Local public schools are going mask optional on buses due to new federal guidelines.
The Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. and the Flat Rock-Hawcreek School Corp. are no longer requiring masks for students and staff on their school buses. For BCSC, this went into effect Monday, with the announcement made at about 10:15 a.m. For Flat Rock, the change goes into effect today, said Superintendent Shawn Price.
BCSC officials cited the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recent announcement that it will no longer require masks on buses or vans operated by public or private school systems, “including early care and education/child care programs.” The school corporation added that there has been a “continued decrease” in positive cases within the district.
“With the change to ‘masks optional’ in all environments now, we remind parents to keep their children home if feeling ill,” said school officials. “Thank you for your support and cooperation as we continue to move forward together.”
BCSC has adjusted its protocols significantly in the last month, citing both a decrease in cases and new guidance from the Indiana Department of Health. The school corp. moved to a mask optional policy for most school situations on Feb. 22, though at that time coverings were still required on school buses.
Flat Rock-Hawcreek protocols have differed somewhat from BCSC’s, with the school corporation implementing a mask-optional policy from the beginning of the 2021-22 school year (with certain exceptions, such as on buses).
Furthermore, there are still some exceptions to both schools’ current mask optional policies. Both school systems said that they would follow the Indiana Department of Health’s guidance regarding protocols for positive cases, which states that, “Individuals who test positive for COVID-19 should isolate for five days and may return on Day 6 if they have been fever-free for 24 hours without the use of medication so long as symptoms are improving, according to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Individuals should wear a mask through Day 10 any time they are around others inside their homes or in public.”
The two school districts also said they would follow the state’s updates for schools regarding the elimination of quarantines, contact tracing and reporting positive cases to the Indiana Department of Health.
As of Feb. 19, the seven-day moving average of new daily COVID cases in Bartholomew County was 13 — a steep decline from the peak one month ago of 226 daily cases. Likewise, coronavirus hospitalizations in the county have plunged from a high of 70 in mid-January to just 14 last week.
