Prince Rupert and District Teachers' Union hails revised Mask Mandate for Schools

With the Province of British Columbia expanding on the mask mandate for all students from Grades Kindergarten to Grade 12 last week, the union which represents teachers in the Prince Rupert region has celebrated the decision,  noting of their past efforts on themes of School Safety.

In an information release from Sunday, the PRDTU  outlined  the reaffirmation of they position on masks from their General meeting of last week  and what it now means for the school community. 

At last week’s PRDTU General Meeting we reaffirmed our local union’s position on masks for all students and staff in SD52 schools. As you likely know from widespread media coverage, this part of our campaign for safer schools has met its objective. The provincial government has agreed with the BCTF and PRDTU on making masks a requirement for all ages. This means that masks, with some exceptions, are now mandated for all staff, visitors, and students in schools throughout the province. 

The PRDTU’s commitment to your safety is realized in these new measures. While we had hoped for government action sooner, as COVID-19 changes so too must our response to it. At least the government remains committed to following the science on protecting people during this pandemic.

The Teachers' union also points towards the supply of safe and effective vaccines towards how the future may herald a return to more normal times for students, families and SD52 teachers as the vaccination program continues forward.

As the population reaches full vaccination, we are all hopeful that our schools will return to the pre-COVID normal when we could see each other’s faces and go to school without wearing a mask. Thankfully, the science behind vaccination has provided us with an effective and safe way out of this pandemic together.

You can review the full statement from the PRDTU leadership here.

As we outlined earlier today, SD52 like all school districts across the province have put in place the mask mandate for K-12 students as of today.

More notes on education in the Northwest can be explored from our archive page.