By Claire Leibowitz
The George Washington University, American University, and Georgetown University all lifted their mask mandates over the course of March and April, but quickly reimplemented policies after a rise in cases due to the Omicron BA.2 subvariant. GW, specifically, reinstated the mask mandate on April 12, eight days after lifting it on April 4.
According to the GW COVID-19 testing dashboard, positivity rates during the time hit 2.00%, with 271 positive cases in the course of a week. Prior to the removal, the positivity rate averaged around 1.50%. The dashboard has since reset to the 1.50% positivity rate and cases have fallen after the spike. GW’s reinstitution of the mask mandate has sparked debate. This is seen with a pair of roommates at GW, who fall on different sides of the mask mandate.
Shelley Zuckerman feels more comfortable with a mask, especially in classrooms. “I don’t want COVID,” she said. “Everybody does different things on their own time, but since COVID is still prevalent and rates keep fluctuating, I think classrooms should be a safe space where you shouldn’t have to worry about it,” Zuckerman added.
Zuckerman’s roommate Elyse Butts feels the opposite. “There’s nothing wrong with having it be optional.”
“It’s definitely a comfort thing. But if the CDC doesn’t require them anymore, and I’ve already had COVID, I think they should be optional,” Butts said. “Omicron can get through masks. It should be somebody’s choice at this point,” Butts added.
Debates over mask mandates in DC schools have been widespread. Specifically, when AU reinstated their mask mandate due to rising cases, according to a university announcement, members of the Disabled Student Union hosted a protest expressing their discomfort. The protest, which attracted other organizations like AU Pride, the First Generation Student Union, the Women’s Initiative, and The Public Health Association, called on the administration to care about their students more.
AU DSU President Katherine Greenstein considered the reinstatement to be a great success. “It feels good to know that all our efforts didn’t go to waste and our voices were heard,” they said. “Our community showed the university that our lives are worthy of life. I’m celebrating!”
According to WUSA9, Georgetown’s positivity rates were 3.22% one week and 3.82% the next, only showing a slight increase. No university officials were available for comment, but in a health announcement, the school stated that BA.2 is more transmissible and just as severe as the Omicron variant. With this in mind, Georgetown reinstated a mask mandate.
Overall, mask mandates in D.C. schools have sparked mixed student reactions,while fluctuating COVID trends add complexity to the issue.
