LEWISTON — Lewiston school officials may soon discuss shifting to making masks optional, Superintendent Jake Langlais said in a phone conversation Thursday.
The discussion could come as soon as the next School Committee meeting Feb. 28, however it may not happen until early March, he said.
“We’ve been masking, we’ve run every vaccine clinic available to us, we’re pool testing at a higher volume than any other district in the state, we have contact traced, we have hired additional nurses to help with that effort,” he said. “We’ve really been an active participant in every mitigation and monitoring strategy available to us.”
Officials are monitoring local and COVID-19 pooled testing data and are seeing a relatively consistent decline, he added.
“Those are all indicators and factors that are leading me to get closer and closer to a place to recommend to the School Committee that masking becomes optional,” Langlais said.
On Thursday evening, Langlais sent an update to the school community regarding COVID-19 and masking, additionally including a survey for student, parents, staff and community members to share their input on the district’s policy.
“In your opinion: Should masking be optional if the metrics indicate improving conditions as it relates to COVID?” the survey question reads. Respondents are also invited to include additional comments.
In order to move to masks being optional, the School Committee would need to approve the superintendent’s recommendation with a majority vote.
The Maine Center for Disease Control & Prevention may update its guidelines for masking in schools before Lewiston schools can begin discussing the policy change.
CDC Director Dr. Nirav Shah said Wednesday that the state is considering changing its recommendation for universal masking to optional masking if the number of COVID-19 cases continues to decline.
“The risk of transmission in schools is tied to the overall level of COVID in the community. As COVID rates in the community come down, the risk of transmission in schools comes down and thus, the need for masking goes down,” Shah said.
Emily Bader contributed to this reporting.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
