Masks Back At Montclair High School For 10 Days Due To COVID ‘Uptick’ – Patch

MONTCLAIR, NJ — Mandatory face masks will return at Montclair High School for 10 days, administrators announced Tuesday.

Montclair Public School District Superintendent Jonathan Ponds said the high school will temporarily bring back universal masking because of an “uptick” in COVID-19 cases.

All students and staff will need to wear masks during the school day from Wednesday, May 4 to Friday, May 13. If someone forgets to bring a mask, the school will supply one, Ponds said.

The decision was made in consultation with the Montclair Department of Health, Ponds said.

COVID-19 data for the Montclair School District and Montclair High School can be seen here.

The Montclair Public School District previously made face masks “optional” for all students, staff, and visitors (preK-12) in all indoor and outdoor school settings, as well as on school buses, on March 7. Read More: Masks Optional For Montclair Schools After ‘Dramatic’ COVID Drop

But administrators warned that a mask mandate could return if the local case rate and risk level were to rise to the high or highest levels, according to guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the New Jersey Department of Health.

“We will review COVID-19 activity levels weekly,” Ponds said at the time. “If a change is indicated, families and staff will be notified accordingly.”

According to statistics from Essex County – which doesn’t differentiate between vaccinated and unvaccinated cases – here are some recent COVID-19 totals for Montclair (NOTE: Numbers are cumulative from April 2020):

  • May 4 – 6,540 cases, 84 deaths
  • May 3 – 6,529 cases, 84 deaths
  • May 2 – 6,516 cases, 84 deaths
  • May 1 – 6,504 cases, 84 deaths
  • April 30 – 6,481 cases, 84 deaths
  • April 29 – 6,460 cases, 84 deaths
  • April 28 – 6,442 cases, 84 deaths
  • April 27 – 6,431 cases, 84 deaths
  • April 26 – 6,417 cases, 84 deaths
  • April 25 – 6,409 cases, 84 deaths

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