Joe Henderson: Masks are mandatory* in Hillsborough schools (but not really)

Under a new rule from the Hillsborough County School Board, face coverings are now mandatory* when students return to in-person classes on Tuesday.

*Unless they don’t want to wear them.

So then what?

Parents can opt their children out of the mandatory* part of the rule, or the students can just ignore it. There is nothing teachers or staff can do if that happens.

“Here’s the thing, if you don’t opt-out, the theory is that you have to wear a mask. But if they don’t do that, you’re not allowed to discipline them. The Governor’s actions foreclosed a lot of the discipline avenues. As we’ve told teachers, there’s not much you can do right now,” Hillsborough Classroom Teachers Association Executive Director Stephanie Baxter-Jenkins said.

Welcome to Crazy Town, Florida-style. The highly contagious delta variant exploded across the state, affecting young and unvaccinated people. Yet, local districts can do little to mitigate infection rates thanks to the executive order from Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is dug in deep with visions of the White House dancing in his head.

It’s causing holy hell, starting with the toothless mandatory* non-rule. It would be laughable if it wasn’t so serious, but politics got us here.

The Governor and thousands of his followers decided, without evidence, that they are the experts. They convinced themselves they know more about virology than people who have studied that science for years, and you can’t fix stupid.

It’s ironic that schools are most affected by this lack of knowledge, but it’s also not surprising.

“Sometimes I feel like I’m living in an alternate universe,” Baxter-Jenkins said. “In a school setting without safety measures, we won’t be able to remain open.”

There are legal challenges to DeSantis’ order. Until that’s resolved, though, schools are marooned in Baxter-Jenkins’ alternate universe. Local leaders are left to take the brunt of pushback from both sides of this incredibly polarized debate.

On one side are people who look at the COVID-19 data (DeSantis’ favorite word) and decide, hey, this is serious.

On the other are those whose definition of freedom includes the ability to spread potentially catastrophic germs that might kill someone. For them, personal inconvenience trumps all.

In the middle are teachers and front-line administrators who have to help students reach state education standards while working without rules in an incubator.

Same as it ever was, I guess.

“The one thing I think that is heartening, as crazy and hard-working as last year was on teachers, families, and students, we showed we could keep things running,” Baxter-Jenkins said.

Yes, they did.

However, they shouldn’t have to work under conditions set by a buckaroo Governor and an Education Commissioner who believes it’s their way or the highway.

It’s a one-rule-for-everyone approach that ignores the differences between Florida’s big-city districts and those smaller ones in rural settings.

The state is home to five of the largest school districts in the country: Miami-Dade (fourth), Broward (sixth), Hillsborough (seventh), Orange County (ninth), and Palm Beach (10^th).

A more relaxed policy in Holmes County might work. However, you’re asking for trouble trying to copy that in places overstuffed with students.

Already, social distancing in many Hillsborough schools is not possible because of the sheer volume. Kids are pretty smart, too. Those who don’t want to abide by the mandatory* rule will quickly learn they don’t have to, no matter what.

Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana told CNN he opposes DeSantis on this issue.

“The local officials should have control here,” he said.

Cassidy added, “whenever politicians mess with public health, usually it doesn’t work out well for public health. And ultimately, it doesn’t work out for the politician because public health suffers and the American people want public health.”

And they wonder why a record number of teachers left the profession.

That’s what happens, though, when leaders* value votes more than common sense.