LEON COUNTY, fla. (WTXL) — Leon County School Board waits to see if their policy is in compliance after making changes Tuesday night.
The district is preparing to send a letter Friday to the Board of Education after loosening restrictions on their COVID-19 safety policies.
LCS Superintendent Rocky Hanna believes because parents now have a opt-out option if they don't want their child wearing a mask while in the quarantine period on campus, this will put them in compliance with the board of education.
In the school board meeting Tuesday, Hanna said "data and numbers are moving into compliance, not simply to comply".
Leon County Schools' dashboard reported 24 COVID-19 positive students, two staff members and 52 students in quarantine as of Wednesday.
"We made a commitment and told people, if our numbers came down we would change some of our protocols, loosen some of those restrictions," Hanna said.
He said they wanted to see a less than 5 percent positivity rate in Leon County, which is now at 3.5 percent.
"This change did not come about because of any threats from the commissioner of education, from the state board of education, from the governor," Hanna said. "It didn't come about because of the withholding of a salary. It came about because the data reflected we could make a change, and if it goes back up we're going right because to wear we were last month."
The changes have been approved by the board and will take effect on Nov. 1.
Hanna said Leon County did apply for the Safe Schools Grant through the federal government last Friday.
If accepted, they would receive about $200,000, which is the amount lost from the school board's salaries.
"I've never been more disappointed," Hanna said. "I've never felt more powerless, and it's not about having power, but doing what's right and fair. Who knows better than us as to what's best for our community than the people that live here."
