The Osborn and Roosevelt elementary school districts are the latest to issue mask mandates for their students and staff in response to the recent spike in COVID-19 cases and the more transmissible delta variant. Both districts serve preschool through eighth-grade students who are too young for COVID-19 vaccines.
The Osborn superintendent will work with district counsel to develop an opt-out option for parents, the district said in a Facebook statement.
The Osborn school district serves about 2,600 preschool through eighth-grade students. The Osborn district’s first day is Monday, Aug. 9. The Roosevelt school district, in south Phoenix, serves about 7,500 preschool through eighth-grade students and had its first day on Monday, Aug. 2.
The Phoenix Union High School Districtand Phoenix Elementary School District are also requiring masks.
But whether these policies are enforceable remains to be seen since a state law bans schools from mandating masks. A lawsuit has already been filed against one school district with such a mandate. An emergency hearing on the case is scheduled today in the Maricopa County Superior Court.
