Lexington 2 passes ‘emergency’ mask mandate for schools to try to stem COVID

Lexington School District Two will require students and staff to wear masks in order to try to slow the rise of coronavirus cases in schools.

Thursday night in a five to two vote, the Lexington 2 school board approved what it called an “emergency mask requirement.” The mask mandate is temporary and set to last from Sept. 3 to Oct. 31. Visitors will also have to wear masks. The mandate is for all district property and on buses.

COVID has hit the district hard.

In the first three weeks of the school year, more than 2,000 student have tested positive for the virus or are in quarantine, according to the district. That’s nearly a quarter of all students and three times more that the entirety of last school year.

The number of cases and quarantined students continue to rise, district Superintendent Dr. Nicolas Wade said in a statement.

“Having this temporary measure in place will keep schools in session and reduce the likelihood of classroom, grade level and/or school closures due to quarantine numbers,” Wade said. “We want our students in school and we want them to be actively engaged in their learning. We can only ensure they are engaged when they are physically in our classrooms with their teachers and peers.”

Wade said he hopes the mask requirement will support families by not forcing them to adjust work schedules or commitments because of a school’s unexpected move to remote or virtual classes.

Lexington 2, Lexington 1 and Lexington 3 have already temporarily closed some schools because of the virus as have districts in Pickens and Clarendon counties.

Thursday, the SC Supreme Court struck down a mask mandate by the city of Columbia and upholding a one year state budget law that bans schools from requiring masks. How that ruling may effect school board’s decision to require mask is unclear. But Richland School District One passed a mandate in August. The mask mandate by Richland 1 is still in effect. Richland School District Two has asked the court to block enforcement of the law banning masks in schools, but the case has yet to be adjudicated as of Friday morning.

This story was originally published September 3, 2021 at 8:10 AM.

David Travis Bland

The State

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David Travis Bland is The State’s editorial editor. In his prior position as a reporter, he was named the 2020 South Carolina Journalist of the Year by the SC Press Association. He graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2010. Support my work with a digital subscription