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Bridgeport Schools Superintendent Michael Testani announced that following the latest meeting of the Board of Education, they voted to drop the mask mandate in all public schools beginning as of Thursday, March 31.
According to Testani, the decision to make masks optional in school settings was “not made without important guidance from our local health officials,” and was in response to the low levels of COVID-19 in the state and Bridgeport community.
The state Department of Public Health was reporting less than five new COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents in Bridgeport over the past two weeks.
Testani said that moving forward, after March 31, it will be up to parents and students whether or not they want to continue to mask up as a precaution.
“We understand that this change will impact our students, staff, and families differently,” he said. “We want to maintain an environment of mutual respect and care in all our schools.
“We encourage everyone to support individual decisions on mask-wearing–whether individuals choose to continue to mask or remove masks– as we move into a mask-optional environment.”
Testani said that it is important that students, parents, and staff all continue to self-monitor themselves, and if they are sick or show any potential symptoms of COVID-19, they should contact their doctors and the school nurse for guidance.
“It has been a very stressful two years for everyone in our community,” he said. “Since the start of the pandemic, we have made decisions to maintain the health and safety of the entire school community.
“I cannot stress enough the importance of continuing to practice healthy habits. Students and staff should wash their hands often and thoroughly. We will continue to make all PPE available to everyone.
The superintendent cautioned that if COVID-19 levels begin to increase or are reported in a specific school, the district may enact another mask mandate as a precaution to help curtail any spread of the virus.
“We will continue to monitor the trends of COVID-19 in our school community,” Testani said. “Our local positivity rates and percentage of children vaccinated are important data points that will help drive our decision making.”
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