Howard County Board of Education Votes to Lift Universal Indoor Mask Mandate, Effective Tuesday, March 1, 2022

February 24th, 2022

UPDATE: Feb. 27, 2022
An earlier version of this message indicated masks would be required on school buses, due to federal regulations. Shortly after this message was issued, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention lifted the requirement that people wear masks on buses or vans operated by public or private school systems. As such, effective March 1, 2022, masks will be optional in HCPSS buildings and on school buses. The information below has been updated and is accurate as of Feb. 27, 2022.

At its meeting on Feb. 24, 2022, the Howard County Board of Education voted to make face coverings optional, effective March 1, based on the Maryland State Department of Education’s off-ramp option one for school districts to lift mask requirements.

Effective Tuesday, March 1, universal indoor masking in HCPSS buildings and on school buses is no longer required. Any student, staff or visitor may choose to wear a mask, and should feel comfortable doing so. Schools and offices will continue to have additional masks available as needed.

Shifting to optional mask-wearing impacts a number of other areas and additional information will be shared with the community on Friday, Feb. 25 regarding these impacts.

“I am pleased that the Board of Education has voted to support the use of this ‘off-ramp.’ While the Superintendent had noted his intention to lift the mandate following the Maryland General Assembly committee’s vote on Friday, Feb. 25, we wanted to provide our community additional notice regarding this change.” stated Vicky Cutroneo, Board of Education Chair. “As we have seen a decline in cases and transmission in our county, and the optimistic community message from the Health Department this week regarding declining metrics, I believe this is the right time to make masks optional.”

“It is encouraging that nearly all metrics that our health department has used to inform COVID-related decisions have seen a decline for the first time in these last three months and I commend HCPSS students, staff and community for our collective efforts to reduce the transmission of COVID-19 in our community,” stated Superintendent Dr. Michael J. Martirano.

“While masks will no longer be required in schools, every student and staff member should feel encouraged and supported to make the decision they feel most comfortable with,” he continued. “We will remind students and staff to practice civility and respect the choices of others when it comes to masking, and I seek the community’s support and collaboration in reinforcing and modeling this behavior for our children. System and school leaders will work to ensure the safety and well-being of our staff and students as we make this transition.”