Springfield Public Schools board of education will hold a meeting on January 28th in order to determine if the district will go forward with a temporary mask mandate for students and staff.
Springfield Schools are currently preparing to return to virtual learning after rising COVID-19 case numbers prompted the district to halt classes.
The board of education has publicly stated that it is contemplating a “public health order” for the district that would require masks until at least February 18th.
Ky3 News reports Springfield Public Schools administration submitted the public health order request to the board.
This is a change from the previous mask mandate for teachers and staff and follows legal tensions with the Missouri Attorney General over whether the district possesses the power to issue a mask mandate for students.
Attorney General Eric Schmitt has filed over two dozen lawsuits against school districts across the state over the issue of mask mandates. The Attorney General contends that neither school districts nor health departments have the power to issue mask mandates, since that power has never been explicitly granted by the Missouri General Assembly.
