Students, Teachers and Parents Prepare For Going Maskless At School
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) - Monday will be the beginning of an adjustment period for students, parents and teachers all across California.
With the state removing its mandatory mask mandate, school districts now have the green light to make masks an option inside the classroom for students.
But not every campus will eliminate the mask mandate. And not every student is ready to go unmasked.
"This whole pandemic has been a long journey," Thersa Amofa said.
Amofa is a parent, who said she is grateful COVID-19 cases have dropped enough to get to this point. But ditching facemasks isn't an easy choice for her.
"I'm a little worried about it. But I mean we've got to live life. We've got to go on," Amofa said.
Her 8-year-old daughter has already decided on a plan when she goes into her third grade classroom on Monday.
"Inside I want to keep my mask on and outside I want to take it off," Zaniyah Amofa said.
Adjustments to COVID protocols on this scale can be an emotional decision to make for a lot of families, according to Ligia Pacheco who is a licensed clinical social worker for Kaiser Permanente.
"Let them know that you support their decision if they chose to continue to still wear a mask," Pacheco said.
However, this new approach is concerning for some parents. Carlos Hernandez is worried for his 5-year-old son since he's not sure who else in the classroom is vaccinated.
"We don't know. So, for me it's better that they still use it," Hernandez said.
Many parents across the state demanded that masks be made optional for students. But not every classroom will see the big change.
LAUSD schools, the nation's second largest school district, is keeping the mask mandate in place, for now.
The district said it's working with labor partners, including the teachers' union, on switching from a mask mandate to a recommendation.