Pete Chacalos is one of five members of the Ohio County Board of Education and was one of four to vote in late August to give parents the choices concerning their children wearing masks inside school buildings, but that quickly changed because of the mothers and fathers.
Two weeks ago, however, another 4-1 vote mandated all staff, students, and visitors wear face coverings for at least 30 days. Board President David Croft was the only member to vote twice to allow parents to make that decision, but Chacalos felt that approach no longer would be effective to protect all involved from contracting COVID-19.
“Initially, I looked at the situation from both points of view. If was the parent of a school-aged child, and a layperson told me what course of action to take with respect to the health care of my child, I would not be happy,” the former Ohio County educator explained. “I would want to decide for myself. My decision would be to mask my child, but at least it would be my decision.
“I had every faith that most would also step up to the plate and heed the recommendation,” he said. “My faith was misplaced.”
Chacalos reported he was contacted by several parents prior to both votes and that there was not a clear consensus.
“They were divided almost equally. Some were adamant that masks had to be mandated while others felt that masks should be a personal choice,” the BOE member said. “Each group cited ‘evidence’ that supported its claims.
“But it was obvious that the plan was not working. This had to necessitate changes to the plan. With most of the state in the ‘red,’ I wondered why the governor did not issue a mandate regarding masks. I learned, by looking through state code (16-2-11) that the Board of Health of each county has the authority to issue these mandates as well.”
Masks Recommended
Howard Gamble, the administrator of the Wheeling-Ohio County Health Department, issued a statement in late August recommending that all staff members and students be masked when inside any Ohio County Schools facilities because of the spike in positive and probable cases in Ohio County since the end of July.
According to the Covid-19 Dashboard created and managed by the state Department of Health and Human Resources, Ohio County has reported 172 positive cases during the past seven days, and that 60.3 percent of residents have been vaccinated.
The pandemic dashboard on the website for Ohio County Schools displayed today that there are 31 active cases in the school system at this time.
“The Wheeling-Ohio County Board of Health (comprised of six voting members) did not (mandate masks). Why? I do not know,” Chacalos said. “I went to their website to look for answers by looking through their minutes only to find that none had been posted since January of 2021. The Board of Health, like the governor, apparently wants the BOE to issue the mandate when it is clearly its responsibility to do so.
“I thought everyone could agree that kids needed to be in the classroom, both for their educational and mental well-being. With an increasing number of absences, those needs were not being met,” he said. “In addition, too many healthy kids were being quarantined at home. If the only way to keep kids in the classroom was to require masks in our schools, then that is what had to be done.”
Vaccination Mandate?
Corporations and the federal government have issued vaccination mandates for employees over the last month, but W.Va. Gov. Jim Justice has not mentioned such an option during his weekly briefings on the coronavirus.
Even if he does, Chacalos, who is fully vaccinated and encourages others to do the same, will be opposed to such an order because of his belief in personal choice.
“I believe that vaccinations work and are the best way to stop this pandemic. Individuals, however, should have the right to decide for themselves,” he insisted. “I could ask one hundred people if they knew someone who had/has Covid. I would guess that everyone would answer in the affirmative. I could also ask those same people if they knew someone who has polio and almost all would probably say no.
“Vaccines are the likely reason. I would encourage students and staff to get vaccinated, but I feel a vaccine mandate is not under the umbrella of responsibilities of the BOE,” Chacalos added. “That responsibility lies solely with the WV DHHR and the Board of Health of each county.”
