SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, May 18, 2021 (Gephardt Daily) — Salt Lake City School District will require masks through the end of the school year despite Gov. Spencer Cox’s recent order ending the mask mandate during the last week of the school season.
Cox’s order allows districts to keep the mask requirement in place should they decide to do so.
Interim Superintendent Larry Madden announced the district’s decision to keep the mask mandate in place through the last week of the school year.
“We’ve come too far to let go of proven safety practices like mask-wearing with just a few days left in the school year,” said Madden in a statement released Tuesday.
“While we’ve been able to offer vaccinations to our educators, staff, and some of our students, very few of our students have been vaccinated thus far. The risk is too great, especially when we consider those in our school communities with pre-existing health conditions or who have family members at home who are high risk for contracting COVID-19.
“The last thing we want to do is increase the risk in our city just as school is about to let out for the summer,” Madden said.
The last day of school is Monday, June 7.
