Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education, Jeffrey Riley, announced on Monday, September 27, that he extended the mask requirement in Massachusetts public schools until at least November 1.
As of October 15, a school that can show 80 percent or greater vaccination rate of all students and staff would remove the mask requirement for vaccinated individuals. Unvaccinated students and staff in those schools would remain required to wear a mask.
The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted on August 24 to authorize Riley to require masks for public school students age five and above. That authorization enables him to extend the requirement.
Riley’s order requires all public school students, age five and above in all grades, to wear masks when indoors and on school buses except for when eating or drinking. The order permits mask breaks throughout the day, under certain circumstances. Masks are not required outdoors.
Exemptions include students and staff who cannot wear a mask for medical reasons or students for behavioral reasons.
