Colorado student says she was forced to tape mask to face

A Colorado middle school student says she was forced to tape a mask to her face during class. 

The mother of the student at Chinook Trail Middle School in Academy School District 20 said a teacher forced her daughter to tape the mask to her face after her it kept falling down, CBS Denver reported on Tuesday.

Chinook Trail is having difficulty investigating after the story was put on social media, with many contributing false information, a school official told CBS News.

“Because of social media, we now have so many other voices in the mix that may not have been involved and so now there’s misinformation that’s mingled in with actual facts,” said Allison Cortez, chief communications officer for District 20.

The district is reportedly asking for patience as it probes the matter.

Masking for students has been a controversial topic across the country amid the return to classes this school year during the coronavirus pandemic.

Many schools have implemented mask mandates, either by their own choice or forced to by their state amid the spike in delta variant cases. 

Despite masking, many students, most of them too young to have been vaccinated, did have to go into quarantine at the beginning of the school year after coming into contact with someone with COVID-19.

Opponents of masking in schools say it is unnecessary as the risk of a child getting severely sick with the virus is low. 

The Hill has reached out to the school district for comment.