Shelby County Schools to require face masks starting August 30

SHELBY COUNTY, Ala. (WBRC) - Another school system is joining a growing list of schools that now requiring face masks.

Superintendent Dr. Lewis Brooks announced Thursday that Shelby County Schools will move to a mask mandate starting on Monday, August 30, 2021. Some parents voiced their opposition Thursday evening during the school board meeting.

Dr. Brooks says he and his colleagues across the state are seeing a pattern with COVID-19 cases increasing in schools. Face masks will be required indoors except for lunch and not required during recess or outdoor P.E. classes. Lewis said he made the decision after speaking with health leaders.

There were already 252 COVID positive cases in the district earlier this week with 90 of them happening on Monday.

Despite the growing numbers, some parents feel the superintendent’s decision is overreach and other parents claim face masks don’t work.

“There are studies that show that people are having gum issues. They are having bacterial infections. They are having low oxygen level. I’ve actually had a health condition because of wearing it 8 hours a day, five days a week,” one parent said to board members.

Brooks feels masks are the best option slow the spread and keep schools open at the same time.

“If the cases continue to rise and we have faculty and staff members that can’t come to work because they are sick then we have no recourse but to shut down. That’s not what we want to get to,” Dr. Brooks said.

Some of the claims parents made during the meeting have been debunked by health leaders around the country.

The school district says face masks will be given to students if they show up without them.

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