Catholic schools in Archdiocese of Baltimore moving to optional masking where permitted

Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Baltimore will adopt an optional mask policy effective Feb. 14 in most jurisdictions that do not mandate masks in schools.

Bishop Walsh School in Cumberland will transition to a mask-optional policy Feb. 28 to allow additional time for the COVID-19 transmission rate in Allegany County to decrease.

The new policy replaces a previous requirement that masks be worn in all Catholic schools.

James Sellinger, archdiocesan chancellor of Catholic schools, and Dr. Donna Hargens, superintendent of Catholic schools, announced the policy shift in a Feb. 11 letter.

In crafting the updated policy, the leaders said they consulted closely with governmental and public health advisors, including Dr. Robert Redfield, the former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, who now serves as senior public health advisor to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan. Redfield is a parishioner of the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen in Homeland.

“This policy change comes at a time when our region is witnessing a significant decline in COVID transmission rates from the Omicron variant that emerged in November and resulted in the highest daily case rate since the beginning of the pandemic,” Sellinger and Hargens wrote.

“The movement to parental choice masking is about a parent’s personal accountability and responsibility for the health and wellbeing of their children,” they wrote.

Sellinger told the Catholic Review that independent Catholic schools such as Calvert Hall College High School, St. Frances Academy and Notre Dame Preparatory School will make their own masking policies for their school communities. 

Sellinger and Hargens said anyone who wants to wear a mask may continue to do so, “and is fully supported in their decision and should be treated with respect.”

According to the Maryland state government, there were more than 3,400 intensive care and acute hospital beds in use for COVID-19 cases Jan. 10. That number had declined to 913 as of Feb. 10.

The Archdiocese of Baltimore joins the Diocese of Arlington, Va.; the Archdiocese of Chicago; the Archdiocese of Boston; the Diocese of Baton Rouge, La.; and several other Catholic school systems across the country that have already lifted or plan to lift mandated mask policies in all or parts of their dioceses.

In a Feb. 11 interview with the Catholic Review, Sellinger said that with the precipitous drop in the number of COVID-19 cases, the time is right to make masking a matter of parental choice. He noted that Maryland’s positivity rate of 4.88 percent is among the lowest in the country.  

“We’re not taking our foot off the pedal,” he said. “We are continuing to remain vigilant about sanitation, testing and caseloads in the classroom. We’ve been very successful in managing through the pandemic over the last 18 months, partnering with our families.”

In their letter, Sellinger and Hargens said Catholic schools will continue to provide rapid antigen testing and surveillance testing to “confirm symptomatic and identify asymptomatic cases that might contribute to an outbreak within a school community.

“If a child is exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19, RSV or influenza, they should remain home to avoid exposing the school community to illness,” Sellinger and Hargens wrote.

All Catholic schools “will adhere to CDC guidance relative to individuals who test positive for COVID-19 or who have been identified as a close contact by the health department or other health officials,” they said. “Students who are vaccinated and identified as a close contact are not required to quarantine; however, they must wear a mask while in school for 10 days following the date of exposure.”

The leaders noted that all students and staff are required to wear masks while riding public transportation, including school buses and vans. School buses are subject to a January 2021 CDC requirement that masks be worn on public transportation.

Sellinger and Hargens said that while COVID-19 vaccinations are not mandated in Catholic schools, they encourage vaccinations for all eligible students and staff “to reduce the potential for serious illness and hospitalization.”

Baltimore Archbishop William E. Lori, who has received his vaccinations, has repeatedly noted that ethicists from the Vatican and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops found it morally upright to take the available COVID-19 vaccinations. More than a year ago, he called for people throughout the Archdiocese of Baltimore to get vaccinated as “an act of charity and love.”

In a Feb. 10 letter, Gov. Hogan called on the Maryland State Board of Education to rescind its school masking policy in light of improving conditions. 

“A growing number of medical professionals, parents and bipartisan state officials throughout the nation are calling for an end to school mask requirements,” Hogan wrote. “In light of dramatic improvements to our health metrics and the widespread availability of vaccines, I am calling on you to take action to rescind this policy.”

Email George Matysek at gmatysek@CatholicReview.org

Note: This story was updated at 3:15 p.m. on Feb. 11 to add updated information regarding Bishop Walsh School in Cumberland.

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