On Monday, August 23, the Putnam County Board of Education met in an emergency session to reconsider its decision of Thursday, August 19, to require mandatory masks for all students and staff for the first month of the 2021-22 school year.

At the emergency session, the Board voted unanimously to recommend masking for children and staff but not to make it mandatory. The policy change allowed a mask-free beginning to the 2021-22 school year on…