PA Issues New School Guidelines, Mask Guidance For Students

PENNSYLVANIA — Pennsylvania released updated safety guidelines for the 2021-22 school year on Tuesday, including a recommendation that unvaccinated individuals continue to wear masks indoors.

This is in keeping with the latest CDC guidance, according to the Department of Education. The state notes that local districts have the final say, and can choose to implement stricter, or looser, policies. Regardless of the specifics, all districts are required to have an official health safety plan, which includes a mask policy.

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“Our schools have gone to great lengths to help create safe learning environments and protect their communities throughout the pandemic,” Pennsylvania Secretary of Education Noe Ortega said in a statement. “(We) advise schools to continue to protect their communities by following current CDC guidance, to the greatest extent possible, as they plan and prepare for the new school year."

The latest guidance comes as Pennsylvania sees a statewide increase in COVID-19 numbers for the first time in weeks. As the more contagious delta variant becomes even more prevalent across the state and nationwide, Pennsylvania has seen its percent positivity rate shoot back up to 2.8 percent. It sat at 1.7 percent just a week ago, according to the Early Warning Monitoring Dashboard, marking the first significant increase in months.

Vaccinations, of course, are another aspect of the state guidance. It's recommended by the state and the CDC for all students 12 and older.

"Getting a vaccine should be considered an essential back-to-school item on this year’s list,” Acting Secretary of Health Alison Beam said in a statement.

State officials said that they're continuing to follow CDC guidance for all other school recommendations. This means they're suggesting districts arrange classrooms to keep students 3 feet apart.

Contact tracing and quarantine protocols have been updated as well. Now, students who were exposed to a positive individual do not need to quarantine so long as they maintained three to six feet of distance, and were wearing a mask at the time.

To view the state's full updated guidance, see online here.