On March 14, 2022, the mask mandate was lifted and people around campus have their own personal opinions about this decision. Let’s hear what two SPHS veteran teachers have to say about this.  

Tim Whitehead, an English teacher, has been teaching at SPHS for 36 years, since 1986. The mask mandate was something completely new for Whitehead. 

“I’m glad they lifted the mandate and I’m also glad to see there are students still in masks,” commented Whitehead.  

He stated that he personally knows people that have relatives at home who are immunocompromised and understands that some students take extra precautions to assure they don’t take the virus back to them. 

When asked if the mandate being lifted has helped him in any way, he mentioned that “teachers need to see their kids’ faces for facial cues.” 

He said that masks made reading faces difficult because he didn’t know whether his comments or jokes were landing on an audience. Ultimately, Whitehead observed that most students didn’t want to wear a mask, therefore it was time to lift the mandate. However, Whitehead still acknowledges why some may still opt to wear a mask and is neutral when it comes down to the final decision. 

Chantelle Loitz, a Human Anatomy and Biology teacher shares her opinion on the topic. “I have no problem with the mandate being lifted because I know cases have gone down and vaccination rates have gone up, so I’m not particularly opposed to it,”states Loitz. 

Loitz goes on to mention that the masks never affected her teaching. She states that it is different for everybody, but she did not have a problem with reading expressions through masks. She believes that students show a lot of expression through the eyes. “It’s nice to see people’s faces but I personally never had a problem with cues with the mask mandate still in effect,” continues Loitz. “I welcome the ability to now put faces to name, which is nice.” 

Overall, Loitz is also neutral about the mask mandate being lifted. She notes that some may still want to wear a mask and has no issue with that. 

The verdict seems to be that although the mandate being lifted has helped teachers, whether in class or personally, none are opposed to students that choose to continue wearing their mask in and out of classroom.