(Safe Schools Saskatchewan/Facebook)

By Angela Brown

Support for education

Mask Up for Education rally planned for Friday across province

Aug 6, 2020 | 6:17 PM

Community rallies are taking place outside MLA offices across Saskatchewan Friday as part of the Mask up for Education campaign which highlights concerns about the province’s plan to reopen schools amidst the pandemic.

The event is being organized by both Safe Schools Saskatchewan and Keep SK Kids Safe – made up of parents, students and community members.

Battlefords NDP candidate Amber Stewart encourages residents to take part in the North Battleford rally to share their concerns.

“That is your right, to use your voice,” she said. “Speak to your MLA. They are the ones who are putting this plan forward. So we are going to say: ‘We are not OK with it. We are not just going to go along with it.'”

She said the province’s plan needs to address class size and the requirement masks be worn for the re-opening of schools.

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Safe Schools Saskatchewan said on its Facebook page the province needs a safer return to schools plan.

The organization and Keep SK Kids Safe also organized an email blitz on August 6 asking concerned parents and residents to demand a safer plan from the province.

Organizers of Friday’s rallies are asking residents wear face masks to the events and follow the Saskatchewan guidelines for gatherings during COVID-19, including physical distancing, keeping hands sanitized, and staying home if they or anyone they have been in contact with has symptoms.

An email to battlefordsNOW from the Saskatchewan Ministry of Education stated the COVID-19 issue is addressed in the province’s Safe Schools Plan.

“Our government recognizes the importance of safe schools for students, parents and school staff. In close consultation with the Chief Medical Health Officer, the Saskatchewan Safe Schools plan lays out the eight components and guidelines that frame the individual plans developed by Saskatchewan school divisions,” the ministry wrote.

The ministry noted all individual school division plans across the province also have been reviewed by Saskatchewan Education’s Response Planning Team (RPT) to ensure they adhere to the guidelines put forward by Saskatchewan’s Chief Medical Health Officer.

As the situation with COVID-19 in Saskatchewan is fluid, the ministry stated, school division plans may be updated and adjusted as needed.

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angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsNOW