Oakland public schools will no longer require masks later this month.
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Oakland Unified School District officials announced in a districtwide email on Friday that the district will strongly recommend, but no longer require, masks in indoor spaces beginning on April 25.
The district said it will align with California Department of Public Health guidance after students returning from spring break didn’t correspond with a surge in COVID-19 cases. Officials, however, stressed "that COVID is still very present in our community" as "transmission rates and hospitalizations are lower than earlier this year."
"We strongly urge all students and staff to continue to mask indoors," the district said. "In some cases, masking may still be required, including, for example, following a positive case diagnosis."
When the district announced it would lift its outdoor mask mandate, officials said they would reevaluate the indoor policy on Friday. The district's shift to strongly recommending masks follows contention earlier this year over its coronavirus policies.
After student and staff absences led to empty classrooms and closed schools during the omicron variant’s surge earlier this year, Oakland Unified and the Oakland Education Association agreed on Jan. 24 to expand COVID-19 testing access and provide KN95 masks to all students.
Later that month, the Oakland school board voted to delay its vaccination mandate for students who are at least 12 years old from Jan. 31 until Aug. 1. Nearly 76% of the district’s students aged 12 and older are fully vaccinated, but vaccination rates are considerably lower for eligible students younger than that. Fewer than a third (32.6%) of students aged 5-11 are fully vaccinated, according to district data.
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