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A comprehensive guide to Kansas City-area school district mask policies

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Schools in Missouri and Kansas are preparing to open for another school year, as the delta variant has caused concern in both states. KSHB 41 News has compiled a list of all the masking policies in districts across the Kansas City-area.

Check for your district below. Districts are organized by county and placed under Kansas City metro, remaining Missouri and remaining Kansas categories.

Due to a federal mandate, masks will be required on school buses.

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information comes in.

KANSAS CITY-AREA DISTRICTS:

Clay County:
The Clay County Public Health Center Board of Trustees recommended that students, faculty and staff wear masks in school buildings during their Wednesday, Aug. 11 meeting.

Excelsior Springs School District

  • Masks will be encouraged, but not required. The district will be able to provide in-person, hybrid and virtual learning options.

Kearney School District

Liberty School District

Missouri City School District

North Kansas City School District

Smithville R-II School District

Jackson County:
Jackson County instituted a mask mandate indoors, which will apply to all schools in the county. The order will begin Aug. 9 and last for 30 days. The policies of districts in Jackson County will be listed below, but at the start of school all districts will be required to mask due to the county order.

Blue Springs School District

Center School District

Fort Osage School District

  • As of Aug. 6, masks or face coverings are required in district buildings, regardless of vaccination status. Students and staff are exempt from wearing masks if they meet any of the following criteria: Deaf or hard of hearing; younger than 5 years old; have a medical/mental health condition or disability that would prevent a face covering; when involved in "high-intensity activities."

Grain Valley School District

Grandview School District

Hickman Mills School District

Independence School District

Kansas City Public Schools

Lee’s Summit School District

Lone Jack School District

Oak Grove School District

  • Masks are recommended at Oak Grove. The district will follow any mandate from the county, state or federal government as well as the a vote by the school board, so the students will be required to wear masks.

Raytown School District

Johnson County:
TheJohnson County Board of County Commissioners passed a mask mandate on Aug. 5 for kindergarten through sixth grade students and staff who work in those environments. The individual school district policies are listed below, but after the county's mandate begins, all K-6 grades will be required to mask.

Blue Valley School District

  • Masks will be required for all early childhood and kindergarten through 12th grade students, staff and visitors.

Gardner Edgerton School District 231

  • Students K-12 will be required to wear a mask beginning Aug. 28.

Olathe Public Schools

Shawnee Mission School District

Spring Hill Unified School District

  • The district will follow the Johnson County mandate and require all children, faculty, staff and visitors will in a elementary or middle school building to wear a mask. These means grades kindergarten through eighth grade will be required to wear masks.
  • The school board updated its policy on its mask medical exemption forms for elementary and middle school students, and parents are now allowed to sign off on the medical exemption form for mask wearing instead of needing a doctors signature.
  • Masks are highly encouraged but not required for high school students.

Unified School District No. 232

  • Mask are requiredindoors. Teachers will need to wear a mask when in close contact with students.

Platte County:

North Platte School District

Park Hill School District

Platte County School District

  • The district will require masks indoors for everyone 3 years or older when social distancing can't be maintained.

West Platte School District

Wyandotte County:
The Unified Government of Wyandotte County and Kansas City, Kansas, Board of Commissioners voted to reinstate the indoor mask mandate, but they left out of the mandate all county school districts and Bonner Springs and Edwardsville.

Bonner Springs/Edwardsville Unified School District

Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools

Piper Kansas City

Turner Unified School District

  • Masks are required for everyone inside school district buildings. The only flexibility will be for students participating in athletics, and students with medical exemptions signed by a doctor.

REMAINING MISSOURI DISTRICTS:

Bates County:

Adrian School District

Appleton School District

  • The district said it will “continue to seek guidance from the Centers for Disease Control, Missouri DHSS, and local, state, and national entities” regarding masks, and will then decide its policies. Their return policy states that the rules outlined will be revisited whenever necessary and at least every six months. Remote learning is an option in the district.
  • The last update on the return policy was April 15, according to their website.

Ballard School District

  • Masks are not required in the district. Absences from school due to COVID-19 will not count against the student.

