Wake ending school COVID testing but will still recommend students and staff wear masks

The Wake County school system will no longer have school-based COVID-19 testing. But it will keep recommending that face masks be worn on campus.

Wake administrators said Tuesday that they’ll continue to recommend — but not require — that all staff, students and visitors wear masks as a way to prevent the spread of COVID-19. Many students and staff stopped wearing masks after they became optional in schools in March.

Additionally, Wake is ending a program where students and school employees could voluntarily get free weekly COVID-19 testing done on campus. Instead, at-home test kits will be given to people who want them.

The updated health guidance comes as the majority of Wake’s nearly 160,000 students will report back to class for a new school year on Aug. 29.

“Masks work,” said school board member Christine Kushner. “I think mask mandates have been shown to be ineffective because people don’t follow them. I do think that puts the burden on too many people who have autoimmune and other special needs.

“It’s terribly unfair, but I think we as a school system need to emphasize masking is a tool.”

Indoor mask use is advised in the majority of North Carolina’s counties, according to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, The News & Observer reported.

Durham is among the counties where the CDC says those who are at high risk of severe disease may consider avoiding nonessential indoor activities and talk to their doctors about treatment plans in case they do test positive.

Wake is in the medium risk category, where the CDC recommends that high risk residents talk to their doctors about whether they should wear a mask indoors and potential treatment options if they test positive.

Masks recommended in school

The question of face masks and COVID-19 testing have been among the most divisive topics facing schools across the nation.

North Carolina health officials required masks to be worn during the 2020-21 school year, when students only received limited amounts of in-person instruction. The state mask mandate ended in the 2021-22 school year, with districts deciding on their own whether to require the face coverings.

“The overwhelming lesson of the last few years is students need to be in person in school,” Kushner said.

The Wake school board voted to stop requiring masks after Gov. Roy Cooper and state health officials recommended ending school mask mandates.

The state’s Strong Schools Toolkit went away in June. Schools are now being directed to follow CDC guidance.

Masks will be available at schools if students and families want them.

Wake is recommending students and staff wear masks:

▪ At least 10 days after symptoms onset or testing positive for COVID-19 (5 days for quarantine and 5 days upon returning).

▪ At least 10 days following an exposure to a person with COVID-19.

▪ Individuals who are at increased risk for severe illness due to COVID-19, are unvaccinated, or are not up to date on vaccines, should wear a mask in indoor settings.

Students who are sick, not feeling well, have COVID-19 symptoms, or say they’ve had a positive COVID test will be isolated in the school health room and given a mask.

But school board attorney Jonathan Blumberg said Wake won’t require the masks to be worn on campus.

In lieu of requiring masks, Wake says it will take steps such as continuing to disinfect surfaces, encouraging people to get vaccinated and staying home if they’re feeling sick.

Students with disabilities

Paul Koh, assistant superintendent for student support services, said reasonable accommodations for extra precautions will be made for students and staff with disabilities.

But school board member Jim Martin complained that these special-needs students are being told that they should learn from home, just wear a mask or sit in a separate classroom. He said helping those special-needs students could mean requiring other people around them to wear masks.

“We may need to require some environments so that all students, including those with disabilities, have access to a free and appropriate public education,” Martin said.

But none of the other board members voiced interest in restoring mask requirements.

COVID-19 testing

Last school year, Wake began using state funding to have Mako Medical provide on-campus COVID testing. “Pool testing” was conducted, in which multiple samples were tested and if they came back positive then those people were encouraged to get individually tested.

For the new school year, all schools will receive at-home test kits to provide to families and staff upon request for symptoms of COVID-19.

Wake says the test kits shouldn’t be given to students and that testing shouldn’t be performed at schools or other district work sites.

Families and staff will be asked to continue to report positive COVID cases to their principal of supervisor.