Covid protocols are changing at schools, but the goal stays the same.

Over the past two years, schools have adapted to the ever-changing Covid-19 protocols from going fully virtual to hybrid, as well as changing requirements for indoor and outdoor masking. As of March 14, masks are no longer required at California schools, and are now strongly recommended. Most school districts in Monterey County aligned with the state mandate except Alisal Union, Greenfield Union and North Monterey County Unified, where masks are still a requirement due to higher Covid case rates in their communities.

In a letter to parents, Alisal Union Superintendent James Koenig wrote that as a precautionary measure the district will continue to require indoor masking for two additional weeks.

The districts that are still requiring masking will reevaluate at the beginning of April. In other districts where the requirement has lifted, administrators say little has changed among teachers, staff and students: Most of them are still wearing their masks.

Going forward, it will be up to school boards to decide whether to implement mask requirements, based on case data. Monterey County Superintendent of Schools Deneen Guss says they have the option to be stricter than state rules, but not more lenient.

In general, school districts intend to continue with Covid-19 prevention protocols, with subtle differences.

At Salinas City Elementary, a contractor, AM LLC, has been hired to manage logistics related to Covid-19 such as testing, tracing and updating protocols. “We were so overwhelmed [managing Covid-19 logistics] that we were not able to do our regular jobs,” says Katie Balesteri, SCESD’s assistant superintendent for human resources.

Monterey Peninsula Unified School District Superintendent PK Diffenbaugh says besides following Covid-19 protocols, the district has installed MERV filters and/or HEPA filters in classrooms. “We instructed all the teachers to open their doors and windows to increase airflow,” Diffenbaugh adds. Schools have also started offering lunch outdoors. MPUSD will continue to operate its rapid testing site.

Balesteri and Diffenbaugh say they have to stay vigilant to keep schools open and safe. SCESD and MPUSD will both provide Covid-19 test kits for students to test before returning to school from spring break.

Another level of protection against Covid-19 is vaccination. As of March 22, nearly 84 percent of the county’s eligible population, ages 5 and up, is vaccinated. In the youngest eligible age group, 5-11, only 40.9 percent have been vaccinated, however.

“We are kind of stalled in our county from 5 – to 11-year-olds,” Guss says. The Monterey County Office of Education is offering webinars for parents to answer their questions on vaccines. “There is no room for politics or misinformation,” Guss adds.

Covid-19 vaccines are not currently required for students to attend school. District officials are closely watching several vaccine bills that would make it a requirement in California.