The Hollidaysburg Area School Board unanimously approved an update to the district’s COVID-19 contact tracing protocols Wednesday.

The updated policy says that contact-traced students may remain in school as long as they are asymptomatic and wear masks. This will go into effect on Monday, according to Board President Ron Sommer.

The board voted 8-0, with board member Kenneth Snyder absent.

During public comment, seven community members spoke, mostly voicing displeasure with contact tracing and masks.

Michael Eardley expressed his disagreement with masks and other mitigation measures, citing medical issues.

“Quarantining, contact tracing and masks: Studies have shown these lead to increased anxiety among students,” Eardley said.

For his youngest child, Eardley said, “a mask can be very harmful” because she has medical conditions.

“As we all know, the cloth masks, the paper blue masks don’t work anyway,” Eardley said. “It literally says that on the box.”

Andrew Wedel addressed contact tracing, claiming that it doesn’t work.

“The harm of today’s contact tracing is outweighing the good,” Wedel said. “Please understand we are reasonable people. If you show us the data, if you show us this is working, we’re going to listen. Do you have it? I think not, because if you did, you’d show us. It’s optics. It’s really to satisfy Harrisburg. Satisfy us.”

After the meeting, Sommer expressed disagreement with Wedel.

“I think contact tracing does work,” Sommer said. “I’m not sure how effective it is, especially in a school setting, but if someone is exposed, I think it does cut down the chances of (COVID-19) being spread by isolating the individual.”

In other matters, board member Manny Nichols made a motion to remove the junior high school’s vaccine clinic, which Superintendent Robert Gildea said is currently open to students ages 5-11.

Gildea took exception to Nichols’ request.

“So you’re telling me you’re all about choice, yet you want to eliminate someone’s choice?” Gildea asked.

“There’s plenty of places people can go outside the school,” Nichols replied.

The board struck down Nichols’ motion by a 5-3 vote.

In favor of removing the vaccine clinic were Nicole Hartman, Melissa Mitchell and Nichols. Opposed were Sommer, Board Vice President Scott Brenneman, Lonna Frye, Rick Gallagher and Doug Stephens.

After the meeting, Gildea addressed his disagreement with Nichols over the clinic.

“The board, from the very start, has been very focused on giving people options,” Gildea said. “By saying publicly that you want to deny people the right to come to a vaccination clinic simply because it’s held in one of our school buildings is really hypocritical.”

Gildea also commented after the meeting on people being opposed to contact tracing.

“I feel strongly that the more layers of mitigation we have in place, the greater the chance is of keeping kids safe.”

Mirror Staff Writer Andrew Mollenauer is at 814-946-7428.