Pattye Benson

Community Matters

Debate Over Mask Mandate Moves from School Board Meeting to Courtroom – Lawsuit Filed in Tredyffrin Easttown School District!

Covid-19 cases are on the rise, fueled by the highly contagious Delta variant. As Covid-19 cases among kids continue to climb, it’s also important to keep students in school.

According to the headlines from the Philadelphia Inquirer today, “COVID-19 cases among Pa. school-age children are 10 times higher than they were last year”. The article cites a variety of factors for the surge, including the highly transmissible delta variant, the return of in-person school, and an increase in testing.  According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, child covid-19 cases increased 240% since July.

So … what about the mask requirement for schools? We know that masks alone do not stop the spread of coronavirus, but should mandating masking be part of the whole package?

Masking was the subject of a heated debate at the recent TESD school board meeting, with parents arguing for and against. But for some local parents, the face mask battle did not end with the School Board’s unanimous vote on August 23 to approve the Health and Safety Plan and Covid-19 mitigation plan which included the mask mandate.

Nor did the anti-mask opposition cease when Gov. Tom Wolf announced a mask mandate on August 31 for all Pennsylvania school students aged two and over. (The state mask mandate order took effect on Tuesday, September 7.)

Less than a week after the Department of Health ordered universal masking in Pennsylvania schools, the Republican Senate President and a group of parents filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn the Wolf administration’s new mask mandate. The lawsuit asserts that the Acting Health Secretary failed to comply with state law when she ordered masks to be worn in all Pennsylvania public and private schools, as well as childcare facilities. The lawsuit seeks an injunction against the masking order – the court scheduled a hearing for Sept. 16.

What is very clear is that when it comes to mandating masks for students, parents are divided. Lots of parents are thrilled. Lots of parents are angry.  And some parents are going to court hoping to reverse course.

On Wednesday, September 8, four District parents/guardians (Sarah Marvin, Andrew McLellan, Alicia Geerlings and David Goveranti) filed a lawsuit against T/E School District in the Pennsylvania Eastern District Court alleging that the mask mandate is unlawful and that, “… the School Board has no legal authority to require students to wear masks or to test students without their consent.”

Representing the parents is Obermayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hippel.  To read the lawsuit, click the link below.

To offset legal costs for the lawsuit, a an “Unmask TE” GoFundMe page was created and to date has raised over $7,100 – https://www.gofundme.com/f/unmask-te-support-freedom-of-choice

Representing the District in the lawsuit are defense attorneys Deborah Stambaugh, Christina Gallagher and Brian Elias from Wisler Pearlstine, LLP. A hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 14, 9 AM at the Eastern District Court in Philadelphia.

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  1. I find it interesting that the loud fella at the meeting McLellan doesn’t even live in the district. I guess his kid does?
    Maybe they should just send their kids to private schools??
    Oh wait – most of the private schools in this area have mask mandates and testing.

      1. I don’t understand what these parents think they’re going to accomplish. It’s a state mandate now for schools to require masks. Even if our school board voted to allow optional masking at the beginning of the year, they would now have to have mandatory masking per the state.

        1. It does not matter whether the mask mandate will stay due to state. School board has no authority to mandate masking. Winning this lawsuit can somehow mitigate the same behaviors from school board later.

  2. Let me get this straight. Four parents file a lawsuit against the school district over the mask mandate and set up a gofundme to help finance it.

    The school district is forced to defend the lawsuit and hires three defense attorneys at the expense of the residents.

    The residents lose because the costly defense of the lawsuit takes taxpayer dollars away from the education of our children and further divides the community. Am I missing something here?

    1. No, you got it exactly right. Now our taxes have to go to pay SD outside counsel against 4 parents who have set up a go fund me account to pay their own legal costs.

      So yes the taxpayers lose as do the kids who have their educational funds tapped into.

      1. So next time be smart and do not voting for the same school board members who support mask mandate (i.e. all of them). You have to consider the legal cost these members will keep bringing to the district.

        1. Gee, Polly. Should we perhaps consider the cost of our children contracting COVID-19 when they come in close contact with other non-masked students and staff?

          1. Andy,

            The cost to our children will be, in over 99.9% cases, a mild infection. This mild infection will train their immune systems. As they get older, they would have immune response memory so when they are old and vulnerable, this virus will be no more dangerous then a cold virus.

            All pandemics end and hopefully sooner then later become endemic. We will all come in contact with this virus if we haven’t already. It’s a matter of if your immune system recognizes it and can fight it off, aided by vaccines and more importantly prior infection. Tragically due to comorbidities and reasons we don’t yet fully understand, some people will be hospitalized and some will die.

