Mask debate for students heading back to school continues

As the summer months wind down and school districts prepare to begin a new school year, there is heated debate again over mask mandates.
Some angry parents in Trumbull County are upset saying the mask mandates should end, while other educators in Mahoning County who want mandates are upset enough to protest.
State Representative Mike Loychik is drafting legislation to put those decisions in the hands of parents.
Around 200 parents of the 1700 students who attend Lakeview local schools are vocal, on a Facebook page called 'School is Essential.'
They started a petition for an optional mask choice at Lakeview schools.
State Representative Mike Loychik says he has heard them and is drafting legislation to ban mandatory mask orders for grades K-12 calling the mandates government overreach.
"IT'S GIVING MORE POWER TO THE PEOPLE IT'S GIVING MORE POWER TO THE PARENTS TO DECIDE WHETHER THEY WANT TO SEND THEIR CHILD TO SCHOOL WITH OR WITHOUT A MASK."
Loychik says the bill would not prohibit faculty, staff, and visitors from wearing masks.
However, some parents say if wearing a mask can keep K-12 students out of quarantine they will support it.
The CDC and American Academy of Pediatrics are calling for mask use by everyone indoors in classrooms as they return to school.
In Mahoning County educators are upset CDC guidelines are not being followed, and there is no mask mandate in classrooms or during office hours.
The union cites high community transmission of the Delta Variant of COVID-19, in Mahoning, Trumbull, Columbiana, Ashtabula, and Portage counties.
They are so upset they will be protesting on YSU's campus Friday morning.
Mark Vopat, President of the YSU Faculty Union says, "THE STATUS QUO IS NOT ACCEPTABLE, the policies we are seeing are not, AND WE WANT TO MAKE SURE AWARE it's NOT JUST A FEW PEOPLE BUT THERE ARE A NUMBER OF FACULTY THAT ARE NOT HAPPY WITH THIS."