De Soto High School students and staff were given the choice of optional masks at a special USD 232 Board of Education meeting on Oct. 20. 

For the week ending in Nov. 5, DHS had three students in isolation or quarantine which comes out to .30 percent. According to the new policy, if the percentage of quarantined and isolated students goes above 4 percent, then the students and staff will be required to wear masks for two weeks. After those two weeks, if the percentage is still above 2 percent, students and staff will have to continue wearing masks. Once the percentage gets below 2 percent, it must remain below 2 percent for two consecutive weeks before the students and staff will be able to go back to optional masks. 

Students have a lot of opinions on masks. There are still several students who have chosen to wear a mask for their health. 

“For myself, I still choose to wear a mask because both myself and my mom are asthmatic so it is important for our health,” sophomore Kennedy Tilley said. 

A couple of students’ parents have chosen for them to wear a mask due to their jobs. 

“I wear a mask because my parents work in the medical field and they don’t want me to get them sick,” sophomore Trey Curtis said. 

A lot of students have chosen to not wear a mask out of preference. 

“They [masks] are uncomfortable and annoying,” sophomore Maya Rozelle said. 

Most students and staff were very happy about optional masks. They were all very excited to see what others look like without a mask.