            A virus is going to do what a virus is going to do until it can not find viable hosts and it weakens. How arrogant of us as human beings to think we can stop it in its tracks or significantly change what nature has been doing since the end of time.

  3. What an unwise decision to unmask our students and jeopardize the health and safety of not only the students and staff at school but also relatives and friends at home. The delta variant is deadly and the younger students are not vaccinated. In my many years of teaching, I have found students flexible. They have to be flexible. To participate in lock down procedures frequently every year is a challenging activity. The district is trying to protect the health of the students and staff. The new variants are easily transmittable and are dangerous. I hope the lawsuit is withdrawn .

    1. 1. Masking, unless using N95, is only 10% effective.

      2. Vaccinated people, when they have breakthrough infection, spread the same viral load as unvaccinated –i.e. vaccination does not give you a high moral ground of “I’m protecting other people”.

      3. Delta variant is more transmissible, but a lot less deadly (you are still reciting the old “news” back a few months ago when delta became more prevalent but no data to support other outcomes).

      4. Mass vaccination during a pandemic may be the deadliest government health policy by forcing viruses to mutate in order to survive under the vaccination pressure.

      5. Nature immunity against covid is 6 to 27 times better than vaccine-induced immunity supported by large studies from Israel. For our children’s sake (for those healthy kids who are not over-weight, have asthma or other respiratory issues, or are immune-suppressed due to treatments of other health conditions), we should not be afraid they get covid. This experience will protect them.

  4. Maybe they’re right about the legalities of a mandate without any FDA approval etc. It’s not like Wolf didn’t get smacked once already.

    What exactly is the law? I’d like to know.

    1. I don’t know but I thought the PA voters gave their voice in May that the governor was no longer to put restrictions in place for more than 21 days without the legislative branch weighing in? Also, the US is not doing what the rest of the world is doing. UK, France, and other EU countries don’t require masks for kids in school. The WHO and US CDC don’t agree on their stance for masking kids either.

    2. Wolf admin took the time machine and went all the way back to “the Disease Prevention and Control Law of 1955”, which they believe providing them the authority to issue the mandate.

  5. I don’t think it’s accurate to say “parents are divided.” This is a false equivalence that suggests similar numbers of parents oppose and support masking. In fact parents support masking in overwhelming numbers. The anti-maskers are few, and borderline violent in their conduct in school board meetings. They didn’t come to the last meeting to participate. They came to disrupt it, and to intimidate the school board. Elsewhere in PA, school boards have been overtly threatened. The few anti-maskers in TE haven’t fallen to that level yet, anyway.

  6. Could a person bringing the lawsuit against the District or another person who believes in the lawsuit please explain your position a bit more. I want to understand because:

    14,000 vaccinated people have died or are in hospital with Covid.

    Children under 12 can’t be vaccinated

    Hospital ICU’s are overflowing with Covid patients preventing heart attack, stroke and car accident victims from getting life saving care.

    *I understand about constitutional rights so no need to go there.

    1. The science on the effectiveness of masks (especially cloth) is sketchy at best. Other nations in Europe like France, UK, Italy, Denmark do not require masks on school aged kids up to age 16 in some cases. The WHO and EU CDC don’t have masking policies for kids under 12 – whereas we have them at age 2. It’s so politicized and tribal it’s sad. I can get behind the mandate while in a surge- but the stats you said about our SEPA region hospitalizations isn’t true- from what I’ve read. I am not comfortable with the mandate with no endpoint or off ramp. And the statistics on healthy kids who get covid are magnitudes lower than the risk of even people aged 30. It’s not zero, but the flu is far more dangerous to kids and we’ve never masked or required a vaccine for attending school during flu season. I also don’t buy the “it doesn’t hurt” argument- bc we just don’t know that. The NIH hasn’t funded a study on it- so here we are. That said, I wouldn’t participate in a legal battle here- but I also don’t like the approach of many in the district to make everything about covid at the expense of everything else. I am happy that my kids won’t have to miss school even with an exposure as long as they wear a mask. But when does it end? Who gets to make that decision? Biden makes another mandate to vaccinate kids as young as 5 to attend school? Where are the metrics? We aren’t in Idaho- our vaccination rate is much higher. It’s not a one size fits all solution.

  7. For all those parents demanding masking, take a step back and think about what is really going on in the real world.

    I personally have witnessed my child getting onto a bus that has at least half the kids with masks below their chins. In fact, the driver has a mask below his chin.

    My other child tells me that when they are walking the halls between classes at middle school they (and many others) drop their masks below their chins and only pull them up when they are going into the classroom.

    When they are out of school (whether playing sports or just hanging out/socializing) NO-ONE wears masks.

