MOUNT VERNON — Knox County’s school districts no longer require masks on school buses, aligning with the latest Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance.
On Feb. 25, the CDC stopped requiring masks on buses and vans operated by public or private school systems, including early care and education/child care programs.
School systems can now choose to require masks on buses or vans at their discretion, after masks had been required on public transportation under a federal order since Jan. 29, 2021.
Most Knox County districts shifted their policies to meet the change immediately, or at the next full school day.
Centerburg, Mount Vernon City Schools and East Knox stopped requiring masks on school buses the same day the CDC updated its guidance, Friday Feb. 25, Centerburg supt. Mike Hebenthal, Mount Vernon supt. Bill Seder said and East Knox supt. Steve Larcomb said.
Danville, Knox County Career Center removed the mask requirement the following Monday, Feb. 28, KCCC supt. Kathrine Greenich, Danville supt. Jason Snively said.
The mask change for school transportation comes after the CDC also stopped recommending universal indoor mask wearing in schools, for grades kindergarten through 12 and early education settings, in areas with a low or medium COVID-19 Community Level.
Knox County’s school districts stopped requiring masks earlier in the fall.
Knox County schools also stopped contact tracing and notification in the school setting in early February. This followed revised guidance fromstate and local health officials to stop universal contact tracing, case investigation and exposure notification and instead move to a cluster-or outbreak-based model.
“The quick spread of the Omicron variant and its rapid clinical course have made universal contact tracing, case investigation and exposure notification impractical when combined with newly reduced timelines for quarantine and isolation,” the state memo sent to school superintendents and local health departments at the end of January read.
However, schools must report COVID-19 cases weekly and are still expected to assist local health departments with contact tracing, case investigation and exposure notification related to outbreaks or clusters in schools, as determined by the local health department.
Overall, Knox County schools have largely returned to pre-COVID-19 rules.
