Colorado parents are deeply divided on mask and vaccine requirements in schools, with Democrats far more likely to support mandates and Republicans largely opposed.
Parents as a whole were almost evenly split, with 50% saying masks should not be required and 48% saying they should, within the survey’s margin of error.
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis has not issued a statewide school mask mandate, instead leaving decisions to school districts and local boards of health, and there has been passionate debate at public meetings on masking and other COVID protocols.
The findings come from a new poll Magellan Strategies conducted Aug. 9 to 16, as students in many Colorado districts headed back to school. Magellan, a Republican-leaning firm based in Louisville, Colorado, asked 516 parents of children in kindergarten through 12th grade how their child’s school handled education during the pandemic, whether they thought public schools in their area were generally on the right or wrong track, and what they thought about mask and vaccine requirements.
“It’s not very often you see that stark a split,” said Ryan Winger, director of data analysis and campaign strategy for Magellan Strategies. “That explains a lot of the heightened interest and passion out there. It’s a situation where the districts, no matter what they do, they can’t make everyone happy. It speaks to how difficult it’s been for districts to navigate at the local level.”
The poll also included questions about school funding and how race is taught in schools.
Read the full story from our partners at chalkbeat.org.
Chalkbeat Colorado is a nonprofit news organization covering education issues. For more, visit co.chalkbeat.org.
