Greenfield School Board Votes to Include Mask Requirement to Covid-19 Re-Entry Plan

At the regularly scheduled November school board meeting, held November 18th, the Greenfield R-VI School Board voted to amend the district’s Covid-19 Re-entry Plan to require all students to wear a mask while the district is in either the Yellow or Orange Stage of the re-entry plan.  This vote took place for the district’s policy to align with new quarantine guidance released by Governor Parson and the Dade County Health Department.

On November 12th, Governor Parson announced new quarantine guidelines from Missouri’s departments of health and education (DHSS and DESE) regarding close contact quarantines during the school day.  These updated guidelines provide county health departments the flexibility to not quarantine students and school staff in the event of an exposure while at school if the district has an approved mask mandate in place that requires students to wear a mask.

This guidance is an update to the previous policy of the Governor which stated that close contacts identified at school were required to quarantine regardless of the district’s masking policy.  For schools to take advantage of the updated quarantine recommendations it is required that all staff and students within the district wear a mask when proper social distancing is not possible.  Under the new guidelines, if both the staff and students exposed are wearing a mask, they will not be required to quarantine at home and may attend school.

The Dade County Health Department has recommended that the Greenfield R-IV School District follow the guidelines of Governor Parson to keep students deemed “close contacts” from being quarantined from school.  The Greenfield R-IV Board of Education is committed to providing the best education possible for the students of Greenfield and has voted to follow the recommendations of the Governor and of the Dade County Health Department.  By following the new guidelines, the board feels that onsite school closures and large quarantines of students and staff will decrease and will allow students and staff to focus on education.

The Greenfield R-IV School District currently plans to return to the yellow stage of the re-entry plan when the  wellness break ends on November 30th.   Changes to the district’s Covid-19 Re-Entry Plan will go in effect once students return, with the earliest date of return being December 1st. 

It is important to note the new quarantine guidelines are applicable only to Covid-19 exposures while at school.  If additional questions remain please feel free to contact the administrative office with any questions or concerns.

Chris Kell

Superintendent