As California students and teachers are ready to shed their masks Monday, the Los Angeles Unified School District is keeping the status quo, at least for now.
Monday will be the first day many students in California will not be required to wear a mask indoors, but some people still disagree.
“I think what I’m going to do is I'm going to wear a mask so I can feel more comfortable so that COVID won’t rise up again,” August McCaffery-Shapiro, a 4th grade student.
The father of the 9-year-old says he is glad his son is doing what makes him comfortable.
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“I feel confident that whether he wants to wear his mask or not that it will be pretty safe,” Gary Shapiro said.
Other kids and parents are relieved that most schools are allowing masks to be optional indoors.
“I think the kids need to move on. We got through omicron and we are just happy to be able to breathe again,” Samantha Gunther, a parent, said.
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LAUSD, however, still requires its students to wear masks in the classrooms.
The district posted on its social pages that it's working to transition from a mandatory indoor mask mandate to a strong recommendation.
LAUSD's new superintendent posted the following guidance on Twitter Sunday:
The district and teachers' union are meeting Wednesday to negotiate.
Meanwhile, the following Southern California districts were dropping indoor masks, and making them "strongly recommended" as opposed to "required":
Downey USD
Rowland USD
Saugus USD
Santa Monica-Malibu USD
Pasadena USD
Alhambra USD
Las Virgenes USD
Beverly Hills USD
Glendale USD
Palos Verdes Peninsula USD
LA County also aligned with the state in revising isolation and quarantine requirements for TK-12 schools. Schools must continue to require COVID-19 cases to isolate, and a negative test will be required to exit isolation after day five.
