October 14, 2021
Dear Parents, WSD Staff, and Patrons,
Last night during their regularly scheduled October meeting, the Board of Trustees for the Weiser School District voted to remove the mask requirements that were put in place for students and staff while inside school facilities during the school day, which began on September 13th. Trustees reviewed recent trend data for student and staff absenteeism as well as confirmed cases of COVID-19 that have been reported to school officials by parents and staff. Both indicate a sharp decline since the week of September 6th. That data can be found on the Weiser School District website at www.weiserschools.org. Trustees did not discuss other COVID-19 mitigation
strategies that are currently in place in the district. Those strategies remain in effect at this time.
Trustees also considered the following in making their decision about mask requirements:
ï‚· Parent, staff, and patron feedback
ï‚· According to State and local health district data, the daily incidence rate of positive cases of COVID-19 shows evidence of some decline, recently, in Washington County https://phd3.idaho.gov/covid19/ https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/coronavirus/article252139258.html
Trustees are also aware that:
ï‚· Hospitals and health care facilities around the State are still operating under crisis standards of care protocols
 Health care officials from the Department of Health and Welfare, Saint Luke’s Health Care system, Southwest District Health, and the Centers for Disease Control still recommend masking as a way to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 in schools
ï‚· A vaccine for COVID-19 exists for those 12 years of age and older, and that a vaccine may soon be available for children 5 years of age and older
Although the mask requirement has been removed at this time, Trustees still strongly recommend the continued use of masks for students and staff while inside school facilities. Trustees also emphasized that should COVID19 conditions change that they would once again consider masking requirements within the District.
In other news current Park School Principal, Mrs. Angie Halvorson, was named as the new Director of Federal Programs and Special Education for the Weiser School District. The position was previously held by Mr. William Morriss. Mrs. Halvorson’s shift in duties creates a new need in the WSD and at Park School. The District is already considering the best available options for moving forward and is committed to making the best possible decisions for continued leadership at Park School.
Respectfully,
Wade Wilson, Superintendent
