North Salem Central School District to end masking requirements in schools Wednesday, following State guidance

The North Salem Central School District announced Monday that it will lift the requirement for universal masking in school beginning Wednesday, March 2, in accordance with New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s announcement Sunday afternoon ending the school mask mandate statewide.

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“As we announced over a month ago, should the Governor lift the mask mandate for schools, the North Salem Central School District would follow suit,” North Salem schools superintendent Ken Freeston wrote in an email to families. “The Governor’s announcement occurred Sunday afternoon along with a promise to supply school districts with new guidelines and a Q/A document. The written guidelines and the Q/A documents have not yet been released to school districts. We will review them and pass them along to you when the State supplies them to us.”

Freeston added that the issue of masking on school buses remained uncertain, citing federal requirements that masks be worn on all public transportation, including school buses. “Hopefully the forthcoming State documents will provide clarity on this issue,” Freeston wrote.

Freeston’s note concluded, “we all need to work together to accept the choices made by families, students and staff who wish to continue wearing masks.”