CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The Archdiocese of Chicago has released some of its new COVID-19 guidelines for its schools for the upcoming academic year.
The archdiocese announced that students and staff should make a "near-normal, pre-pandemic" return to school in the fall, while still maintaining health protocols based on the guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Illinois Department of Public Health.
And with that announcement, the archdiocese said fully vaccinated students, teachers, and staff will not have to wear a mask in schools.
“We are excited to be resuming extracurricular activities and other operations that were halted during the pandemic,” said Justin Lombardo, chief human resources officer and chair of the Archdiocesan COVID-19 Task Force. “These safety guidelines will be reassessed, as necessary, during the academic year to ensure safe operations. And, for the sake of everyone’s health and our collective ability to fully overcome the COVID-19 virus, we will continue to encourage vaccinations for faculty, staff and students over the age of 12.”
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In a letter to families, the archdiocese said the upcoming academic year will see a return to field trips, school masses, sports and all other extracurricular activities, as well as before- and after-school care programs. Library and computer labs will also reopen.
Additionally, there will no longer be cohorts, but every classroom will maintain an assigned seating chart since any necessary quarantines will be limited to only the students in closest proximity to any COVID-19-positive student (i.e., fellow students seated in front, back, left or right).
Guidance regarding masks for unvaccinated individuals will be released by early August.
Meanwhile, all masses are allowed at 100 percent capacity with masks recommended for unvaccinated adults and children. The only time a vaccinated priest or deacon will need to mask-up is when he is close to an infant during a baptism.
Singing will also be allowed again.
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