Dear West Allegheny Families,
Yesterday afternoon, the PA Department of Health and the Pennsylvania Department of Education released new mask wearing orders for schools. Given this directive, we would like to clarify how this order impacts our in-person student return at West Allegheny.
Our reopening plan required staff and students to wear their masks while they were moving (to and from school on buses, walking in, out and around the school) and when actively engaged in learning and conversing with their peers and teachers. Students were not required to wear their masks when working independently at their desks as a result of the District's ability to provide six feet of social distance in ALL classrooms.
The new guidelines do not impact our plans. West Allegheny administrators and teachers have been proactively planning at least two mask breaks with varying lengths throughout a 40-minute class period based on active instruction and independent learning time. The new guidelines simply dictate how long one mask break can be at a time.
Some media outlets have inaccurately reported that, under the new order, masks must be worn by students at all times while in school. This is not true. As per PDE's new order:
*Under what circumstances are students permitted to remove their face coverings
(e.g. masks and face shields)?
Schools may allow students to remove face coverings when students are:
- Eating or drinking when spaced at least 6 feet apart; or
- When wearing a face covering creates an unsafe condition in which to operate equipment or execute a task; or
- At least 6 feet apart during “face-covering breaks” to last no longer than 10 minutes.
The complete PDE FAQ may be viewed HERE.
We do hope this has provided some clarification on the new mask order and how it will impact our students and staff. Please be assured that we continue to balance the health and safety of our school community with the diverse needs of our families. We are looking forward to welcoming our students back on Tuesday, August 25.
