Kansas Governor Laura Kelly (D) signed an order Monday that requires all students, teachers, faculty, and visitors to K-12 schools’ public or private buildings or facilities to wear face covers.
“I will continue to use all the resources and tools available to this administration to protect the people of Kansa and keep our economy open to business, regardless of the political pullback,” Kelly said in a statement.
The order exempts the requirement to cover their faces when people eat or perform activities that cannot be safely carried out with a mask or other facial covering. It also exempts non-student children and those under 5, as well as people with medical conditions that prevent them from covering their faces.
The order also requires a six-foot social distancing, except for in-person instruction in classrooms when wearing face covers. It also requires hand sanitizers in all classrooms and that all students and teachers disinfect their hands at least once every hour.
Kelly also shared details of an order that would delay schools from beginning any in-person instruction from August through September 8. Kelly can only sign the order if it is approved by the Kansas Board of Education.
The governor had announced last week that schools in the state would not open until after Labor Day, and had said he planned to share details of the executive order on Monday.
“The additional three weeks will provide schools time to work with their counties to obtain the necessary mitigation supplies, such as masks, thermometers, and hand sanitizers, while providing local districts with time to thoroughly review the curriculum options for the State Board of Education to find out which strategy is best for your district, “Kelly said in her statement Monday.
“Putting nearly half a million children and teachers in large daily meetings is the exact opposite of what health experts have urged us to do,” he added.
The order delaying the opening of schools would also include athletics and other extracurricular activities.
The board, made up of eight Republicans and two Democrats, scheduled a meeting for Wednesday, according to The Kansas City Star.
The Board of Education approved the reopening orientation of the state department of education last week. It is up to the districts to decide how to operate the schools, either with in-person instruction, virtual instruction, or a combination of both, depending on the level of COVID-19 outbreaks in their communities, according to the newspaper.
Kansas has reported a total of 23,544 coronavirus cases and 318 deaths, according to state data.
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