Masks will be required on all SDOC buses

RELEASE DATE: August 26, 2021

 

Masks Will Be Required on all SDOC Buses

Per new requirements by the SC Department of Education

The School District of Oconee County received notification earlier today from the SC State Department of Education that re-institutes the requirement of face masks for students and drivers** on buses. The memo states:

“Throughout the pandemic, the SCDE has updated its COVID-19 guidance as conditions have changed and as more information has become available. It has become apparent based on COVID-19 data being reported by schools along with increasing levels of the highly transmissible Delta variant in local communities, that more protective measures are needed to lower the risk of virus transmission and keep our schools open and operating as safely as possible. For this reason, the SCDE will again enforce the CDC’s Order requiring the use of face coverings by students and staff on state owned and operated school buses. All districts must be in compliance with this requirement no later than Monday, August 30, 2021.”

The memo also states that masks will be provided for students who do not have one. There are some exceptions to the mask requirements for students with disabilities.  Students that meet the following requirements would be exempt from the mask requirement.

• A person with a disability who, for reasons related to the disability, would be physically unable to remove a mask without assistance if breathing becomes obstructed. Examples might include a person with impaired motor skills, quadriplegia, or limb restrictions.

• A person with an intellectual, developmental, cognitive, or psychiatric disability that affects the person’s ability to understand the need to remove a mask if breathing becomes obstructed.

SDOC will begin implementation of the mask requirement on Friday, August 27th.

 

**A driver is not required to wear a mask if they are the only person on the bus.