No-Mask Mondays: El Dorado County high school students stage protest, teacher put on leave

When Andi Wagner praised her daughter in a Facebook post for choosing to not wear a mask at school and stand for what she believed in, her post received a lot of attention. While responses varied from encouragement to disagreement, Wagner’s friends appreciated her daughter’s conviction.

Soon after, the El Dorado County high school senior’s plan to remain unmasked at Ponderosa High School caught on.

By Monday, nearly 50 students at her daughter Lexi’s school were protesting the state’s mask mandate by attending class maskless. One supportive teacher who also removed his mask was placed on administrative leave, he said.

The No-Mask Monday protest at the Shingle Springs high school of about 1,800 students grew organically, Wagner said. Videos of Ponderosa High students went viral on Twitter. Parents across the state, including some in Placer County, took to social media to praise the movement.

Wagner, along with some other California parents and advocacy groups, said that masks should simply be an option for students.

“If someone wants to wear a mask then by all means wear one, just don’t force us to wear one if we don’t want to,” she said.

But masks are currently required in all K-12 schools across California. Public health officials say they are a key defense against spreading and contracting the highly-contagious coronavirus.

Students who took part in the protest were separated from their masked peers. Wagner said her daughter lost instruction since the start of her protest on Oct. 19. She said school officials sent maskless students to the cafeteria, then to two classrooms or to the office in what Wagner called, “mask jail.”

School officials in El Dorado Union High School District said they were adhering to the California Department of Public Health guidelines, including implementing protocols to enforce mask requirements and offering “alternative educational opportunities” for students who choose not to wear face coverings.

“Per those guidelines, students who are unable to wear a face covering and do not have a face covering waiver from a medical doctor are offered a temporary independent study location on campus until a long-term independent study option can be put in place,” read a statement from the district. “We look forward to the time when the Governor’s face covering mandate is lifted. Students and parents are encouraged to voice their opinions to their state and local elected officials.”

The debate over masks

Wagner called the state mandates an overreach.

“It is important for everyone to feel they have a choice,” she said. “Mask or don’t mask, the choice should be an individual one. I believe we started the protest because these mandates are an overreach. It’s not just about the mask, it’s about all mandates that are passed.”

Wagner and her daughter gained support from a handful of advocacy groups, including Reopen California Schools and Let Them Breathe, which launched during the COVID-19 pandemic calling for the full reopening of schools without mandated masks.

K-12 campus reopenings for the 2021-2022 school year were contingent on CDPH guidelines such as mandatory mask wearing in classrooms. And local school districts and county education offices must comply with CDPH guidelines.

Masking indoors at schools is also recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics and by the CDC. Staff and students can ask for medical exemptions, but must wear a face shield as an alternative, according to the CDPH.

The CDPH announced on Oct. 20 that it plans to continue its masking requirements in K-12 settings.

“Recent studies from the 2021-2022 school year confirm that schools with universal masking requirements are less likely to experience outbreaks, and that areas of the United States without school mask mandates experienced larger increases in pediatric COVID-19 case rates after the school year began, compared to areas with school mask requirements,” read a joint statement from top state health officials Dr. Mark Ghaly, and Dr. Tomás Aragón. “Consistent with the guidance, California continues to assess conditions on an ongoing basis to determine whether to update mask requirements or recommendations.”

It’s unclear if the state will consider lifting the mask mandate before the school year ends, but the state said it will continue to monitor COVID-19 rates throughout the winter.

As of Wednesday, there were three active COVID-19 cases among students and one among staff at Ponderosa High School. That’s a comparable number to some other nearby schools in El Dorado County and Folsom.

Ponderosa teacher put on leave

Mike Wilkes, a technology and AVID college readiness teacher at Ponderosa for five years, took part in the Monday protest, choosing to attend classes maskless.

He said he welcomed students who disagreed with his decision.

“That’s what makes our country beautiful,” he said. “I was not there preaching to my students. I support my students, including their right to protest.”

But by the end of the day on Monday, Wilkes was told he was placed on leave. School officials did not state a specific reason for his leave, Wilkes said.

“It’s bigger than the mask,” Wilkes said. “I’ve worn a mask. It’s bigger than the vaccine. It’s the founding principle of individual rights and liberty.”

Wilkes, a father of three, said he is concerned about family members, friends and neighbors and colleagues losing their jobs or leaving the state because of California’s mask and COVID-19 vaccine mandates.

Wagner said she hopes the protest becomes a regular occurrence at Ponderosa High. But her daughter won’t be there to keep the momentum going. Lexi made the decision to transfer schools: her first day at her new school will be Monday.

“Hopefully there are other students with similar convictions and will keep it going,” Wagner said. “Lexi doesn’t need many credits to graduate. She could stick it out at Ponderosa, it would be easier to stay and comply but sometimes taking the easy way isn’t always the best way. To comply with something she feels so strongly about just isn’t an option for her. I commend her for this.”

This story was originally published October 29, 2021 at 8:17 AM.