Rural school board suspended over New Mexico’s mask mandate

By SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN
Associated Press

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A rural New Mexico school board has been suspended by the state Public Education Department for not going along with Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s mask mandate for children when classes resume for the fall semester. The department announced the suspension of the five-member Floyd school board Wednesday. The district’s superintendent has been ordered to report directly to the state education secretary. The board voted last week to make masks and social distancing optional and reaffirmed the decision in another vote Monday. The district serves about 225 students. The dispute comes as New Mexico marks its highest daily COVID-19 case total since March.