The Vance County Board of Education voted on Monday to lift the mask mandate for students and staff beginning Monday, Feb. 28, 2022.
The board held a special called meeting this morning (Feb. 21) to discuss the use of face coverings and the board voted unanimously to begin optional masking next week.
The vote comes on the heels of Gov. Roy Cooper’s update last week, during which he discussed guidance from DHHS and on passage of Senate Bill 173.
“The district will continue to encourage students and staff to become vaccinated as well as participate in weekly COVID-19 testing provided by a partnership with Mako Labs,” according to a written statement from VCS.
“The Board of Education recognizes that COVID-19 is still present in the community and will continue to offer optional layers of protection for students and staff,” the statement continued.
Temperature checks will be optional and the district will maintain nurses in schools. Schools also will continue the increased cleaning protocols. Staff will continue to ask students to respect personal space and to bring reusable water bottles for the touchless water fountains.
At their scheduled work session held on Monday, Feb.21, the Granville County Board of Education voted unanimously to make masks optional, except as required by law, for students and staff effective February 28, 2022.
The Board heard a summary of recent action at the state level, including a recent report made by the Governor which encouraged all school districts to make masks optional by March 7, 2022. In addition, Senate Bill 173 (the “Free the Smiles Act”) was passed by the General Assembly yesterday and sent to the governor. If the governor signs the bill or lets it stand without a veto, then it will become law in no less than 10 days. Finally, specifics of the newly updated NC Strong Schools Toolkit were also shared.
While masks will be optional in school beginning next Monday, there are some settings and instances where they will still be required. Currently, there is still a federal CDC order in place requiring masks for drivers and passengers on school buses. Masks are also still required on days 6-10 for individuals after they have tested positive or have been identified as a close contact to someone with COVID-19. These specific instances will be reviewed by our school nurses in consultation with the local health department.
Franklin County Schools has made the decision to make masks optional beginning immediately.