    I have been at social events with teachers off school property and they NEVER wear masks.

    What are people going to do about it? Should we hire mask monitors to roam the busses and hallways, trying to scare the kids into submission? Should we tell the kids ‘if you don’t wear your mask you might be responsible for killing your grandmother’ more?

    Please, I want to hear what real world steps the mask mandate people want the board/admin to take to punish kids who don’t comply with this mandate.

    1. Curious as to why you usually post your blog posts to both T/E parent Facebook pages but you chose to only post this one to the page that is more suited to parents who aren’t as angry at TESD for everything they do? Is it because you know these parents, one in particular, are very vocal on the “in-person” parent Facebook page and you fear retaliation? Why not post to both? Let these people filing the lawsuit know what everyone thinks of them and how utterly ridiculous this lawsuit is. Let them know that they are in fact in the minority. Nobody forced them to wear masks. If they didn’t want their kids to wear one, they could have chosen the virtual option.

      1. Curious & Martin O,

        I’m curious why you say that this page/blog is more suited to parents who aren’t angry at TESD for everything they do? And Martin O in a post above states “In fact parents support masking in overwhelming numbers.” What is his source? Was there a poll taken that I’m not aware of?

        Before you jump down my throat please note that I am not on FaceBook and don’t have children in the school district any longer. I’m just asking an honest question. Just because someone doesn’t yell the loudest and post on blog sites doesn’t mean they don’t have an opinion, one that may be different and may or may not be in the majority. They just chose not to engage.

        Patty is this a “pro-mask” or “pro-mask in schools” blog now? It seems people are forgetting how to talk, and especially listen, each other. It’s really sad.

    2. What I’m hearing from this, though, is that kids are still masked a lot of the time. That’s better than none of the time. You can’t get perfect behavior or conformance, sure, but half masked is still better than none. It’s not as though the moment you lower the mask, you lose all mask benefits for the day.

      1. With all due respect, catching Covid is a game of probability. There’s no benefit from wearing a mask if no one around you has Covid. And there is a loss of benefit if you take your mask off when you are around the person with Covid. So, I disagree. If you take your mask down around someone with Covid and you catch it then, it doesn’t matter if you wore it all day. I think what DOES matter is that an unvaccinated school aged children are orders of magnitude less likely to have a bad outcome from Covid than a vaccinated 40 year old. Doesn’t everyone understand this by now? It’s an age based gradient of who is affected more severely. The younger you are, the better your chances of a fine outcome. So what’s the benefit of masking kids? Also, I don’t buy “there’s no harm,” because we haven’t done a randomized control study on this.

        1. There is a benefit to wearing a mask if no one around you has Covid. The benefit is that if YOU have it, you won’t pass it to them. The mask is as much to prevent you from transmitting it as catching it. And you don’t know whether you have it. Even if you were tested yesterday, you could catch and carry it today. We worry about school kids catching it not only because of the harm it could do to them, but the harm they can do passing it to the vulnerable.

        2. I find this to be really cavalry. Talking statistics and probability is one thing but try being the parent to one of the unfortunate children that doesn’t fair as well as most. Think about what they must go through having to live every day navigating that new reality. Preventing this is something we as a community should be focused on and if asking our unvaccinated children to wear masks, for the time being, is something that will help even a little bit, I’m all for it. Unfortunately, your hypothetical situation is irrelevant because we don’t know who has or doesn’t have covid which is the whole point of the masking mandate. If we knew, every day who was and wasn’t transmitting the virus it would make things a whole lot easier to manage.
          We are all, no matter what your beliefs, trying to do what’s best for our kids collectively. I would love it if my son didn’t have to wear a mask, but for now, he does because I want him to learn to not only protect himself but to look out for others as well. It’s not all about him or me or you, it’s about us. And you know what? We don’t give our kids enough credit. They are beyond resilient and most I’ve seen don’t even think about masks at this point. But if we keep reminding them of how unfair and burdensome they are, then they start to feel that way too.
          Masks aren’t perfect but just because something isn’t 100% foolproof doesn’t mean it’s not beneficial as a whole.

