Mishawaka schools keep COVID mask mandate after Indiana governor extends health emergency

MISHAWAKA — Students in Mishawaka schools will need to hang onto their masks at least a little longer.

After announcing a plan last month to potentially lift indoor mask mandates, district leaders say they will now continue requiring the face coverings during in-person learning, indoor athletics and fine arts events.

The district told families in a Nov. 15 letter that it would consider adopting a mask-optional policy beginning this week for extra-curricular activities if Gov. Eric Holcomb lifted the state's public health emergency order.

COVID in schools: Health officials caution against lifting mask mandates

School leaders last month had also said they would consider removing mask mandates indoors during class time on Dec. 23 if the health emergency ended. But Holcomb extended the order this week.

Superintendent Wayne Barker said in a November school board meeting that the district wanted to allow time for younger students newly eligible for the pediatric COVID-19 vaccine to become fully immunized.

Administrators at the time said they would watch for developments from the governor's office.

Early last month, the governor indicated what would need to happen to lift the public health emergency, which included a call for state lawmakers to help ease of access for pediatric vaccinations. He also said Indiana could still benefit from enhanced federal funding.

But legislators quickly scrapped plans to expedite legislation after meeting in a seven-hour committee session last week, resulting in another extension of the governor's order.

'We have nothing left': Mishawaka defends masks amid COVID-19 surge

In the wake of that decision, Mishawaka schools on Wednesday night informed families the district would continue with mask requirements for all students, staff and guests.

Barker, in his Wednesday letter, also pointed to rising COVID-19 cases in the school district over "the past couple of weeks."

"The goal of continuing to require masks is to keep our students and employees healthy, to minimize the number of students and staff required to quarantine, and to keep our buildings open for in-person learning," Barker wrote.

Mishawaka, which started the year mask optional, was hit hard in August with dozens of positive cases, resulting in hundreds of quarantines. The district quickly moved to require universal indoor masking.

In November, the district charted more than 20 positive COVID cases among staff and students each week. Just shy of 230 students and staff, or about 3.7% of the district's total in-person population, is in quarantine this week, according to a Mishawaka COVID-19 dashboard. The district hasn't reported numbers this high since September.

The governor's latest orders extend through Dec. 31 and could continue into January, when state lawmakers reconvene for the start of a new legislative session.

St. Joseph County health officials last month cautioned schools against lifting mask mandates earlier than at least January.

The South Bend and Penn-Harris-Madison school districts, also operating with mask mandates, have not discussed changes to their policies in recent weeks.

Email South Bend Tribune education reporter Carley Lanich at clanich@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter: @carleylanich.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Mishawaka school mask mandate extended as COVID-19 cases rise