Brockton Public Schools Will Drop Mask Mandate After Vacation

BROCKTON, MA — The City of Champions' public school district will remove its mask mandate for all students and staff on Monday, Feb. 28, nearly two years after the onset of the COVID-19 crisis.

This decision comes after new state guidance issued last week said that masks will become optional across schools in the state unless a particular district chooses to implement one.

The Brockton School Committee Policy Subcommittee voted 6 to 1 in favor of dropping the current mask mandate on Feb. 28, the Enterprise reported, the Monday following February vacation, and the first day the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education said masks can expire in schools.

The opposing vote was cast by Ward 6 representative and Vice-Chair Joyce Asack, who said she would prefer extending the mask mandate by at least a week to check in on COVID-19 case numbers after students get back from the break just to see if there are more cases, the Enterprise said.

Superintendent Michael Thomas is in favor of lifting the masks. "In my opinion, it's time to see the smiling faces again of children," he was reported saying. "I think it's just time."

Though students and staff will be able to take their masks off inside the school, they will still have to wear them on school buses, since that is a federal guideline.

Any student or teacher who wants to leave their mask on is also allowed to do so.