Butler School District

Hume School District

Miami School District

  • Masking is based in phases in the district.
    • Phase one: low threat, students may wear masks
    • Phase two: increased threat, students are encouraged to wear masks while staff is required to do so
    • Phase three: students will experience a hybrid educational setting
    • Phase four: the building will shut down and the school will convert to online learning

Rich Hill School District

Buchanan County:

St. Joseph School District

Caldwell County:

Braymer School District

Hamilton School District

  • Masks will be optional, but the district will defer to mandates given out by the Caldwell County Health Department.

Cass County:

Archie School District

  • Masks arerecommended in the district but not required. The district will provide two cloth masks to each student. The district also said onits website that they may revert back to their rules from the previous school year if it is deemed necessary. Remote learning is an option in the district.

Belton School District

  • As of Aug. 12, masks are optional. The school board will review its decision at the Sept. 30 board meeting.

Drexel School District

  • The district has outlined their quarantine and contact tracing system here. Masks will be allowed but not required.

East Lynne District

  • Masks are welcome but not required, and the district will provide masks to anyone who wants one. Schools will also conduct daily screenings of students and staff.

Harrisonville Cass Schools

Midway School District

Pleasant Hill School District

  • Masks are optional but the district said they could be mandated by Cass County, the Cass County Health Department or the School Board, and which point masks would become required.

Raymore-Peculiar School District

Sherwood Cass School District

Strasburg C-3 School District

Clinton County:

Cameron School District

Clinton County School District (Plattsburg)

  • The school district will not require masks unless the Clinton County Health Department or other government agency makes it a requirement. The district has online learning options available. The last time the district updated their masking policy was June 1.

Lathrop School District

Johnson County (MO):

Chilhowee School District

Kingsville School District

  • Maskswill be optional, in general, but masks may be required during times of high transmission risk. The district said it would comply with directives from health departments and other government entities.

Knob Noster School District

  • Knob Noster is not requiring masks but said it would update guidelines in accordance with health department guidance. The district will provide a virtual learning option.

Leeton School District

  • Leeton school district has not mandated masks, but will follow mandates issued by government agencies. The district will provide virtual instruction options.

Warrensburg School District

Lafayette County:

Lafayette County School District

Lexington School District

Odessa R-VII School District

Sante Fe School District

Wellington School District

  • Masks will be worn when three feet distance can't be maintained at very limited times during the school day such as arrival, passing period and dismissal.

Ray County:

Orrick School District

Richmond School District

REMAINING KANSAS DISTRICTS:

Anderson County:

Unified School District 365

Atchison County:

Atchison Public Schools

USD 377 Atchison County Community Schools

  • Masks are currently optional, but the district said it was closely monitoring the spread of the delta variant of COVID-19 and may change its policy.

Doniphan County:

Doniphan West USD 111

Riverside USD 114

Troy Public Schools

Douglas County:
The Douglas County Commission and local health officer issued an indoor mask mandate for children ages 2 to 11 on Aug. 19, which includes in schools.

Baldwin City USD 348

Eudora Schools Kansas Unified School District no. 491

Lawrence Public Schools

Silver Lake Schools

Franklin County:

Central Heights USD

  • There is nomask mandate but unvaccinated students are encouraged to wear masks.

USD 287 West Franklin

Jefferson County:

Jefferson County North USD 339

Jefferson West School District

Perry-Lecompton USD 343

Valley Falls USD 338

Leavenworth County:

Basehor-Linwood Unified School District

Easton Unified School District 449

  • All students and staff are requiredto wear masks at the beginning of the school year. The board will review county and local COVID-19 numbers to loosen the mask restrictions at a later date.

Fort Leavenworth Unified School District

  • Masks are required for everyone except: students who submit proof of vaccination to the school nurse and staff who submit proof to HR. Children under the age of 2 and people with medical exemptions are also allowed to go maskless.

Lansing Unified School District

Leavenworth Unified School District

  • The district updated its policy to add a situational masking policy for all students. Students will be able to take masking breaks when social distancing can be achieved.

Tonganoxie Unified School District

Linn County:

Pleasanton USD 344

Miami County:

Louisburg Unified School District

Paola Unified School District

USD 367 Osawatomie Unified School District

Osage County:

Lyndon USD 421

Marais Des Cygnes Valley USD 456

Osage City USD 420

Santa Fe Trail USD 434

USD 454 Burlingame

Shawnee County:

Auburn-Washburn School District

Shawnee Heights Unified School District 450

Topeka Public Schools

Editor’s Note: To submit updated information, send an e-mail to realtime@kshb.com