Superheroes wear masks!

* Masks are required for all indoors time at HMLC.

* Much of our time is spent learning and exploring outdoors. Masks are optional for children in outdoor environments. Adults are asked to remain masked both indoors and outdoors.

Why does HMLC still require masks?

Wearing N95/KN95 respirators is a valuable protective skill for children to learn.

• Properly fitted N95/KN95 masks filter out at least 95% of airborne particles, including fine particulate matter (PM2.5), which is particularly damaging to developing lungs. Children's respiratory systems are still maturing, making them more vulnerable to airborne harm than adults.
  Wearing well-fitted respirators meaningfully reduces long-term damage to the body.

• Children who know how to correctly deploy masks have genuine protection against airborne pathogens for protection during infectious disease outbreaks.

• Masks significantly reduce exposure to pollutants, particulates and allergens that contribute to asthma, cardiovascular issues and cognitive effects.

As we prepare children for a future that is rapidly changing in unknown and profound ways, proper masking is a tool that will be valuable in dealing with:

• Increased air pollution and wildfire smoke events.

• Climate change with intensifying dust storms, pollen seasons and extreme heat events that worsen smog.

• Future pandemic preparedness.

• Industrial and environmental accidents releasing toxic particles/gases into the environment.

• Unauthorized surveillance, including facial recognition and biometric surveillance.

HMLC requires that all children and participating adult volunteers/educator guides be fully up to date on ALL vaccinations and boosters (including COVID), as vaccines are available (unless there is a medical exemption).

This is not a political statement, a judgment or an invitation to debate, it’s simply our commitment to protecting the most vulnerable members of our little education community and our communities at large.

When indoor learning takes places at HMLC, we monitor air quality and utilize air filtration systems while in all indoor spaces.

Indoor air filtration removes or reduces significant amounts of:

• Viruses and bacteria

• Fine particulate matter

• Allergens

• VOCs and chemical off-gassing

Studies show that higher CO2 levels and poor air quality directly impair cognitive function, including decision-making, focus and classroom performance.

A Harvard study found that cognitive scores were 61% higher in well-ventilated environments compared to conventional ones

Additionally, reducing illness transmission means fewer sick days for both students and teachers, improving instructional continuity

HMLC DOES NOT encourage or incentivize showing up sick. We ask that all adults and children remain home while they are ill.

Why?

• Sick people are most contagious before and during peak symptoms. Sending a symptomatic child to school is effectively seeding the classroom with a pathogen at maximum transmission potential.

• One sick child multiplies rapidly.

• Pathogens spread before kids "look sick." A child who "seems fine" but has a mild cough, runny nose, or low-grade fever may be actively shedding virus throughout the school day.

• Partial recovery is not full recovery "Feeling a little better" is not the same as no longer being contagious. Many illnesses remain transmissible for days after symptoms begin to improve. Coming back 24 hours after a fever breaks (a common school policy) is often still within the contagious window.

• Sick children don't learn effectively.

• Missing 2 days well is better than attending 5 days sick. A child who rests fully and returns healthy will re-engage with material far more effectively than one who drags through a week of school half-present.

• Teachers get sick too.

HMLC does not penalize absences due to illness, we work with families to ensure children stay up-to-date and in contact while resting and recovering. We want everyone to return to school ready to learn.