          1. I still don’t agree. There are no studies that shows a benefit to wearing a cloth mask in reducing transmission. The best study I’ve seen is a large study from Bangladesh which shows the transmission with no masks is the same with cloth masks and surgical masks provide a bit better benefit. I don’t believe that the cloth masks that most kids are wearing are doing anything to reduce transmission. And we can’t say there is no harm because that has not been studied. I don’t discount or minimize the fear or angst parents of vulnerable children face. I have loads of empathy for them. But if I was a parent in that situation, I would want to be doing something that is actually making a difference- like surgical masking or better yet- improving ventilation or other metrics. I also don’t appreciate you reducing my statements to hypothetical arguments. They are not. It is a FACT that covid has worse outcomes for those on an age gradient and for those with comorbdities. There is plenty of data on this right on the CDC website. What you are saying is hypothetical- that cloth masks work. I agree kids are resilient and my kids wear them. But it doesn’t make me feel any safer that they won’t get covid. I’m doing it for everyone else to “feel better” while knowing that it isn’t doing anything statistically significant to reduce transmission. I also would love to know why it’s justifiable here in the US but not for kids 12 and under in the UK- and their most recent stats show covid declining in school aged kids as they’ve returned to the classroom. I find my best info by looking outside the US- other peer nations don’t seem to have lost the plot quite like we have here.

            1. I never said anything about cloth masks in my response. I don’t disagree that cloth masks are less effective when compared to surgical masks or the gold standard n95 masks.
              The hypothetical scenario I took issue with was not in regards to your statement about age gradient covid risks; it was in regards to your mention of wearing a mask around people who were not covid positive being a loss of benefit. Of course it would be a moot point if that were the case but the point is you don’t know.

          2. And one more point, Natalie. With all due respect, covid is endemic- whether we’ve been told that by our officials or not. That means that everyone has a date with covid over the next 1 year, 7 years or 10 years. We as parents are so incredibly lucky that it attacks on an age gradient. I wish covid didn’t exist. And I wish no one would die from it. But it’s a sad reality that we cannot do anything to stop everyone from getting it at some point. You mentioned we should be focused on reducing transmission. For how long? What measures should we be advocating for? Where is the off ramp? There are vaccines for vulnerable people to take. I have had covid and beat it easily- you can say I’m “lucky” but I only feel lucky in the sense that I focus on my health and I’m low enough on the age curve to not have had a serious outcome. I have since been double vaxxed “to protect others” even tho the data on whether that was needed to protect others is sketchy. I am also concerned about the push to vaccinate all kids. I fully support vaccines for adults (without previous infection) and children with comorbidities- if the data says we should do that. But I see many people in TE getting ahead of their skis on this issue, too. We should be gravely concerned that two top FDA officials have resigned due to political pressure on boosters and that the NYT is publishing articles saying that parents want the covid vaccine. Parents should want to see DATA on covid vaccines for very young children with no underlying health issues. Myocarditis, while usually reversible is real- and it has a much higher rate after the mRNA vaccine than the background rate in boys and young men. Public trust in our public health establishment is on the brink. And masking is another part of that equation.

            1. Agree, we can’t stop covid completely but when transmission is on the rise there should be measures in place to mitigate (like kids wearing masks) for an interim until the parameters are met where we can ease up. And would love to see some studies of how wearing a face covering is really detrimental, more so than contracting covid and possibly suffering long-term effects. Could you elaborate on what you have seen discussed on the potential harms masks can cause? To clarify, I am for masking (2 ply or surgical masks) our unvaccinated kids during high transmission periods. I don’t think this should be a long-term, never-ending course of action.
              Being healthy does not exempt someone from suffering symptoms or hospitalization. Of course, it helps but I don’t think it’s fair to insinuate that those who get sick or die are automatically labeled as “unhealthy” and those who are asymptomatic are automatically “healthy”. I’m “healthy”, workout consistently, eat well, and don’t have any comorbidities but that doesn’t mean I may not inadvertently get someone else sick who isn’t, or is elderly, or younger. Those are the things I think about when weighing the pros and cons of wearing a mask, vaccinations, etc.
              And I agree regarding researching these issues and getting facts. Confirmation bias is very real and getting unbiased information is difficult but necessary.

              1. I think we mostly agree on the points Natalie. I also support masking during a spike- which it seems we are in (admittedly I haven’t been following infection rates in our area as closely right now). I want there to be metrics on when the masks can come off for kids in school regardless of vaccine status. I have one kid who got covid from us and one who did not- and I feel differently on the vaccine for each of them when one is available. I’m on the fence for my covid free kid and am against for my covid recovered kid after seeing how easily they attacked the virus and trust their immunity. For my other kid, I worry about myocarditis- and I think I’m more worried about that than I am on how they would respond to a covid infection. I am not trying to imply that people who suffer from poor covid outcomes are to blame- I do feel it’s a risk calculation that each person needs to take- just like driving in a car (which is more deadly to kids overall than covid). I don’t want to get anyone sick- but all the data says that my immunity (hybrid immunity) is the most durable and I’m trusting that others are taking care of their health and taking precautions as best they can. I guess I don’t buy into “safeyism” or agree that me doing anything additional at this point is going to help anyone else’s health. My immunity is very strong against getting an infection at all at this point. If data changes, I’ll change behavior. As for risks of wearing masks- I said that we don’t know what they are because they haven’t been studied. I was/am fine following the health protocols if there are metrics to take them off (there currently are none- so that makes me less comfortable with the plan) and if there was a large random controlled study to look at this. There are plenty of places in the US with masks optional- so NIH should fund a study. Have a great day- I appreciate the respectful discourse.

