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Continued from Page 1 provide guidance to students, parents, teachers and staff as to when masking mandates can be relaxed so that they may have some certainty in their lives.

“Public health experts have been clear that masks are an important part of the strategies designed to keep students, educators and our communities safe,” Pallotta said Tuesday. “In the meantime, we’re looking to state health offi cials to set a clear off -ramp for when mask requirements in schools can be relaxed so students, families and educators have some certainty that there is light at the end of this long tunnel.”

Tim Dolan, interim superintendent of the North Shore school district, which temporarily allowed mask-wearing to be optional, said school districts being the centerpiece of political controversy is “terribly disappointing.”

“The Board and I will continue to work with our legal counsel to fi nd ways to navigate into the future,” Dolan said in a statement Tuesday. “This is a complex legal issue, and we need to make every eff ort to protect the rights of all and deny the rights of none. That is a very tough balancing act, but we must fi nd a way to do so. We will.”

Allison Brown, the superintendent of the Roslyn school district, announced on Monday that masks would be optional for students and staff , but acknowledged that the judge’s decision could be suspended.

Confusion arose after the decision at the Manhasset Secondary School on Tuesday, according to Newsday, when a group of unmasked students were reportedly denied entry to the building. School offi cials told Newsday that the unmasked students were allowed to stay in the library for remote learning.

“I’ve been here since 7:30 in the freezing cold,” 16-year-old Tina Bonati told Newsday. “I’ve missed like four or fi ve periods of school. … I feel extremely annoyed. I think that my rights to education

PHOTO COURTESY OF METROCREATIVECONNECTION.COM

School districts throughout Long Island will be monitoring what happens in the state appellate court in Brooklyn on Friday in regards to mask mandates in classrooms.

should not be denied because of an unconstitutional act.”

Gaurav Passi, the acting superintendent in Manhasset, said in a letter to the community Tuesday that the confusion was “understandable” and a “vast majority of students” abided by the district’s decision to follow the state guidelines.

“We share the community’s frustration with the confl icting messages from governing authorities and their legal counsel,” Passi said in the letter.

Sewanhaka Central High School District Superintendent James Grossane said the district would continue to enforce the mandate, acknowledging the strains it has taken on all of the district stakeholders.

“Schools must continue to follow the massive mandates that have been in place for all students and staff since the beginning of the school year,” Grossane said Tuesday. “We all know that these last 22 months have been very diffi cult and stressful for our entire school community. Please know we are here to support you and stand ready to assist in any way we can to understand that we as a board and as an administration must comply with the laws that are in eff ect, that is the oath we take every year.”

Prior to the stay, the Port Washington school district released a statement saying it would also abide by the state’s mask mandate until a fi nal decision was made.

“We are anxiously waiting to see the next steps by the state,” the statement said. “Until an offi cial announcement has been made whether masks will be optional and/or it plays out in the courts, the district must continue to abide by the mask mandate currently in place.”

Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman implored Hochul to “stop disrespecting the rights of students and parents” and to revoke the mask mandate for schools and indoor settings, which is different from the school mandate and is set to expire on Feb. 1.

“Mask decisions should be made by families and school boards who have their fi nger on the pulse of their communities, not Albany politicians,” Blakeman said in a statement Tuesday. “Nassau is normal again, and our county will continue to lead the way as an example for the rest of the state to follow.”

Blakeman, a Republican, received backlash from Democratic offi cials throughout the state for an executive order he signed several weeks ago aimed at providing school districts with a choice to enforce mask mandates or not.

Hochul said local governments do not have the power to override state mandates on education and called Blakeman’s executive order an attempt “to assert authority with respect to what has already been declared a public health emergency.”

Jay Jacobs, chairman of the state’s and Nassau’s Democratic Party, said Blakeman’s order will likely result in more school districts closing their doors for in-person instruction with the growing number of coronavirus cases on Long Island. Jacobs said the executive order is an example of how “elections have consequences.”

Franchetti continues her fight

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“I have already learned to email legislators, as well as how to discuss critically important issues like advocating for the safety of children in custody cases. I have been amazed and inspired by Kyra’s Champions and by Jacqueline’s story. I am very excited to become more involved in this movement. I know I will carry on all the skills I am learning at Kyra’s Champions throughout my life and future careers.”

In December, Gov. Kathy Hochul released a report from the Blue-Ribbon Commission on Forensic Custody Evaluations, created by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo last year, of which Franchetti was one of 20 members. The group was aimed at providing recommendations to the governor about updates to the evaluations for New York courts after negative experiences were reported by parents, attorneys and court offi cials.

Forensic evaluators have a background in mental health and conduct evaluations on parent/child relationships before providing a report to the court. Franchetti described a lack of necessary training, bias and lack of standards as reasons the commission was created.

Franchetti said examples include a forensic evaluator in Schenectady requiring a child who disclosed sexual abuse to sit on her father’s lap during her interview. She said on Long Island an evaluator interviewed a young boy on the bed where he was raped, and in her daughter Kyra’s case, the evaluator dismissed documented evidence and eyewitness accounts of abuse and advocated for the father who murdered her to have joint custody.

“It was a true honor to be asked and be part of this,” Franchetti said.

She said she wants to make sure the legislation so important to her gets over the fi nish line.

“It is up to the Legislature to look at these recommendations and take them forward,” Franchetti said.

More information about Kyra’s Champions can be found at www.kyraschampions.org.

PHOTO COURTESY OF JACQUELINE FRANCHETTI

Jacqueline Franchetti of Manhasset with her daughter Kyra at the Mary Jane Davies Green in an undated photo. A bill named after Kyra aiming at improving the Family Court system has been introduced into the New York state Assembly.