Free Republic

Desks sitting six feet apart will not allow students to skirt the universal mask or face shield mandate ordered by the state Department of Health, according to guidance that was issued on Monday to school officials. Pennsylvania’s Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine said on Tuesday this guidance is a clarification, rather than a change, in rules that were sent out to schools in July that drew a lot of questions. “What we heard is some of the language isn’t as clear as it could be so we wanted to make sure that we were as clear as possible,” Levine said...

Students over the age of 2 will be required to wear face coverings for nearly the entire school day under Pennsylvania’s universal mask order, according to a Department of Education memo released this week. There will be a limited number of instances in which students will be allowed to remove their face coverings, according to the memo. These include while eating or drinking, or during an activity that makes mask-wearing unsafe. Students can also take their masks off during 10-minute “face-covering breaks.” “For the safety of students, staff and families and to avoid community spread of COVID-19, students and staff...