    3. I wish you could see the high school cafeteria. They closed the new ‘atrium’ because kids were crowding there at lunch. At the cafeteria, no student wears a mask whether they are eating or not. The desks spaced for eating are all pulled together by the kids.

      As Reality Check indicated, what is the point of masking as no where else are the students doing it!

  8. Curious,

    Please help me understand. Why would the moderator be afraid of retaliation? And from who? The anti mask parents? What kind of retaliation would hurt the moderator?

    Reality check,

    You make compelling arguments that provoke further questions. The Board/Administration/Teachers must know what you say is true, so why do they want a mask mandate?

    Could a teacher/Adminustrstor/Board member please explain.

  9. I certainly hope these 4 parents (and those who are supporting their Go Fund Me) don’t complain the next time our school taxes are raised. What a waste of money for the District to have to defend.

    1. The same could be said about the numerous families who have sued the district to pay for private schools for their kids who’s needs aren’t met by the district. Hopefully they won’t be complaining about this lawsuit costing tax payers when some families get $30k per year per student paid directly to them to send their child to private school for free. Every family has the right to bring a case against the district when they feel their child’s needs aren’t met. We as the tax payer pay for all of it.

    2. The size of the go fund me indicates there are more than four parents who are anti-maskers. It could be as much as 40% of the parents. Children under 14 years old do not become sick with the Covid, and are not carriers.

  10. The school board is horrible! They need to be removed and they pay enough for lawyers! They didn’t even listen to the other side and parents. We are in the minority of people and schools all over PA masking children. Wake up!

  11. The misbehavior at that meeting–the incivility, the yelling, the lack of respect–it’s eye-opening for many of us in T/E. The audience members who kept taking off their masks in the audience–terrible, childish behavior. You wouldn’t do that on a plane, or in a hospital, and your grown kids sure wouldn’t do it at their elite universities, where they can be kicked out of class and given a conduct charge. It’s not allowed at the 3$30,000-40,000 per year Interac schools, or at religious schools. You can’t bother to behave as appropriately as a 4-year old at Child’s Place? You think you have the right to disrespect our elected officials because you didn’t vote for them? In a democracy, it is your obligation to accept the laws and decisions (within the structure of law, as interpreted by a court) made by the leadership that the majority of people elected, even if it’s not “your guy.” I’ve done that my entire life, even when it was not my choice, and you can too. We the people, through majority vote, elected this school board. You don’t have to agree with them, you can try to elect new people to office, you can go to the courts to overturn their decisions. These are your rights. But treat them with common decency and respect, and until such time as a court overturns their decisions, follow the rules they established.

    I made very, very sure each of my kids away at college will be able return to vote in the off-year election this fall. I probably would not have pushed, except for what I saw in that school board meeting. And I doubt I’m the only one. I think you’ve harmed your cause. See you at the polls.

    1. Good for you! This liberal board has done so much damage, and so far left, they don’t listen to the other side whatsoever. We need a bi-patrician board. Gusick is just as bad, if not worst. People are starting to wake up! In this area we are in the minority of other schools masking in PA.

    2. Bravo, well said. Debate and discussion are productive and useful. The behaviour displayed at the school board meeting is shameful.

    3. Parent of 2020 grads….

      Your own words are ironic. “it is your obligation to accept the laws and decisions (within the structure of law, as interpreted by a court) made by the leadership that the majority of people elected, even if it’s not “your guy.”

      One of the main reasons we are in this hyper political, tribal situation is that we have a one party school board that was elected because people do NOT accept our elected officials even if it’s not “your guy”. This board was voted in by a populous that voted locally how they “felt” nationally. Remember, all politics is local. No research, not learning about the issues the district faced and the qualifications of the candidates running, just party line vote.

      And as for bringing your college kids home for the election, you could have them vote absente ballot as my college age child does. Also, she is an adult and can make the decision if she wants to vote this round, especially if she understands the issues at hand and candidates running. I wouldn’t want her to vote for any other reason.

      1. My comment was related to events there were completely and entirely local, so your response is a non sequitur. You must be arguing with someone else.

        1. Uh, wasn’t arguing (don’t think that was my tone)….just pointing out the irony in your entry about local politics and how national politics have played a hand in where we are now in this district with a single party board. Sorry you misunderstood.

