Submitted Photo Fredonia school board President Brian Aldrich, left, and Superintendent Dr. Bradley Zilliox are shown at this month’s meeting.

Fredonia Superintendent Dr. Bradley Zilliox had two recent updates in regard to COVID-19 protocol, in response to recent guidance by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Zilliox said the governor spent time talking to a variety of representatives in the educational field, with the bulk of the conversation focusing on school mask mandates. “We heard more about her thoughts but she heard from a variety of different people including teachers, administrators, and different associations like the school board,” Zilliox said. “And some of the challenges this brings.”

Although Hochul was not ready to lift mask mandates in school, Zilliox said she was hopeful they’d be able to do so after February break. Though Fredonia doesn’t have a full February break, Zilliox found the sentiment interesting, though the state was content to wait and watch how circumstances change. Zilliox said Hochul’s preference seemed to be to end the mask mandate, but doesn’t want to do so if it is in peril to the health of the students, faculty, and staff.

“You may have noticed that Connecticut and New Jersey announced Monday that they would end their mask mandates in schools on March 7,” Zilliox said. “Different states from us, but nearby geographically and those are some of the developments that are happening.”

Zilliox said it was stressed the districts need time to adapt to any new guidance. There were announcements in the past that became effective too quickly, causing a lot of strain on schools to move quickly to accommodate new regulations.

“We wanted time to consider all the implications and have time to help our students and family process new information, as well as our faculty and staff,” he said. “Time to really be thoughtful about how we move forward.”

Right now, Zilliox said they are in a wait and see period, but as February goes to March, he believes there will be some movement on this front, with three possible outcomes possible. These three outcomes include the mandate ending, the mandate continuing for a period of time, or that each school board and district would have to make their own decision on what to do with the mask mandate.

“For that third scenario, there would be a lot to consider and a lot to discuss before we move forward with any decision,” he said.

Should it end up in the district’s hands, Zilliox said that himself and the other decision makers at the school recognize the importance of the issue in the community, and said they will do their best to make the best decision they can make.

“I’d like everyone to know that we recognize there are people on both sides of this issue and there are some definite feelings and opinions on where people stand but that’s part of our school community,” he said. “And I hope we can come to some type of decision that will work for all involved. However, it’s possible that at some point there will be some group that will not be happy… Please know we’re doing our best to process all the information and take into account all feedback I’m getting… We take this very seriously.”

Zilliox also gave an update on the “test to stay” program that some schools have implemented. This program is a modified quarantine protocol which may allow students and employees to attend school even if they had been required to quarantine at home. It has allowed asymptomatic unvaccinated individuals to return to school, provided they have negative COVID-19 tests during the five-day quarantine period.

In order to be eligible, a person has to be asymptomatic, unvaccinated or not fully vaccinated, exposed to COVID-19 in a school setting, has been wearing a well-fitting mask in a school sitting, and consent from the family, provided the individual is a student.

“If people meet those requirements, they would be available to remain in school while being tested over a period of time,” he said.

This applies similarly to after school activities in a program known as “test to play,” where they can take a test to participate in an activity. Individuals are encouraged to remain quarantined at other times.

For more information about the test to stay program, Zilliox said people can reach out to the district offices with questions.