SPOKANE, Wash. — Masked-up mealtime is a guideline for all students in the Spokane Public School district. One parent says she was not aware of this until her 7th-grade son was instructed to watch a video ahead of his return to the classroom. The video demonstrated what breakfast and lunch would look like on campus as SPS welcomes back to middle and high school students this week.
The parent said she was shocked to hear about this guideline as other local districts including Mead and Central Valley do not require children to mask up while they chew and eat their meals.
“My son is starting at Salk Middle School this week,” Aubrey Susens wrote to our Help Me Hayley. “I’m thrilled they’re going back! The school is requiring students to wear a mask while eating lunch. Meaning, move it down to take a bite, then back up over the mouth and nose while chewing. I am upset/concerned because this is not best practice.”
Susens says she feels that way because of the stance by the CDC when it comes to masks and eating. Their website addresses the issue of people eating at restaurants and bars, not specifically schools, stating in part, ‘wear masks at all times, both indoors and outdoors, except when you are actively eating or drinking.’
Susens says she wants to know why that isn’t the recommendation for SPS when it comes to students actively eating or taking a drink. She says she’s been trying to get answers as her oldest son returned to school on Tuesday.
“He is anxiously excited,” she said. “He’s been looking forward to it for a long time. He’s been really wanting to go back.
Spokane Public Schools has moved at a slower pace than other districts like Mead or Central Valley when it comes to resuming in-person learning. Susens said she was hopeful the delay would be a major benefit.
‘District 81 is one of the last to go back because we have been so cautious,” she said. “They have the most information at their disposal (by watching other schools who have already opened.) I think they have taken every appropriate measure besides masking at lunch.”
The guideline is something she initially thought was a misinterpretation.
“My son said, ‘They want us to wear masks during lunch’ and initially, I dismissed it thinking he was teasing, or he misunderstood,” she said.
But a video he and other students were instructed to watch so they knew requirements says and shows it all. Students are asked to remove their masks to take a bite but pull it back up as they chew.
Susens says she is bothered by this because it encourages more frequent touching of the mask and face. She says her concern is it will spread more germs and contaminants, unnecessarily.
Other parents expressing similar concerns to KHQ via social media.
“Wearing a mask while eating is a choking hazard waiting to happen, not to mention very contaminating,” wrote one mother.
“They need to be distanced during lunch, but to require masks (during mealtime) makes no sense,” another stated.
“My kindergartner has been doing this since October when they went back,” said another parent. “I found out by asking why he always has food on the inside of his mask. I don’t like that they don’t get to take a break at least to eat.”
The video shows students masking up in-between bites even when they are socially distant from others. Susens says she wants the district to reevaluate the guideline.
“It blew my mind,” Susens said. “It really upset me. I just want it to be corrected.”
KHQ reached out to SPS about this concern Tuesday morning. We are waiting for a statement.
