After shutting down the last two meetings over face mask disputes, the president of the Placentia-Yorba Linda School Board has called for a special session next week with only one agenda item: Should the board hold meetings online for the next month?
Board President Carrie Buck put out a Tweet Wednesday saying she wants trustees to vote on a resolution that would allow the board to resume virtual meetings for 30 days.
“If passed, the February 8th meeting will be virtual and include live public comments. This will be safe way everyone can be heard,” she wrote on Twitter.
Buck abruptly adjourned the meetings of Jan. 11 and Jan. 19 minutes after they began after some members of the audience refused to put on face masks while others either wore them below their nose or chose mesh masks.
I have called for a special board meeting on February 2nd at 8:30 am for the board to vote on a resolution to go to virtual meetings for 30 days.
If passed, the February 8th meeting will be virtual and include live public comments. This will be safe way everyone can be heard.
— Carrie Buck (@CarrieBuck4PYL) January 26, 2022
At the Jan. 19 meeting, two of the board members stayed after their colleagues and staff left and turned off all the mics. For more than two hours after that, trustees Leandra Blades and Shawn Youngblood held an unofficial meeting they dubbed “a town hall.”
This week, the Los Alamitos Unified School District School Board also temporarily recessed its meeting twice after one attendee refused to wear a mask. He said the mask order was a violation of federal law and told the board: “I’m not going to comply. So you can save your breath. Just get on with the meeting.” The board cleared the chamber and reconvened in another room. Viewers could continue to hear, but not see the meeting via YouTube.
Los Alamitos Unified School District Board of Education meeting is in recess as one person is refusing to wear a mask per California health guidelines. District is trying to figure out how to convene the meeting; allow for public comment & follow State safety protocols.
— Jeannette A. Andruss (@NetteAndruss) January 26, 2022
A state rule mandating face masks in schools has stirred debate and lead to rallies and disruptions at some school boards across Orange County.
California currently requires that face masks be worn indoors until Feb. 15, regardless of vaccination status, due to the high spread of the omicron variant. On Wednesday, Jan. 26, the Orange County Health Care Agency reported 2,592 new cases of the coronavirus. Since tracking began in the county, the cumulative total has added up to 501,510 cases.
At the Placentia-Yorba Linda district, a special meeting is scheduled at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Feb. 2, at the district office, 1301 E. Orangethorpe Avenue in Placentia.
Related links
Maskless attendees cause school board meeting to abruptly end
School board meetings become verbal battle zones in COVID era
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