Most students and teachers across the St. Louis region will be wearing masks in class this week, despite dozens of lawsuits filed Friday by the Missouri attorney general over mask mandates in schools.
While some districts with and without mask mandates were spared by Attorney General Eric Schmitt, none that he sued plan to drop their masks this week during a surge of COVID-19 that has left schools with staffing shortages and low student attendance.
“Our community and especially our elected officials should be celebrating and supporting schools during this challenging time, not suing them,†reads a statement from the Francis Howell School District, one of at least 19 St. Louis-area districts sued Friday by Schmitt.
“The lawsuit filed by Schmitt is a waste of taxpayer money — on both sides,†the statement continued. “The claims are tenuous at best and this unnecessary lawsuit represents another attack on public education in Missouri. This latest action by Schmitt is disheartening, unfounded, and frankly, shameful.â€
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A handful of local districts had dropped mask requirements in early December, partly in response to Schmitt’s threat of lawsuits. But since returning from winter break, most of those districts have reinstated their mask requirements until the current spike in COVID-19 cases subsides.
On Friday, before being served with Schmitt’s suit, the Fox School Board in Jefferson County held a special meeting and extended the district’s mask mandate until the board’s next regular meeting in February. Earlier this month, longtime Fox High math teacher Jason Stroups died of complications from COVID-19.
Other districts sued by Schmitt, including Lindbergh, Mehlville, Parkway and Rockwood, had adopted mask-optional policies before their winter break but switched course this month during the latest surge of the virus. The districts are planning to require masks at least until February, when health experts predict the surge could ease.
Schmitt did not sue several local districts that are currently under mask mandates, including Bayless and Hancock Place in south St. Louis County and Jennings, Normandy, Ritenour, Riverview Gardens and University City in north county. He also spared the Kirkwood School District, where he lives with his wife and three children.
Maplewood Mayor Nikylan Knapper questioned Schmitt’s timing for the lawsuits, saying on Twitter that Maplewood-Richmond Heights schools have had a mask mandate since fall of 2020.
“Please remember that AG Schmidt (sic) is running for the U.S. Senate,†Knapper tweeted. “Stop using your office to bolster your campaign.â€
District officials say state laws back up their authority to set rules that help maintain a safe school environment.
Schmitt filed the suits even after at least 62 Missouri school districts — 12% of the state’s total — closed for one or more days this month, largely because of a lack of staff. Some of the state’s largest districts, including Springfield, Columbia and St. Joseph, announced plans to close for a few days.
Staffing shortages and high student absenteeism have also led to closures this month for more than a dozen private and charter schools across St. Louis, plus several schools in the Normandy and St. Louis public districts. Schmitt has not sued any charter or private schools over their mask requirements.
In all, Schmitt filed suit last week against 36 school districts across Missouri. Some included district parents as plaintiffs.
At least one local district plans to avoid Schmitt’s attacks. A majority of Wentzville School Board members have refused to adopt a mask mandate, despite pleas from district administrators.
On Jan. 5, the district marked a record 150 students testing positive for the virus, four times the previous high from a year earlier. Dozens of teachers were also out sick, and just 43% of their classrooms were covered by substitutes, according to district officials.
At a special meeting Jan. 10, the Wentzville School Board considered a recommendation from Superintendent Curtis Cain to require masks in any schools that reached a 3% positivity rate among students and staff.
Cain told the board that the number of cases had dropped significantly when temporary mask mandates were in place last fall at Duello and Prairie View elementary schools.
“Masks do work,†Cain said. “Duello was the most dire situation we had, and masks did turn the tide.â€
The board declined to vote on the recommendation. Board member Jason Goodson mentioned the litigation risk in his arguments against a mask mandate.
In response to another board member’s question about what mitigation measures the district could take, board vice president Dan Brice said, “Drive the bus ’til the wheels fall off.â€
On Thursday, the Wentzville board again declined to vote on any COVID-19 mitigation measures.
By Friday, 17 of the 23 schools in the district had recorded 3% of students and staff testing positive for the virus in the previous 10 days.
Several Wentzville teachers, including Katelyn Tock of Liberty High School, said they are considering leaving the district because of the board’s position.
Tock tested positive for COVID-19 earlier this month, along with her children, ages 3 and 8. At least 22 other staff members and 62 students at Liberty have caught the virus since Jan. 11, according to district records.
“This year, for the first time, I have started contemplating what else I can do,†said Tock, who is in her 11th year of teaching in the district. “I don’t feel appreciated, I don’t feel respected. It doesn’t feel like the board wants to do anything to protect us.â€
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
