidemiologists and virologists are being very clear: • Due to the circulating and highly contagious Delta variant, CDC recommends universal indoor masking by all students (age 2 and older), staff, teachers, and visitors to K-12 schools, regardless of vaccination status. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics: • Since the pandemic began, children represented 14.6% of total cumulated cases. For the week ending August 19, children were 22.4% of reported weekly COVID-19 cases. In spite of politics, we should encourage everyone to wear masks in school. They have been proven to save lives during the current global pandemic. Ian Nyberg, MD, PhD, parent of two in elementary school
Public Comment 654
Public Comment 655
Public Comment 656
Public Comment 657
Public Comment 658
Public Comment 659

Submitted by: Tatum Gosch

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: My comment is simply that our family is open and happy to wear masks! Especially as we come into flu season, masks will be helpful in preventing all sorts of illness, COVID included. We love our school and want to keep our community safe and healthy as possible! Thanks for listening!
Public Comment 660

Submitted by: Sarah Lenzmeier-Orbegozo

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Please do not mandate the use of masks on my children again. This should be a personal choice, and not a mandate. Healthy, asymptotic children should be able to learn at school without breathing their own carbon dioxide for multiple hours a day. Again, this should be a choice and not a mandate. Thank you.
Public Comment 661

Submitted by: Rosalie Oregel

Live or Work in the District: No

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Whomever changed the pick up drop off routine for the school has put our children in danger. It has created chaos and made pickup/drop off a disorganized mess. Now there are kids walking out of the south east corner waiting for pickup making them easier targets to be kidnapped and increasing their risk of being hit by a car. The kids were safer, and traffic flowed better and smoother being picked up on the south west side of the parking lot behind the fence. With the kids on school property behind the fence the risk is reduced and traffic flows better. Please, change the procedure back to the way it was before, for the safety of our children.
Public Comment 662

Submitted by: Tesha Hensley-Brown

Live or Work in the District: No

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Follow the Maricopa County’s quarantine guidelines! Mesquite Elementary is currently at a 2.03% positivity rate per the dashboard. This was preventable! Our school has several third-grade students who have tested positive for COVID over the past week and our school has teachers out due to them getting COVID. Students who have been deemed as close contacts with these positive cases are not being required by our district to follow Maricopa County’s quarantine guidelines to prevent additional spread. Instead, close contact students are returning to campus, unmasked, untested, and further spreading the virus. Per Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH), and in accordance with CDC and ADHS guidance, close contacts who are not fully vaccinated or have not tested positive for COVID-19 in the last 90 days are to quarantine (stay) at home for up to 10 days. This includes being excluded from in-person school and extracurricular activities. Per Arizona Administrative Code R9-6-361 and A.R.S. 36-624, the quarantine policy is not optional or malleable; it is established in state law. This is important especially for elementary age students who cannot be vaccinated. Why does the close contact exposure letter that the GPS district currently sends out not reflect this mandated mitigation requirement? The GPS District knows better! GPS’s district leadership has CHOSEN not to follow this mandated and enforceable mitigation strategy that is REQUIRED per MCDPH. GPS followed all these quarantine mitigations last year as evidenced in their communications to families requiring them to keep their students home. GPS has been provided weekly webinar meetings and power point presentations, guidance documents and more by MCDPH for over the past year. Since the beginning of this school year, GPS has known that it should have continued to follow the quarantine guidelines to slow the spread of COVID in our schools and to help keep our school communities safe. GPS chose not to. Why?
Public Comment 663
Public Comment 664

Submitted by: Colby Ashton

Live or Work in the District: No

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: As a parent of 2 current GPS kids (and 2 graduates), I'm asking the board to keep masks OPTIONAL. The most important thing to remember as you make this decision is "choices". For those parents that want to mask their kids, they have the choice to do so. If those parents are still uncomfortable with the lack of a mask mandate, they can choose to send their child to Global. If you mandate masks, you are taking away my choice to manage the health of my children in a manner I see fit. If the mandate were to happen I, and many others, would consider other choices for my child's education such as charters or Higley and Chandler districts who have all voted to keep masks optional. I don't want the district to lose more students and have to lay off staff again.
Public Comment 665

