Barring a sudden resurgence of Covid-19 infections in Northampton County, I am considering announcing, during the West Easton Council Zoom meeting on September 14th, it will be the last meeting held remotely using the online meeting platform.
Future meetings would be held in-person and open to the public, though the wearing of a mask will be required and hand sanitizer will be available.
When a majority on West Easton Council voted in favor of reinstalling swings and basketball hoops at the local parks so that unrelated children could play together, abandoning social distancing guidelines, they sent the message that the Covid-19 pandemic is no longer a serious concern to them.
Mayor Dan DePaul, who was the driving force behind the push to re-install the play equipment, stated other towns around West Easton have already done the same with their parks.
Which now makes me wonder why school districts are bothering to ensure the safety of students and staff when other public agencies aren’t following guidelines suggested by medical experts.
When the Wilson Area School District re-opens on August 31, it will open using a hybrid method of learning, with some children attending part of the week and others remotely, flip-flopping the schedule each week. Children, teachers, staff, and bus drivers will be wearing masks, desks will be 6 feet apart, cleaning of classrooms will be done by teachers, with the school closed on Fridays for a deep cleaning of the entire school.
Easton Area School District has a similar hybrid in-person schedule when they re-open on September 8th.
There will be masks, full face shields, laser thermometers, disinfectant, soap, and hand sanitizer in abundance. Children can’t exchange papers, use anyone else’s pencil, or face each other when eating lunch in classrooms stripped down to bare-bone essentials.
Children will then arrive home, go outside and meet their friends at local parks for a game of hoops, or climb on play equipment that isn’t sanitized after each use. All done without a mask. Repeat daily.
Since Council doesn’t see the need for social distancing at the parks, unconcerned about possible infections, then they should have no problem with holding in-person meetings again at Borough Hall.
If council members are willing to put children at risk, knowing they return home to parents and grandparents, as town leaders we should lead by example and take the same risk, without hiding behind Zoom.
Disclaimer: On January 4, 2016, the owner of WestEastonPA.com began serving on the West Easton Council following an election. Postings and all content found on this website are the opinions of Matthew A. Dees and may not necessarily represent the opinion of the governing body for The Borough of West Easton.