          Cheers.

  12. Please keep us informed about the response of the courts. I wonder if these parents bringing suit could be sued if a student gets sick without a mask? This is pure madness!

  13. With the school board elections coming up in November, I would like to know each candidate’s position on the mask mandate requirements.

    1. There are lots of issues candidates should weigh in on. Masking in this community is actually one of many issues. It is dramatic for sure, and we should all engage, but my experience in T/E so far is that people seem to be wearing the masks whether or not they “have” to. Where are the candidates with regard to the Board and Administration not allowing parent review on teacher training in diversity, equity, and inclusion (it could be teacher training in math, physics, or chemistry next, english, or social studies, except–they wouldn’t do that, right?). Where are the candidates with regard to the fact that the Board and Administration routinely over estimate expenditures and underestimate revenue? Where are the candidates with regard to equity in disciplinary practices (boys, kids with IEPs, kids of color)? Arlene, I googled you. You are a Democratic Committee Woman in Tredyffrin with a vested interested in these issues and the candidates. Do you know where your candidates are on parent review of teacher training materials? Or overestimating expenses and underestimating revenue? Or equity with regard to student discipline? Those are important issues too. Maybe not dramatic, but important for parents in the schools.

  14. To-Parent of 2020 grads
    I understand what you are saying but did you forget the abhorrent behavior from the TESB back on June 14th and how they admonished the concerned parents? Go back and look at the video.

    Oh, but that’s different?

    I’m not condoning the behavior of some parents, but it cuts both ways. And when elected officials do not listen to concerned parents, during a pandemic, people will get frustrated and things will get out of hand. Elected officials know this–why do you think the meeting was held at VFMS?

    Personally, I’m not against masks. But I can understand kids rather not wear one for eight hours a day–especially special needs kids. You have no empathy for the kids? I respect parents speaking up for their kids. For the record, virtual schooling has been proven to be not effective for every student.

    Some parents lost jobs during the pandemic, causing more frustration & anxiety–have you thought of that? Not everyone in TE is privileged. Maybe the parents are beyond frustrated due to the fact TESD has not listened to their concerns. Look back this time last year and you will remember TESD forced virtual learning on kids—all kids, including elementary schools. Even though the science showed there was no effect of Covid-19 on elementary school kids (getting or giving COVID-19).

    And don’t forget, it took concerned parents (NOT TESB, nor Admin) to get students back to full time, in class schooling. Only AFTER 800 parents signed a petition did TESD even start to discuss opening up the schools.

    And that was after it was reported, the national teachers union representative exchanged emails with the CDC Director–trying to influence how schools should be kept closed-a position of the teachers union, not science.

    Yes, some TE parents could have shown more discipline. But with a lingering pandemic and for the reasons sighted, I understand their frustration. (And we didn’t even talk about PEG & CRT issues)

    I’m glad to see you’re encouraging your kids to vote. You may want to tell them the whole story. Then, sit down with them and watch that June 14th TESB video before rushing off to the polls.

    1. Thank you! Kyle Boyer degrading parents for :16. CRT IS IN OUR SCHOOLS. Teachers have been trained, 350k for PEG curriculum. This is not a diversity/inclusion program. There is a lawsuit that will show the curriculum and no TE is not providing. People have had enough with this dictator board. All these parents that don’t even show up to school board meeting and then want to comment after.

      1. Hi Parents against CRT!
        You state, in all caps, that CRT is in our schools. How so? In what grade levels? And, what exactly is CRT… can you define what it truly is, where, and how it is used? ⟟ look forward to your reply- good night!

        1. Send me your email address and I will send you information about what is in our schools. It is oppressors/oppressed. 10th Grade Conestoga High School, American Story just gave kids an assignment to read this week, all about how white people are oppressors and not standing for the American flag, that is what it is. What do you think is going to happen to children years from now being taught this garbage. There is not a true diversity/inclusion program in our school. 350k for PEG in training and curriculum. Over 15 FIOA requests for this. They announced to ask for this, ask the school for the PEG curriculum and see what they send you. They also had classes last year splitting children on race/gender. Not to mention a white privilege survey. The petition is over 1300 signatures and the board can care less about this, exactly why there is a lawsuit now. Educate yourself.

  15. To Parent of 2020 grads…continued

    Oh, and let’s not forget—the same governor, Gov.Wolf, who is mandating masks, had his power reined in by the public this past voting cycle, because they believed he abused his Covid powers.