Submitted by: Sharon Hansen

Live or Work in the District: No

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Masks should be an option for people who want their children to wear one. Children and teachers should not be forced to wear one. I am a substitute teacher and do not want to be forced to wear a mask all day long. If you could see what happens when kids are required to wear masks you definitely wouldn’t want it. Younger children chew on them, drop them on the floor and then rewear them. They touch and fiddle with them all day long. Another reason why not to impose a mask mandate is that a law has been passed to prevent this. Are we now teaching our children it’s ok to break the law?
Public Comment 666

Submitted by: Becky Judkins

Live or Work in the District: No

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Please keep masks optional for our kids!!!!! I have a son with speech delays and it really hurts him academically to use a mask and speak to people wearing masks! He needs to see their face and mouth to learn and develop these skills!
Public Comment 667
Public Comment 668
Public Comment 669
Public Comment 670

Submitted by: Mary Robbins

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Because sometimes the loudest voices are not always representative of the group as a whole, I want make my voice known, and state that I, and many other parents out there, are in favor of mask mandates in the schools. Until the vaccine can be available to all our children, I encourage them to keep our kids safe through all other means possible, including requiring masks in the classroom. How can we claim to be educators and protectors of our children if we cannot follow scientifically proven, common sense methods of protecting against infection. How can we justify putting these little ones at risk? Masking is most effective when everyone is compelled to wear them, just as a traffic light only protects drivers if everyone follows its direction. I respectfully ask that this school board do what's in the best interest of everyone's safety, including my own children. Thank you.
Public Comment 671

Submitted by: Kristen Harp

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: I remember my grandson's reaction when I told him last month that he didn't have to wear a mask when he goes back to school, wide eyed and overjoyed, he said "I'm so happy that I'll be able to breathe!!". 20 days ours kids have been in school, no issues, no outbreaks, immune systems working, everything has been great. What is the reasoning behind even entertaining the idea of suffocating our kids again? To appease who? Where is the logic? Where are the critical thinkers who can see through all of the outright lies that we've been fed? Someone on this board, please stand up for our kids to breathe freely and to keep focused on the education of our children instead of the overreaching control of them. At the very least, keep it the way it is, leave the decision up to parents to not mask or mask if they so choose. Thank you
Public Comment 672

Submitted by: Kelly Pagels

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: I am writing to you today to implore you to protect our children and larger community by requiring masks for all individuals on 91茄子 Public Schools campuses. Recently the Arizona Supreme Court has determined that it is not against the law or governor’s order in order to require masking, as this does not go into effect until the end of the first quarter for this school year. Additionally, Texas schools have been able to require masks as part of dress codes in order to still be within the lawful confines of their governor’s anti-public health policies. It has gone on far too long that state-wide leaders here in Arizona hide behind the governor’s orders stating “their hands are tied” when it comes to protecting the very children for whom they claim to care so much. 91茄子 Public Schools stands out within the state as having some of the best teachers and schools, however it is completely contradictory to require science and math credits in order to graduate from GPS high schools, when our very leaders and teachers are failing science and math in real time. GPS teachers and staff cannot claim to be “following CDC guidance” when they are in classrooms unmasked, as current guidance from all major healthcare entities is the same: all individuals older than 2 years of age, regardless of vaccination status, should be masked indoors when congregating with others. Do the teachers (particularly of elementary students whom nearly 100% are not eligible for vaccination) care that they can just as easily spread COVID-19 to their students, even they, themselves, are vaccinated? To those who feel that even when children are infected with COVID-19, they are “not that sick,” there are absolutely children who do become severely ill, both during the acute phase of infection and later. I speak from personal experience, as I work within a pediatric emergency room here in the community, as a practitioner. I have admitted far too many children for COVID-19 infection and for sequelae of COVID-19 infection. While many children will recover, we are playing a game of Russian roulette with our children’s current and future health by not taking further action to prevent the community spread of COVID-19. If that is still not enough reason to warrant further mitigation measures, please consider that the pediatric hospitals are overwhelmed with patients right now. The very ER in which I practice medicine has regularly been experiencing wait-times of 4 or more hours for children in the last month since schools resumed. To those that think they can just go to the other pediatric hospital in valley, that emergency room has experienced wait times of 9 hours this week and a whopping 88 pediatric patients in the waiting room at one time. So, should a child require medical attention for any reason, even those illnesses and injuries not related to COVID-19, they can expect delays in care and significant shortages of resources to care for them. This pain is also felt even more significantly in the adult ERs across the valley where wait times are exceeding 6 hours on a daily basis, and adult patients arriving by ambulance are still being sat in the waiting room for hours until being seen by a provider and treated. Our medical system is being pushed to the brink of collapse. Lastly, there is no argument against the efficacy of masking. All one needs to do is compare last school year’s statistics to this school year that has only been in session for three weeks. When masks were required, infections and outbreaks within schools were relatively uncommon compared to the last three weeks without mandated masking. Pediatric COVID-19 cases are largely driving this current spike in infections, whereas previously it was the adult patient population. This school year will be far more disrupted by the pervasive, unmitigated spread of infection and quarantining than proceeding with masked in-person learning. Thank you for your consideration of our children, local healthcare resources and greater 91茄子 population.
Public Comment 673
Public Comment 674

Submitted by: Kelly

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Please keep masks optional. I know that the CDC recommends masking and our transmission rates are substantial. However, it is a hard psychological burden to place on elementary school kids. Additionally, I am afraid that many parents will leave the district if masks are mandated, this resulting in another loss of funds that cannot be afforded. Your job is to educate. You have other motivation strategies in place. Please let parents make the decision about masks. Thank you for serving in this time of turmoil when no matter what you do someone will be mad at you and know that I will support your decision.
Public Comment 675
Public Comment 676
Public Comment 677
Public Comment 678

Submitted by: Holly

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: As a concerned parent and healthcare provider I am asking that you consider mandating masks and follow CDC guidelines and mitigation strategies. Covid-19 cases are rising especially in school aged children. We know that in person learning is the best. The Delta variant is more contagious and does cause more moderate to severe symptoms in children I am worried if we do not implement these mitigation strategies and yes, that does include mask wearing that schools we be shut down. Thank you for your consideration on this.
Public Comment 679
Public Comment 680
Public Comment 681
Public Comment 682

Submitted by: Christiann Thijm

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: I am going to try to make it to the meeting tonight because this is so very important for our kids, but may not make it sue to work. Please, please, please employ logic, common sense, and a bit of courage to help keep our kids in school by doing a MUCH better job of encouraging mask wear and arranging our class and lunch rooms to allow for social distancing. Last I checked (and I ask my kids daily), the desks were set up in clusters and all facing each other which is insane! I am well aware of Ducey's absurd executive order regarding face coverings but other districts have done what it necessary to help protect their kids and I expect no less from 91茄子. My kids spent all last year in Global Academy and for the sake of their mental health, I have sent them back to class - in masks. I am appalled by the lack of mask wear by staff and especially the principal who should be an example. You simply must do better than this.
Public Comment 683

Submitted by: Hema Vinod

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Please give special needs families the same choices general education families have to keep their children safe!! Everyday it’s a high risk we take sending our special needs kids in person. Our kids are among the most vulnerable. They cannot tell us when they feel sick, when something hurts or where, if it is hard to breathe. By the time we figure out if they are having a sensory issue or they are ill, they can can be quite sick. While neurotypical children are being given the option of funding to find schools if they are being forced to mask, or kids are being forced into schools with no masks, and we don’t want them there. They are forcing the children into crowded lunch rooms and won’t even let them eat in their classrooms to keep them safe. My only option was homebound services. They said only option is in person . Covid cases are rising especially elementary school kids. We are begging for help. We are desperate for relief. Please, give our kids the choice to stay safe and still get an education too!! Please mandate mask with teachers and para’s.
Public Comment 684

Submitted by: TJ Brown

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Mesquite Elementary is currently suffering from a COVID-19 outbreak. Over 2% of the students and staff currently have COVID-19 with the cases mostly concentrated in two grades. The current mitigation strategies are not sufficient for preventing, controlling, or stopping a COVID-19 outbreak in a class, grade, or school. GPS needs to improve the mitigation strategies, especially during an outbreak. Please implement the following mitigation strategies to prevent or slow down a COVID-19 outbreak: - Students need to be socially distanced as much as possible in the classroom and while lining up to walk to other other parts of the school. Currently, the students are not practicing social distancing while in the classroom or while lining to up go to the cafeteria, to specials, or out to recess. In the classroom, students are clustered together with desks facing each other which allows the virus to spread too easily in the classroom. - Students that have been in close contact with other students with COVID-19 must quarantine to prevent the spread of the virus. Currently, when a student has been identified as being in close contact with another student that has tested positive for COVID-19, there is no requirement to quarantine or get tested for COVID-19. - Students and staff need to wear face coverings while the school is experiencing a COVID-19 outbreak. - Buses need to have the windows open or partially open as GPS stated would happen at the beginning of the school year. We have yet to see any school busses with the windows open or cracked. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Please address these issues in today's board meeting.
Public Comment 685

