Masks Become Optional Outside
Students can now take off their masks outside
Sophomore Melissa Lindsey walks early to her next class after lunch
After a full year where the world has been changing and adapting to new norms. We finally seem to see the light at the end of the very long tunnel and get to breathe a little better.
Since COVID-19 took over the world as a global pandemic on March 11th, 2020. Most of us have become comfortable with using our masks daily. At the store, at school, at work, every single public area. People have even designed their own masks and companies have come out with new prints and designs to make masks more trendy and fashionable.
Just as students have returned to school Jan 19, 2021 in hybrid mode, and into five days a week on April 5, 2021. Masks became mandatory, but now into the month of May, quarantine and mask guidelines are beginning to change.
As of May 3, 2021, Michelle Baumstark, a spokeswoman for Columbia Public Schools (CPS) sent an email out regarding these changes. Fewer days will be required for quarantines. Currently, the guidelines have close contacts quarantining for 14 days. As of May 10, that will be lowered to 10 days. As for masks, they are no longer required outdoors in a non-crowded area but are still mandatory indoors.
The guidelines released also state that visitors will be allowed in limited capacities and small gatherings will be allowed. Fully vaccinated staff and students will be looked at to determine whether they need to quarantine after a COVID-19 exposure.
Junior Eneidi Hernandez is excited to see things starting to look up and is hopeful that things will get back to normal.
“I’m glad to see that thing’s are slowly starting to get better, even though it has been a full year, seeing these improvements being made so far is really exciting and I hope things will eventually go back to normal, I miss seeing faces,” Hernandez said.
Sophomore Melissa Lindsey agrees with the new guidelines due to more people being vaccinated.
“I think the new guidelines are very reasonable. More and more people are getting vaccinated, and we’re somewhat getting back to normal. This is a start” Lindsey says.