Beginning Tuesday, October 26th masks will be optional at all Cabarrus County Schools. The Cabarrus County Board of Education voted 4-3 Monday in favor of the change. The decision was based on current COVID-19 metrics-based guidelines created by the district’s task force for COVID-19. They consider numbers in 4 categories. If the numbers fall to “red” in 2 of those categories they have the option to move back to a mask mandate. Numbers that fall in the “green” or “yellow” are considered ok.

Cabarrus County joins Union, Lincoln, and Avery County who also have a mask optional policy. North Carolina legislation requires school districts to review their mask policies each month. Under these requirements, the current COVID numbers can be considered in the decision-making process. Do you anticipate other local school districts making masks optional following the lead of Cabarrus County Schools?