The Tempe Union High School District passed a resolution Monday calling on the Arizona Legislature and the governor to suspend, amend or repeal a policy that bans public schools from requiring masks.
The resolution states the board expects universal indoor masking and for all students and employees to adhere to all recommended Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, but it falls short from requiring face covering like other Arizona school districts have done.
That's because the board's hands are tied because of a new state law that prohibits it from mandating masks, said board member Berdetta Hodge.
“We can’t do anything that we need to do to protect our children right now and it’s hard, it’s really hard to sit here know that we are going to pass a resolution, but are we really gonna save the lives of the kids...?”
The board’s vice president Andres Barraza criticized the governor for signing a law that prevents the board from doing more to protect students and employees during the COVID-19 pandemic and the threat of the new delta variant.
“Doug Ducey is a coward," Barraza said. "He has not created a support system. He has not asked us how we are doing. He has not stepped foot or sent anything by his hand to support us, to let us know that he cares.”
Instead, the board is calling on lawmakers and the governor to immediately reconvene the Legislature in order to suspend, amend or repeal the law and allow public schools to make their own masking decisions.
Board members also urged the public to email Ducey and hold him accountable.
Last week, the Tempe Elementary School District issued a similar resolution.
