 Appalachian Wireless offers forward pay, no contract, no credit check, no problem. Plans start in 1999 a month and include unlimited talk and text or take it to the max with unlimited data plus for only $89.99 with 50 gigs of high-speed data because we are you. We are Appalachian Wireless. Both Pike County and Pikeville Independent Schools announced earlier this week that masking would become optional towards the end of the month. In response, Mountaintops spoke with Pikeville Independent Superintendent David Tremble about the decision. Yeah, you know we've been in conversation with our local health folks and then of course internally in the district as well and just continuing to look at kind of our direction forward. It's been a long year and a half really almost two years since we saw a major adjustment in education and so we continue to make sure that we provide a safe and healthy environment while also making sure that we're moving in the direction of making sure we're giving kids opportunities to have a normal environment as much as we can while still respecting the situation that we're in. As a result of decreasing cases, Tremble says they were able to make the decision adding the support of medical advisors within the community. Additionally, while families take time to adjust, Tremble says going maskless is still an option. Absolutely, we will do anything we can to support families as we make this adjustment if there are families who feel that they are in the best interest of their children to remain masks. Absolutely. We will support that. We have masks on hand that we can provide as well and continue to work toward making sure we have all the PPE that we need to help our families be comfortable. So this is a family option, a family choice if a family chooses that their child be masked that that option obviously still continues and we will support that in any way that we can. And while other school districts such as Pike County adopt the new policy, Tremble says its school district continues to monitor changes in the virus. We will always consistently evaluate every situation that we have not just around COVID but any situation and our goal is always to provide the safest and best environment for our students and staff. And so anytime we need to evaluate and take a look at the information around us and if adjustments need to be made in any way to make our students and staff the safest and healthiest week possible we can, we always are willing to do that. Tremble Independence maskless option begins February 28th with Pike County beginning Wednesday the 23rd. For Mountain Top News, I'm Joel Korgel.