MINNEAPOLIS — Students in MPS and SPPS won't need to grab one thing they've used for the past several years when heading to class on Monday: if they chose, they won't have to wear a face mask in school.
Both Minneapolis and Saint Paul public school districts had previously required students and staff to keep their faces covered when they were in school, but due to low case counts and most people being vaccinated, the masks can come off for now.
Updated guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control about understanding and responding to the risks and impacts of COVID also helped guide this decision.
If cases in Ramsey and Hennepin County increase, rising to a medium or high level of transmission, the school districts will revisit these policies.
The federal mask mandate covering public transit is still in place, so kids need to plan to wear a mask on the bus, including Metro Transit.
In either district, anyone who would feel more comfortable wearing a mask is still welcome to do so.
In Minneapolis, the district also updated its contact tracing and quarantine guidelines. MPS said it will discontinue universal contact tracing, and lower the quarantine period from 10 days to five days, with masks required from days six through 10.
When students and staff are fully vaccinated, there will be no required quarantine period for those exposed to COVID.
If students or staff test positive, an isolation period of 10 days will still be required.
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