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Masks

Masks are back at some schools. How bad will COVID politics get?

Matt Zalaznick -
A Maryland elementary school's mask mandate for a single class is setting off alarm bells—but not so much about the spread of infection.
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Wave of respiratory illnesses forces mask mandates in districts across the U.S.

Matt Zalaznick -
New rules are popping up in districts across the country as educators enter 2023 grappling with a wave of COVID, flu and RSV.
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More districts are mandating masks to keep schools open around the holidays

Matt Zalaznick -
Rising illnesses and, consequently, absent students and staff are forcing district leaders to mandate masks as a safety precaution after winter break.
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COVID outbreaks and mask mandates are interfering with first day of school

Matt Zalaznick -
A Kentucky district delayed opening. Two large East coast districts mandated masks. But those systems are most certainly the outliers
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Odds are, monkeypox won’t disrupt your schools…but COVID still might

Matt Zalaznick -
Monkeypox is making headlines but health experts say school leaders shouldn't worry about the infection becoming as disruptive as COVID.
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Most mask mandates ended last school year. Now they are slowly returning

Matt Zalaznick -
Much of the general public has ditched masks despite rising COVID cases but students in some districts are facing mandates as the new school year begins.
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Are principal salaries keeping up with COVID’s challenges? Some say no

Matt Zalaznick -
While steady increases appear to be keeping up with the cost of living, heavier workloads may be throwing salaries out of balance.
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How schools are targeting safety more precisely during the latest COVID wave

Matt Zalaznick -
School leaders are not rushing to impose districtwide mask mandates or close schools to combat the omicron-driven resurgence of COVID.
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More activist parents aren’t going away. Here’s how to work with them.

Matt Zalaznick -
What K-12 leaders need to know about a new generation of parents promoting both conservative and liberal causes.
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‘The need for masking may come and go, like the need for a jacket in winter’

Matt Zalaznick -
More school districts are dropping mask mandates than are reinstating them as educators wait to see if the latest COVID wave will match past surges in severity.
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School closures. A new mask mandate. COVID is coming back, but how bad?

Matt Zalaznick -
Masks will once again be required in Philadelphia's schools as other large districts are also seeing an increase in COVID cases. Still, K-12 leaders elsewhere are dropping their mask mandates.
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Top 10 states where the most in-person learning occurred during COVID

Matt Zalaznick -
"School closures may ultimately prove to be the most costly policy decision of the pandemic era." That's the somber conclusion made by researchers taking a fresh look at the economic and other impacts of COVID. 
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How are school leaders responding as COVID rises again in some districts?

Matt Zalaznick -
Neither mask mandates nor other precautions are returning to schools that are dealing with increasing new COVID cases in recent weeks.
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Federal judge sides with 12 disabled kids seeking masks in schools

Matt Zalaznick -
Federal judge rules that a new Virginia law allowing parents to opt children out of mask mandates cannot prevent 12 vulnerable students from seeking a “reasonable modification” that could require that their classmates wear masks.
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Mask tracker: Last batch of K-12 mandates have come to an end

Matt Zalaznick -
States that had mask mandates in place the longest are now lifting the requirement as districts across the country look to find a new normal.
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K-12 mask mandates not only worked. They really worked.

Matt Zalaznick -
As waves of West Coast districts join the nation in loosening COVID rules, yet more evidence is showing that mask mandates were extremely effective in blocking the virus.
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Florida education commissioner who battled mask mandates to resign next month

Charles Hendrix -
During Richard Corcoran's tenure, the state department of education clashed with districts in the state and with the U.S. Department of Education over restrictions on mask mandates in schools.
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Just how effective were masks in stopping COVID from spreading in schools?

Matt Zalaznick -
With the masking decision in most parts of the county now left up to students and families, the CDC reports that masks cut COVID transmission rates by a significant amount.
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End of an era? Almost all K-12 students now free to take off masks

Matt Zalaznick -
Going to school without a mask is now—or will soon be—an option for students in almost every district in the U.S. as the last few major mask mandates are set to expire in the next week or so.
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K-12 COVID safety precautions are being canceled as quickly as masks

Matt Zalaznick -
While many in education are eager for a return to pre-pandemic normally as omicron cases plunge, others worry defenses are being lowered too soon.
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K-12 leaders grapple with mask rules as support for mandates plummets

Matt Zalaznick -
Even district leaders and parents who were most supportive of mask mandates earlier in the pandemic are now ready to see the requirements lifted.
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Calls are now growing nationwide to ease K-12 COVID rules

Matt Zalaznick -
With omicron on the decline, even administrators in states where support for COVID protections have been the highest are now asking for more local control over COVID policy.
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Mask mandates are back as K-12 leaders fight to keep classrooms open

Matt Zalaznick -
Mask mandates are returning to dozens of districts just as many administrators had loosened COVID precautions in the weeks before omicron struck. 
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School CEO assures Chicago that classrooms are safe as teachers stay home

Matt Zalaznick -
CEO Martinez cites low COVID transmission in schools as teachers union 'work action' could close schools for weeks.
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Face mask litigation tracker: State-by-state chart of legal disputes

Amy Slater -
Our chart, updated daily, tracks COVID-19 face mask litigation by state.
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Parents in one state can now tattle on schools that are mandating masks

Matt Zalaznick -
Parents in Missouri are now being encouraged to report school districts that are maintaining mask mandates, quarantines and other COVID-prevention policies to state authorities.
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