While masks will be strongly encouraged for students, staff and visitors, they will not longer be required.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Duval County Public Schools announced Friday that visitors and employees will no longer be required to wear masks.
In January, DCPS announced face masks would be required for visitors and staff but not students as COVID-19 cases surged due to the omicron variant. Capacity at athletic and performing arts events were also reduced to 75%.
RELATED: Duval County Schools announces new COVID-19 mitigation measures amid surge in cases
According to DCPS, while all students, staff and visitors are “strongly encouraged” to wear masks, the district will no longer enforce any mask requirements.
In addition, the district is lifting all capacity restrictions on arts and athletic venues.
The county said a drop in student infections led to its decision to lift COVID-19-related restrictions.
The district says if a student or employee gets sick, they are still urged to stay home. Furthermore, social distancing will still be encouraged.
As part of the district’s mitigation efforts, there will be regular cleaning and disinfecting of frequently touched surfaces. DCPS will also continue to provide soap, hand sanitizer, masks and gloves for students and employees. Desks will continue to have shields separating them.
At the end of last month, Duval CORE, an organization made of DCPS teachers and parents, held a press conference urging the district to take action against rising COVID-19 infections within the district. The organization demanded the district provide PPE for all students and staff, have better contact tracing when an infection is reported and organize a district-wide vaccination campaign. However, the organization’s demands did not call for a renewed mask mandate for students or the continuation of a requirement for staff.
RELATED: ‘The current status quo is not enough’ | Duval County educators’ group demands ‘surplus’ of PPE, better contact tracing
Last week, Florida legislators proposed a bill that would rewarding districts who followed Gov. DeSantis’ order banning student mask mandates while financially targeting those that did not.
If the bill is passed, Duval County Public Schools would lose $10.6 million.
RELATED: Florida lawmakers debate reallocating $200 million to school districts that didn’t impose mask mandates
DCPS, like most districts in Florida, did initially follow the order by allowing parents to opt their children out of wearing masks. However, the district later instituted a mask requirement as cases of COVID-19 increased during the Delta variant surge.
The mandate prompted multiple legal requirements by both the State of Florida and Duval County Public Schools. Ultimately, DCPS was fined about $26,000 by the state for defying the governor’s order.
RELATED: FDOE refunds thousands to Duval County Schools, other state districts that were penalized for imposing mask mandates
That mandate was later repealed for students in October and has not been reinstated since.
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