Let’s do what is best for our community, wear masks when inside our schools, and move on to educating our children!

To the Editor:

I am asking for your vote as I seek reelection after four years on the Delaware Valley School Board. I am a retired reading specialist whose three children all graduated from Delaware Valley. I frequently attended meetings before I was on the board so I have a good understanding of the history of our district and offer a value to the board from my various perspectives as parent, employee, and retiree.

I have always tried to listen to all sides of an issue and then make a decision based on what is best for our students, staff and community. I have tried to educate myself on issues that I was not familiar with and be open to new ideas and solutions. I feel we need to work together with respect and cooperation. Our board needs diversity to be able to see the big picture, not a group that sees the things through the same perspective.

The past 18 months have been challenging on so many levels. Covid has truly made us think outside the box as the administration dealt with constantly changing directives. We tried to provide a variety of options for families to choose what met their needs. Last year our schools were open five days a week all day. This was hard for some families as they had to decide whether to have their children come in person or pick the Zoom option, cyber school, or home school. Each option provides different challenges but opportunities for each family.

During this divisive time, I am sure that one thing we can agree upon is that we want our kids to grow up to be kind, caring people, who want their friends and classmates to be safe. I wish we did not have to make decisions about masks but unfortunately this issue is part of our current situation. Although they are not perfect, masks do slow down the spread of Covid and other illnesses – just ask our school nurses! Recently, 65% of the close contact cases did not need to quarantine because they were wearing a mask, were vaccinated, or had tested positive for COVID in the past 90 days and had antibodies. If everyone was wearing a mask only those positive would be out of school.

I know that there are students who really struggle for a variety of reasons when wearing a mask but can we come up with some other solutions. I know the teachers are trying to find ways to allow for mask free times during the day. The problem I have is that while some truly have medical issues and doctors are not verifying those issues, others have made this a political statement and are refusing on those grounds. That is not fair to the community as a whole.

Wearing a mask can be annoying but shouldn’t we be thinking about those around us as well as our own inconvenience. Let’s emphasis that we are helping our friends and classmates rather than what I want.

We need to watch out for all students and keep them all safe. If your child has a serious issue, let’s deal with it on a case by case basis and find the best solution for your child. Let’s do what is best for our community, wear masks when inside our schools, and move on to educating our children! Thank you for your support!

Rosemary Walsh

Westfall Township