Students Returning to Class Masked Up

Catholic school students in the Diocese of Baton Rouge recently began the new school year in much the same way they ended the previous year by donning masks. 

Bishop Michael G. Duca on Aug. 2 announced that all students, faculty and administrators in Catholic schools would be required to wear masks once school opened.  Additionally, physical distancing and proper quarantining protocols should also be followed. 

Catholic schools began welcoming students Aug. 4, with Mater Dolorosa School in Independence and Holy Ghost School in Hammond opening first. St. Joseph’s Academy in Baton Rouge and St. Alphonsus School in Greenwell Springs were the latest to open on Aug. 11. 

One day after Bishop Duca’s announcement, Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady University announced that all faculty, staff and students on campus are required to be vaccinated. Proof of vaccination was required by Aug. 13. 

In a letter released Aug. 2 addressed to “Clergy, Catholic School Community, and Lay Faithful of the Diocese of Baton Rouge,” Bishop Duca said “there will be no exceptions or exemptions to these practices based on vaccination status.” 

“I believe these difficult decisions will enable us to safely begin our school year while observing these new realities we are facing as a community,” he wrote. “If circumstances change in the future, we will also change our practices based upon medical advice, wisdom and common sense.” 

Bishop Duca pointed to the recent spikes in COVID-19 cases, calling the rise “particularly alarming.” 

The bishop’s announcement came less than two hours after Gov. John Bel Edwards announced a statewide indoor mask mandate, including churches, for all people regardless of their vaccination status. The governor said the mandate includes all students from kindergarten through college.  

Edwards labeled the delta variant a “game-changer.”  

On the day Bishop Duca and Edwards made their announcements, the state reported more than 11,000 new cases and 24 hours later more than 2,100 patients were reported hospitalized with the
coronavirus, the highest number of hospitalizations since the pandemic began. 

FranU President Dr. Tina Holland said all students, faculty and staff are expected to continue to follow established campus health and safety protocols such as required COVID-19 testing, wearing a mask, maintaining physical distance and daily self-monitoring for coronavirus symptoms. 

She did say individuals may request an exemption from the vaccination requirement for reasons consistent with state vaccine laws. 

“All FranU policy decisions, including those related to COVID-19 mitigation, are rooted in our mission as a Catholic and Franciscan university,” Holland said in a letter to students, faculty and staff.  “Our faith-based approach provides a solid foundation for decision-making.  As a Franciscan community, we respect one another’s individual beliefs, but we must also act in the community’s best interest.” 

In late July Bishop Duca wrote a letter to pastors, principals and parents with children enrolled in Catholic schools explaining the two goals that have guided his decision making since the pandemic began have been ensuring the safety of children, faculty and staff at schools and keeping elementary and high schools open for in-class learning with minimal disruption. 

“Reflecting upon our experience last school year, each of the protocols and procedures used then were implemented to successfully accomplish these goals,” he said Aug. 2.  

During his homily at St. Joseph Cathedral in Baton Rouge on Aug. 1, the bishop admitted the decision regarding mandating the wearing of masks was one of the most difficult he has ever had to make. He acknowledged that whatever decision he made, some people were likely to be upset. 

“We begin this school year, tired and weary due to this pandemic, but our eyes are fixed on a future filled with hope knowing that our courageous actions now will again yield much success in days to come,” the bishop wrote Aug. 2.