Submitted by: Nick Chavez

Live or Work in the District: Yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: I’d ask that GPS considers a mask requirement at all schools, to be reviewed in a quarterly basis. Please consider the facts - 1) Only 47% of Arizonans are vaccinated. 2) 85-93% of current COVID hospitalizations are unvaccinated patients. 3) 0% of our GPS children under 12 are vaccinated. 4) on June 1st, Maricopa County averaged 397 daily COVID cases. On August 23rd, we have a 7-day average of 2040 positive cases per day, in a continued upward trend. We need multiple mitigation strategies to ensure we’re doing everything we can to curb this surge. We will not know if any of this is an overreaction. But we will know if it is an underreaction. Thank You.
Public Comment 686

Submitted by: Lori L.

Live or Work in the District: no

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: I am leaving this comment for public record that I requested you to take stronger action and implement serious Covid mitigation measures, including requiring face masks on campus. Please remove politics from public health and follow the guidance for K-12 schools from the CDC and AAP. Again, this is a public health crisis and you are a public school district - responsible for the safety of all students, including the disabled that are assured educational equality by law. Sadly, I think that is what might only ensure change. I guess just make sure your litigation fund is flush w/Ducey's dollars.
Public Comment 687

Submitted by: Hilary Rank

Live or Work in the District: yes

Child(ren) attending a GPS school: Yes

Comment: Hello, I understand that masks are just under “discussion” tonight and not up for vote. I’m here because I care about my children, their health, their freedom and their future. I’m here to ask the school board to uphold the Governor’s mandate against forcing children to wear masks in school. I could sit here and read the scientific research from the CDC, PubMed and peer reviewed sources showing that children have a survival rate from COVID is 99.997% and adults ages 20-49 years have a 99.98% chance or that a CDC study determined that children are not shown to be the drivers of the pandemic or even that the CDC along with numerous other studies showed that cloth masks are not effective in preventing transmission of the virus. Or even that studies have shown that masks are DETERMENTAL to children for a variety of reasons. Or ask why the government, CDC and media aren’t talking about the SURVIVAL RATE of Covid instead of the mortallity rate. Or talking about the preventative measures people can take to strengthen their natural immunity. However, I won’t. Because I know facts don’t matter to those people who are still pushing masks in schools. No, I want to talk about our rights. My constitutional rights as a free person in America and my rights as a parent. This isn’t a matter of the greater good, this is a matter of our rights. If you offered me a car seat but the car seat couldn’t keep my child safe, I’d decline the car seat. Not because I’m against your right to choose to use that car seat. I’d just find something that was a better fit for keeping my child safe. Since I’m not really interested in things that don’t do what they are supposed to do or do it safely. I’m not really interested in a false sense of security. What is so terrifying to me about what is going on in our world right now is that instead of the democracy we were all raised in that provide us the privileges we have today, people are so willing give up their right to make medical choices for themselves AND their children. My body and my children’s bodies do not belong to the government, school or even other parents. I think it’s safe to say for the other parents who are here speaking up against masks, don’t want to deny any other parent or person the right to make the decision to wear masks for themselves and their children. That is your choice and your right as an American citizen. But your fear is not my fear. Your fear does not have the right to interfere with my children’s education and health or my children’s future as a free American citizens.

91茄子

Public Comment 641

Public Comment 642

Public Comment 643

Public Comment 644

Public Comment 645

Public Comment 646

Public Comment 647

Public Comment 648

Public Comment 649

Public Comment 650

Public Comment 651

Public Comment 652

Public Comment 653

Public Comment 654

Public Comment 655

Public Comment 656

Public Comment 657

Public Comment 658

Public Comment 659

Public Comment 660

Public Comment 661

Public Comment 662

Public Comment 663

Public Comment 664

Public Comment 665

Public Comment 666

Public Comment 667

Public Comment 668

Public Comment 669

Public Comment 670

Public Comment 671

Public Comment 672

Public Comment 673

Public Comment 674

Public Comment 675

Public Comment 676

Public Comment 677

Public Comment 678

Public Comment 679

Public Comment 680

Public Comment 681

Public Comment 682

Public Comment 683

Public Comment 684

Public Comment 685

Public Comment 686

Public Comment 687