Face masks required for students inside Horry County Schools, SC Superintendent orders
When Horry County Schools students and staff do return to the classrooms, they will be required to wear face masks.
State Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman announced the requirement Friday for all public school buildings in a news release that also identified 36 school districts whose reopening plans were approved.
Those approvals are in addition to 31 previously announced and the two residential Governor’s Schools, which will both return with hybrid face-to-face and virtual options, the news release states.
HCS is one of a handful of districts remaining that hasn’t received approval. The district asked for an extension and is expected to submit its final plans to the state Department of Education after its board meeting Monday, which will be held in person, according to board chairman Ken Richardson.
The face mask requirement will begin when students and staff return for for added instructional days under Learn, Evaluate, Analyze, and Prepare, which will be required for students identified as needed extra attention before school begins.
The requirement is an alteration from initial guidance by the state’s AccelerateED Task Force, which recommended requiring teachers and staff wear face coverings but only encouraging students to do so. Earlier this week, Spearman announced requirements for masks to be worn by all students and staff on school buses.
“As we prepare to welcome students and teachers back to South Carolina classrooms for face to face instruction, it is imperative that we implement measures that are proven to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus,” Spearman said in the news release. “Requiring the use of face masks for everyone in our school buildings in combination with other mitigation tactics will help ensure that we have safe learning environments even when optimal social distancing is not feasible.”
The mask requirement will follow Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines which state that face coverings should not be placed on children younger than 2, anyone with trouble breathing, and anyone who is incapacitated or otherwise unable to remove the covering without assistance.
Public schools have been closed since mid-March in an effort to reduce the spread of COVID-19.
This story was originally published July 31, 2020 at 3:56 PM.
