Schools open with new mask rules

Staff Report
St. Mary public schools opened the 2021-22 school year with no more than the usual first-day difficulties, and with something new to learn for the youngest students.
The mask mandate announced by Gov. John Bel Edwards on July 30 applies to people 5 five and over.
“Opening day under renewed masking was a success, especially given the fact that our youngest students are wearing them for the first time,” Superintendent Dr. Teresa Bagwell said in an email.
An official enrollment figure for the new year will be released in the fall. Enrollment has been falling in recent years along with the parish’s Census Bureau population estimates. The 2021 enrollment was 8,563.
School opened on time for 2021-22 after being delayed last year. On-campus learning during the 2019-20 school year was cut short in March 2020 by closures imposed to fight the first wave of COVID.
This year opens amid a new wave of COVID infections, and statistics suggest young people are more vulnerable to the Delta COVID variant than to previous forms of the virus.
Public health officials have expressed concern not just about the COVID virus but also about the need to keep students on campuses, which many children rely on for nutrition, health care, counseling and other services.