By DEBRA HAIGHT
COVID and the accompanying pandemic related restrictions remain a big concern in Berrien County among parents and others. The pandemic has also stirred up a controversy between State Rep. Brad Paquette and the Berrien Regional Education Service Agency.
Last week began with news that Interim Berrien County Health Officer Courtney Davis and Berrien County Health Department Communications Manager Gillian Conrad announcing their resignations.
County officials stated in a press release Oct. 18 that they had begun the process to replace Acting Health Officer Courtney Davis and Communications Manager Gillian Conrad.
“We appreciate and value the contributions of Courtney Davis and Gillian Conrad especially during this very difficult time, as well as their commitment to our community,” R. McKinley Elliott, chairman of the Berrien County Board of Commissioners, said in a press release. “We wish them all the best in their future endeavors.”
Davis, who was appointed to the post over the summer when Nikki Britten resigned to take a position with Spectrum Lakeland Health, announced she is resigning effective Nov. 3 and blamed what she called the “politicization of public health during the pandemic.”
Conrad is resigning effective Oct. 29 and cited the toll the pandemic has taken on her “mental, emotional and physical health.”
Davis and the health department in general had the subject of public criticism over the last two months since the health department ordered a mask mandate for all schools in early September. The public health orders issued by both the county health department and the state of Michigan have also been criticized for months.
Last week’s Berrien County Board of Commissioners meeting featured more comments about the health department’s response to the COVID pandemic. Commissioners themselves did not comment on the resignations of both Davis and Conrad.
Aimee Foster of Berrien County Parents for School Freedom asked commissioners to affect change in the health department with the leadership changes now in the works. She said she is concerned about rumors she heard that Davis met covertly with local school boards to use quarantine rules to reinstate mask mandates.
The health department imposed a mask mandate for all schools Sept. 1 but lifted it in late September after the new state budget was signed into law. The new state budget contains language that would take money away from health departments if they impose mask mandates.
“It sounds very shady in my opinion,” she said. “She made them a non data driven option they couldn’t refuse. This politicization has put a mental toll on kids that won’t be forgotten. We ask that her replacement will show more respect for parental choice. It’s also time for some new blood on the Board of Health.”
Parent Robert Donarski said mask mandates were traded for quarantine mandates. “I’ve been told that schools need mask mandates because they don’t want to shut down schools with excessive quarantining. If students wear masks, there’s less quarantining. Masking is a solution in search of a problem.”
Parent Luke Andresen warned about schools hosting vaccine clinics and questioned whether students under age 18 are being vaccinated without parental consent. He said he’s heard about clinics at Buchanan High School and expects other districts to follow suit.
“We need to do something at the health department to stop this madness,” he said. “We need to put out mass communications to parents so they can know and have kids stay home on the days when there is a vaccine clinic. We are one micro-fraction away from forced vaccinations.”
The pandemic and organizations’ response to it also has caused a controversy between State Rep. Brad Paquette
and Berrien RESA. It was learned earlier this month that RESA had adopted a policy that grants 10 additional paid sick leave days to vaccinated employees and not to unvaccinated employees when exposed to COVID.
Paquette wrote constituents in his monthly newsletter that he had expressed his opposition to such a practice and planned to continue work on legislation to ban what he called “unacceptable policies.”
“It is a real problem that Berrien RESA is implementing discriminatory measures on health decisions and is using taxpayer dollars to do so,” he wrote. “This policy attempts to marginalize those who have decided that vaccination is not the right choice for them and invades the private health decisions of employees. All employees should receive the same care and consideration regardless of vaccination status.”
Paquette also gave his opinion on vaccine mandates in general.
“This month, the President announced millions of Americans will be forced to get a COVID-19 vaccine regardless of their personal beliefs,” he said. “As your State Representative, I will continue to oppose similar mandates here in the state of Michigan. I have taken note of the feedback I have received from local constituents regarding this federal mandate and have shared those thoughts with our U.S. senators.”
Berrien RESA Superintendent Eric Hoppstock responded to Paquette’s concerns and explained what had happened. He said there has been no change in the Berrien RESA policy since the beginning of the year.
“At that time we were approached by staff wanting to work collaboratively to come up with additional sick leave days related to COVID only events/situations,” he said. “We have high vaccination rates among staff of 75-80%.”
“We worked collaboratively with our bargaining teams to come up with a Letter of Understanding to allow 10 additional days of leave time for COVID only events for this school year only. It is tied to vaccination status or appropriate exemptions (medical, belief issues). Staff groups were in agreement with the language.”
“We have had no complaints about this temporary letter of understanding and regional union representation provided feedback that the language we used was the same language they recommend for bargaining groups,” he concluded.
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