Virginia health and education officials are recommending some schools require their students and staff to wear personal protective masks while indoors through the fall.
The guidelines encourage all elementary schools to require students, teachers, and staff members to wear masks indoors, regardless of their vaccination status.
“The science is clear that vaccinations and masks help keep our communities safe from COVID-19,” said state Secretary of Health and Human Resources Daniel Carey in an announcement Wednesday. “Due to the dedication, expertise, and close partnership of the Virginia Department of Health and the Virginia Department of Education, the Commonwealth’s children and the individuals that help them learn will be protected by proven strategies, without a one-size-fits-all approach.”
Restrictions are more relaxed for middle and high schools, though they should “at a minimum” require “students, teachers, and staff who are not fully vaccinated wear masks indoors.”
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Local officials are given some leeway to determine their own respective approaches, but the guidelines do not rule out “universal masking” — in fact, they encourage it.
“All schools may want to consider universal masking for specific reasons as outlined in certain circumstances by the CDC,” the guidelines read. “The CDC federal order requiring masks be worn on public transportation remains in effect and applies to buses operated by Virginia public schools.”
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam said the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance would ensure a safe in-person school year.
“Virginia has followed the science throughout this pandemic, and that’s what we continue to do,” he said.
In the spring, Virginia parents chose between keeping their children at home for remote learning or allowing them to return to in-person classes conditionally.
“This guidance takes into consideration recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and the American Academy of Pediatrics and will provide necessary flexibility for school divisions while ensuring a safe, healthy, and world-class learning environment for Virginia’s students,” Northam said.
“Again, I strongly urge every eligible Virginian to get vaccinated. Getting your shot will protect you, your family, and your community — and it is the only way we can beat this pandemic once and for all,” he added.
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Parents have widely opposed a mask mandate for students, and a Virginia school board meeting burst into a heated debate over the subject.
“You’re all hypocrites,” a parent said at the board meeting Tuesday. “You’re sitting here without masks and want our kids masked. No, we’re fighting.”
“Parents should have a voice,” the parent added.
“It’s time to let our children resume normal life, see their teachers’ and classmates’ faces, and for our children to stop living in fear,” another parent said during the event.
