Hopatcong Schools Challenge NJ Mask Mandate For September

HOPATCONG, NJ — Hopatcong Borough Schools’ superintendent and assistant superintendent cited proper air filtration and supervision of student social distancing, as two reasons the school district has suggested to Governor Phil Murphy he should lift mask mandates for New Jersey students in the coming school year.

In their letter to Murphy, Superintendent Art DiBenedetto and Asst. Superintendent Joseph S. Piccirillo advised the governor that as the district makes plans for September, it has been frustrating for them to learn from Murphy’s press conferences students are expected to be masked in the upcoming school year, when in most instances outside of school, they will not be required to wear them.

“This is especially difficult to accept considering that schools have excellent filtration and students are under constant supervision to ensure appropriate distancing measures - something that cannot be said of activities outside of school,” DiBenedetto and Piccirillo wrote.

However, they clarified, “If we are asked to continue masks and distancing in September, we will do so, as it is our duty to follow the restrictions handed down from the NJDOE [New Jersey Department of Education].”

“All we ask is for consistency and clarity,” they said. “We owe it to our community, our teachers and our students. Please consider providing a clear and specific message to schools soon regarding the September, 2021 reopening.”

DiBenedetto and Piccirillo sympathized in their letter, with the challenges Murphy faced during the course of the pandemic, noting the turbulence they’ve weathered as a school district, including having to shift between virtual and hybrid learning models.

“While we understand that many in our community may disagree about politics, we are all united in our desire to see the end to COVID, and in our resolve to do what it takes to see that our communities are safe during the reopening,” DiBenedetto and Piccirillo also wrote.

The New Jersey Herald reported that in Sussex County Lafayette Township School Board of Education President Josh Aikens also sent a letter to Murphy, which he forwarded to the Montague and Sussex-Wantage school districts. Aikens’ letter, according to the Herald, detailed that Lafayette has been in-person safely for most of the school year and school personnel who opted for the COVID-19 vaccine have been vaccinated.

Read the full New Jersey Herald story here.

Questions or comments about this story? A news tip to share? Contact me at: jennifer.miller@patch.com.