Mask Mandate Ends At Edina Public Schools

EDINA, MN — A districtwide mask mandate is no longer in place within Edina Public Schools.

Officials lifted the mandate Wednesday after a recent drop in coronavirus cases within the district and throughout Edina, as well as increasing vaccination rates.

The district's board unanimously voted last week to approve Superintendent Stacie Stanley's recommendation to lift the district's universal mask mandate.

Edina Girls Hockey Team To Play In State Quarterfinal Thursday

Despite lifting the mandate, Stanley and officials are "strongly" recommending students and staff continue to wear masks.

District officials are set to monitor student attendance rates to determine if masking requirements should be reinstated at a school. Masks would be required again if absences are twice as high as the weekly average of student absences in 2018 and 2019.

Students and staff must continue to wear masks on district transportation, officials said.

88% Of Edina Public Schools Staff Got COVID-19 Vaccines: District

Anyone who tests positive for the coronavirus must isolate at home for five days and wear a mask at school for the next five days, according to updated guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Those who cannot wear a mask for the second five-day period will not be allowed back in class until the full 10-day period has expired.

Students will be required to quarantine for five days if there is a positive case in their household unless they are fully vaccinated or had COVID-19 in the past 90 days, the CDC guidelines state.

New MN Congressional Maps Released: Minor Changes In Edina

Stanley acknowledged last week that lifting the mask mandate will force some students to return to remote learning.

Immunocompromised students “aren't going to be able to stay in school in person" without the mask mandate in place, Stanley said, asking students to "give them space to transition" to remote learning.

1 Edina School Added To Weekly COVID-19 Outbreak List

"It's going to be a change for them," Stanley said. “It’s taking away some of their social experiences that they have had this year by being in school, masked."