Aug 10, 2021

Great Bend schools will not require mask as new school year begins

Posted Aug 10, 2021 1:16 PM
The USD 428 Board on Monday night discussed COVID policies for the upcoming school year
The USD 428 Board on Monday night discussed COVID policies for the upcoming school year

By KEN CARPENTER
Great Bend Post

GREAT BEND — The Great Bend School Board decided Monday night that students, teachers and staff will not be required to wear masks when school resumes later this month. That is the same policy that was in place at the end of the school year last May. 

School Board President Jacquie Disque summarized the COVID policies before the board voted to approve them. 

“Masks will be recommended but not required with weekly reassessments done and communicated with parents and the public, more often if needed,” Disque said. “Quarantine will follow the ten-day calendar days for unvaccinated or vaccinated with symptoms. All of the things from last year, the social distancing, the handwashing, everything we had in place last year for those measures will continue. And then, with transportation on all vehicles, any school district vehicles with greater than one person in it, everyone must be masked.”   

The federal government requires that everyone on a school bus or school vehicle must wear a mask.   

Students, teachers and staff who are vaccinated will not be required to quarantine unless they show symptoms of a COVID infection.  

There will be one major difference in USD 428 operations from last year. No remote learning will be offered to students even if they are quarantined.          

The board voted unanimously to approve the policies.