Students In New York Will Need To Continue To Wear Masks

Today New York State Governor Kathy Hochul announced that she has extended the mask mandate for students in schools across the state.

The Governor of New York announced the mask mandate extension during a press conference today, where in the same conference she lifted the current mask mandate for New York State businesses.

The New York Post first reported that during her meeting today, Hochul was expected to extend the school mask mandate until after the upcoming break. Most schools in New York State go on break the week of February 21st and return to school on February 28h.

This extension gives the Governor time to see if there is an increase in COVID-19 positive cases while the kids were on break and away from school.

The governor said that the state will review all the stats on Friday, March 4th and see if cases remain at a certain level, then the state would lift the mask mandate. If not, the governor will extend it once again.

The Governors of New Jersey and Connecticut announced that they will end their mask mandates for schools in the next coming weeks and it looks like New York State will follow their examples.

Governor Hochul met with school teachers, administrators, and other schools officials this week to discuss possible changes to the mask mandate.

In a statement, the Governor said keeping schools open for in-class instruction is a top priority for the state.

“Keeping schools open has always been my top priority, and I want to thank the teachers, administrators, and parents who joined me today to hear directly from them. I want to also remind parents and guardians to please get their children vaccinated, and boosted if eligible. The vaccine is safe, free, doctor-approved and the key to keeping our communities and vulnerable loved ones safe.”