Numbers show Chester Schools policy defying SC mask ban has made schools safer.

As of Aug. 23, Chester County School District became the first in the Rock Hill region to require students and staff to wear face coverings.

“The main goal of the board, first and foremost, is the safety of students and staff. It’s purely for the safety of students,” Chris Christoff, district representative, said at the time.

The school district’s decision defied a state proviso that blocked masks mandates in schools. Tuesday, an order by a federal judge granted a temporary restraining order against the proviso, ruling that schools are free to require masks.

As a result of Chester’s defiance, trends in its schools after approximately one month suggest that mask mandates help to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Judge Mary Geiger Lewis said the proviso discriminates against children with disabilities and is in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and other federal laws. “It is noncontroversial that children need to go to school,” Lewis wrote. “And, they are entitled to any reasonable accommodation that allows them to do so. No one can reasonably argue that it is an undue burden to wear a mask to accommodate a child with disabilities.”

In a press release Tuesday, the district voiced support for the judge’s decision.

The CCSD Board of Trustees decided to implement a mask mandate after the school district saw a huge spike in cases.

The mandate was implemented on a Monday; the total for that week ended was 118 cases, which was a 72.1% increase from the previous week.

“Since (the mandate was passed), numbers have declined weekly,” Christoff wrote in the release.

After the 118 case spike referenced in the district release, cases began to decline.

The week of Sept. 6, the week after the mask mandate was passed, there were 82 cases (student and staff). The week of Sept. 13, there were 59 cases; for the week of Sept. 20, there were 50 cases. Christoff told The Herald at the time that the district expected to see the true effects of the mask mandate in the weeks to come.

The week of September 27 has recorded the biggest drop so far — from 50 cases to 17. That’s a 66% decrease.

“It is the hopes of the District that this downward trend continues. The majority of the CCSD Board of Trustees also stands by its original decision to ensure that masks are used within all school facilities,” Christoff said.