Revised Mask Guidance and COVID Rates Declining - February 11, 2022

Friday, February 11, 2022

Dear Families,

This week, Governor Newsom announced that universal masking will no longer be required for indoor public places beginning February 16th due to the significant decline in Omicron cases. However, for the time being, the state will continue to require masking indoors while on school campuses. Masking outdoors on school campuses is not required, but is recommended. You can read the updated guidance here. The state also issued revised guidance for mega-events which can be found here.

While California has not yet identified a specific date for easing school-based masking requirements and other protocols, the CDPH said in a statement on February 7 that “the state is continuing to work with education, public health and community leaders to update masking requirements at schools to adapt to changing conditions and ensure the safety of kids, teachers, and staff” and that additional adjustments to the state's policies will be shared soon. The timeline for the changes to the statewide mask mandate for schools could come as early as Monday. As always, we will keep you updated as soon as we have additional details.

Students, staff, and families have done an excellent job at complying with state health guidelines, which has surely contributed to the decline in COVID-19 cases across GGUSD. After returning from winter recess, cases peaked with 1,058 student cases the week of January 17. Last week, student cases were at 194, reflecting an 82% decline. Similarly, staff cases peaked at 144 the week of January 10th but last week dropped to 39, showing a 73% decline. Our numbers reflect what health experts have asserted: that school is the best and safest place for students to learn. Our efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are working!

As a reminder, health and safety information regarding COVID-19 is posted on our website. Here are some of the most-used resources.

COVID-19 Dashboard
Close Contact Guide
COVID-19 Communication from GGUSD
Student Symptom Decision Tree
Testing Information

Thank you to our families for doing your part to keep our school communities safe.