    Oh, and let’s not forget—Gov Wolf had his Health Secretary giving out advise to the public early in the pandemic last year. At the same time Dr Rachel Levine was advising the public to stay home, she took her mom out of her nursing home, as hundreds of elderly were dying of COVID-19. Only after pressured by the public, did Dr Levine release the data (in May of 2020) showing the high rate of deaths related to Covid-19 in the nursing homes & long term care facilities. (PA ranked #4 in the country) To be clear, Dr Levine did NOT advise the public to protect their loved ones and remove them from harms way of Covid-19 in the nursing homes.
    Where is the accountability & transparency?
    This occurred right here in PA.

    Oh, and lets not forget, Dr Levine was promoted to a national health position by our current president for her great job in managing the pandemic. Actually, it was NOT based on her performance, but she checked the box for gender. Come on man, you can’t make this up!

    Oh, and let’s not forget, the consistent tax increases in TE. 17 straight years, even during a pandemic when not all the budgeted resources were utilized.

    Oh, and let’s not forget, the creation of a new, six figure position, “Equity” Director at TESD, to promote a liberal agenda and add to a bloated administration payroll. Why not more teachers and less administrators?

    Oh, and let’s not forget, the $1.2M accounting mistake that private citizens had to bring to the attention of the school board. To this day, there are unanswered questions.

    Oh, and let’s not forget, how the head supervisor of TE & the chairman of the planning commission are both real estate lawyers whose speciality is land development. That’s right, land development. You ever ask yourself, in a township that is already fully developed, why do we see so many new housing developments?? You may want to ask these gentlemen. After all, this adversely affects our already crowded schools. And, according to THEIR plans, they want to build even more apartment buildings! This fulfills their agenda and their national party’s agenda–make the ‘burbs look like the city. Is this what you moved to TE for?

    Once again, these are just a few of many examples why residents of this community are upset, frustrated and tired. Their elected “leaders”, during a pandemic, have failed them.

    Please, share this with your kids (and other TE citizens) who will be voting this November. They can substantiate everything posted–it’s the truth. Then, think who is best to serve us going forward–

    Leaders who look out for themselves & vote as one political block to further their political careers (and scare TE voters on national issues) OR vote for concerned citizens & parents who want to improve our community, improve our schools, and have accountability with transparency.

    FYI-TE Supervisors & TE School Board have been controlled by one political party for the past several years.

    1. Well said. I sadly endorsed and voted for a democrat supervisor. I’m sure she will win again. But I cannot wait to cast my vote to vote her out- even if it’s in vain. I also am sad that Rev Dorsey is stepping down. He truly does care for all of his constituents and speaks with me regularly even if we disagree. And voted no on the past 2 tax hikes. He’s an independent now- formerly a Dem. wonder why that is? I have the same affiliations now. I am officially an independent myself and my eyes have been THROWN WIDE OPEN thanks to covid.

  16. Accountability & Transparency-two vocabulary words not being used in TESD & TESB…

    If you owned a business/TESD and you asked a potential vendor/PEG for details of the contract-(how the content will be presented & what is being provided) to share with your partners/parents and the vendor said, NO. What would you do?

    If you were a savvy business person, You would walk away from that vendor/PEG because they are not being transparent.

    Not TESD. They ran to Pacific Education Group-PEG and have been paying hundreds of thousands of tax dollars (your money) without any details of content being disclosed. That’s right, they want to influence our teachers & influence our kids, but not disclose the materials & how it’s being taught.

    If a school district cannot disclose this basic information, how can we trust them with our kids, behind closed doors?

    Then, when concerned parents question what is being taught and request disclosure, which is required by PA law, TESD & TESB mimic the vendor’s talking points…”we can’t provide, it’s confidential information”…

    Who does TESB & TESD represent? Parents or vendors?

    If nothing can be disclosed, why enter into the contract in the first place? When concerned parents persist for transparency at school board meetings, they are then publicly shamed. Shamed, by the same elected board members who approved & stand by the PEG contract!

    Even the supporters of TESB have voiced their concern of how parents have been treated & agree this is not acceptable behavior from a school board.

    Why did TESD have to be sued to reveal it’s contract details with PEG? TESB & TE Administration, who approved the PEG contract, did not think TE parents would want to know how & what our kids are being taught. Shame on them.
    They were wrong!

    Parents should not have to sue a school district for Accountability & Transparency.

    Once again, if a school district can not be transparent & disclose how & what they are teaching teachers & our kids, then how can we trust them with our kids, behind closed doors?
    We can’t. PEG contract is proof.

  17. While parents debate wearing masks during a pandemic (shiny object), TESD is implementing a divisive curriculum.

    Teaching your kids that they are racist, that you are racist. You know, the same community that supports FLITE, an organization that helps underprivileged students. They have a survey to shame your kids that they are privileged etc, etc, etc. Pushing a political agenda.

