UMass Amherst students suspended after they were caught maskless at party

Parents of three girls at UMass Amherst are outraged after their daughters were suspended for not wearing masks during a private outdoor event.

A trio of freshmen at the school have been suspended after someone sent a picture of them at an outdoor gathering to the university administration. The photo showed the three girls in St. Patrick's day garb at what appears to be an outdoor gathering.

After the university received the photo, all three girls were kicked out of residence, banned from in-person classes and recently removed from distance learning and barred from taking their finals. "That negates this whole semester $16,000 of money, and they have to reapply for next semester. But they missed housing registration," said one of the girls father's Scott.

Another father, RJ, said of his daughter, "She was valedictorian and class president of her high school. She did everything right," RJ added, "I just want the university administration to be equitable and fair,"

RJ refers to videos of the UMass hockey team celebrating their national championship victory this spring on campus, where large crowds of unmasked students were seen congregating. The parents of the suspended girls believe that there is a double standard.

The university released a statement saying, "Students received a number of public health messages this semester that emphasized the importance of following public health protocols and the consequences for not complying, and those messages were also shared on UMass social media channels"

The parents have hired a lawyer and say they plan on filing a lawsuit. "One little thing happens and you’re out? Like not even like a don’t do it again, here’s some probation," another parent Teresa said. It is unclear what the girls plans are for the upcoming school year.