Two Centre County school districts make plans to lift mask mandates as COVID cases fall

Both State College Area School District and Philipsburg-Osceola Area School District — the only Centre County school districts with mask mandates in effect — plan to soon make masks optional.

P-O will return to optional masking Tuesday, Superintendent Gregg Paladina said. The district instated a mask mandate Jan. 10 after a rapid increase of not only COVID-19 cases caused by the omicron variant, but also seasonal flu.

“It’s time,” Paladina said. “We’re only having a handful of cases across the district and all of them so far have been non-related to in-school spread.”

State College Area School District plans to ease COVID-19 protocols starting Monday, with a phased approach that would make masks optional for all on March 28.

Superintendent Bob O’Donnell and Jeanne Knouse, director of student services, sent out a memo to parents on Friday detailing the mitigation easement plan. SCASD administration will present the plan to the board at its meeting on Monday.

Starting Monday, SCASD will reopen water fountains. Starting March 14, the district will start allowing field trips again.

SCASD will not be reinstating elementary desk groups, which was part of the original plan that the district has now revised.

P-O will not be reopening water fountains, but water bottle fillers are available for students, Paladina said. Elementary students desks will continue to be separated.

Both districts will continue to maintain physical distancing requirements once the mask mandates have been lifted.

“As always, we will remain responsive to the presence of COVID-19 in our community and modify our mitigation measures accordingly,” O’Donnell and Knouse wrote. “If cases begin to elevate, we will consider reinstating mandatory masking.”

The decision comes as COVID-19 cases continue to drop in the district and around the county.

“In the last seven days, we have had six employee cases and 10 student cases district wide,” O’Donnell and Knouse wrote. “In comparison, four weeks ago, Jan. 14-20, we had 31 employee cases and 110 student cases.”

SCASD will be sharing a form with families to discuss individual health and safety measures for students. The district will also prepare safety plans for high-risk students.

“While our plan eases some mitigation protocols, the district will continue to encourage and support the following: case reporting and tracking in buildings, close contact identification, daily screenings, daily cleaning, supplying healthy hygiene products, and mandatory masks on district transportation until further notice,” O’Donnell and Knouse wrote.

This story was originally published February 18, 2022 at 3:49 PM.