    While you debate masks, TESD influences your kid’s mindset.
    Which one will have a lasting, detrimental effect?

    Divide & Conquer, politicians have used it as an effective tool for years.

    Wake Up TE, you may want to change your focus.

    1. Wow. Do you even understand what you said?
      Can’t be racist because the community “supports” an organization that helps underprivileged students.

      So with your logic the “underprivileged students” are students of color?

      So because you gave $25 to FLITE last year, you are not a racist?

      1. Rl4life
        How did I know you were going to pounce on my comment and distort it?!

        Let’s just say, because we don’t agree with YOUR leftist policies and agenda, we are racist. That sums it up.

    2. Like RL4Life says — teachers and education are SUPPOSED to influence kid’s mindsets. Kids don’t need to be ashamed of their privilege, if they have it. They do need to be AWARE of it. They don’t need to be ashamed of their country’s history of racism, but they do need to be aware of it. Germany is a great example of a country that faced up honestly to its own history. America isn’t there yet, as some of these comments attest.

      1. Mr Oberholtzer–
        Thank you for your comment. It’s always interesting to hear Germans being compared to Americans in historical issues.

        It’s even more interesting to hear how Germans have finally achieved the right moral high ground when being judged to America.

        Please inform us what Americans need to be taught so we can reach the same moral high ground as the Germans?

  18. You should see some materials bring shared in 10th Grade History and American Voices classes at Stoga. Very concerning….Teachers are trying to influence students minds….everyone should be concerned. It’s divisive and disgusting.

      1. RL4Life, So snarky for a suburbanite.

        To Teach…
        Teach children to be critical thinkers
        To Teach…
        Teach students to think for themselves

        NOT, impose their own personal thoughts nor influence
        students to think based on a leftist curriculum.

        Maybe another reason why private school enrollment is going thru the roof?

        1. Still waiting for some materials to be posted.

          Actually, before covid, private school enrollment in the suburban Philly area was way down. Sorry that doesn’t fit your narrative.

          It has increased since last year because private schools are able to pivot a little easier than public schools. For one when they mandate masks (which they do) there aren’t a bunch of crazy people out protesting and filing lawsuits.

  19. They lie that children are so in danger that they must wear masks in school even though it is a known fact that the masks they wear are totally ineffectual in preventing transmission of the virus. The only mask that is effectual is the N95, and it is impossible for anyone, much less a school child, to wear a N95 mask all day. In some parts of the US laws have been passed that subject school teachers and administrators to prison sentences for not enforcing the mask mandate for school children. These draconian laws might also apply to parents who allow a child to go to school without a mask. http://www.renegadetribune.com/teachers-in-co-can-be-arrested-imprisoned-for-a-year-fined-5k-if-they-dont-enforce-student-masking/

    In other words, total counterfactual insanity is the American Covid Policy.

    No one can respect public institutions that are so totally irresponsible that they ignore facts and base health policies on lies.

  20. RL4Life=Snarky Suburbanite
    Dear Snarky,

    Note- I notice how you pivoted from “influencing” kids to schools & masks.

    First, private schools have saved taxpayers Millions of dollars because they exist…public schools would be more overcrowded than they are today if not for private schools.

    Second, Why were private schools open, in-class, full time during 2020, you know, during COVID, school year? “able to pivot a little easier than public schools”–you mean Unions were able to keep the public schools closed. Why couldn’t you speak the truth? It was in the NYT and reported in the media.

    Here is a link referencing the changes in curriculum at TE, to what you would so obnoxiously say, “post it up”…
    https://www.tesd.net/cms/lib/PA01001259/Centricity/Domain/1882/Equity%20Update%20Apr2021.pdf

    By the way, you and your friends with the “Vote By Mail” lawn signs…don’t you think it’s a bit hypocritical?

    You want everyone to wear a mask all day at school, but you don’t want to wear a mask and go vote!?!?
    Very telling in a number of ways.

    1. I didn’t pivot – I followed the flow of the posts before me.

      Private schools were not all open in class full time last year. Most in this area offered both in person and virtual options. They closed for weeks at a time around holidays.

      I said post it up to a very specific mention of material. I’m legitimately curious to see what their concern is.

      I have never voted by mail. I have worked at my polling location the last couple years and will be there for 1/2 a day on Nov 2nd.

      Once again, I’m sorry I’m not fitting into your narrative of the “snarky suburbanite”

  21. Vaccines, masks yet, 2021 COVID-19 Deaths (353,000 as of today), exceeds entire 2020 Covid-19 Deaths (352,000). Not my narrative, just the truth.

    Think back to November, 2020 and recall how politicians promised us, just vote for them, they would “fix it”.

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