To the CDSBEO,
My husband and I reluctantly decided that we would send our five-year-old to in-person learning for her SK school year. She’s been online learning for the past year and it’s obvious to us that she yearns to be with peers to play, learn, and simply have fun.
We nervously watched the news leading up to the schools reopening – foolishly assuming that the COVID safety protocols for the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario (CDSBEO) would match those implemented by OCDSB and OCSB in the Ottawa region. Clearly and sadly, we were incorrect and felt very let down.
It’s bad enough that vaccines for those working in the schools were NOT mandated as they should be to protect our children that are unable to receive vaccinations themselves, but also NO mask mandate for kindergarten age children. Only for grades 1-12. This seems like a no-brainer and one of the simplest mandates to put in place to keep the kids safe while indoors. As we are all aware, kids of this age tend to play very closely together and have less hang ups with regards to sharing their personal space. This makes it all the more vital that masks for this age group are made mandatory. There are already colds and flus circulating in schools and it’s making it all the more difficult to decipher between these viruses and COVID. Masking would also cut back on the spread of ALL of these.
We can all already see the cases on the rise this early into the school year and it makes me worried, angry and extremely disappointed to think these two very important mandates were not part of CDSBEO’s return to school safety plan. It’s literally nonsensical.
Please reconsider your position on school vaccine and masking policies before the virus ends up shutting down our schools before the kids have barely had a chance to start the new year.
Regards,
A very concerned mother and father,
Jean Sabourin
Hammond
