FERNANDINA BEACH Fla. – Starting Monday, all Nassau County students and staff must wear masks.
The school board voted unanimously in favor of the decision during a special meeting on Aug. 17. The Nassau County School district has reported multiple COVID-19 outbreaks.
We expect an update on COVID-19 cases in the school district later today. The district’s most recent update was last Monday.
It showed 52 students and four staff members tested positive. 366 students and one staff member are quarantined.
Students can still opt out but teachers can’t unless they have a medical exemption. They need to fill out a form to opt out. Click COVID-19 and you can pull up the form instantly.
While Nassau County students can opt out, school districts can now enact tougher mask mandates.
The district asked families to turn them in last week, but there is no firm deadline. There’s also no timeline for how long the policy will stay in place.
Just over half of Florida’s 2.8 million public students face a mask mandate, and more school districts could follow.
Friday, a circuit court judge ruled Florida law does not allow the state to enforce a ban on mask mandates against school districts. The governor plans to appeal the decision.
Duval County’s new policy, which only allows students to opt out with a note from a doctor, takes effect next Tuesday.
Going forward, students can only opt out with a note from a doctor.