Mask mandates face conflicting enforcement in Boston public and Catholic schools after Gov. Charlie Baker’s administration declared that masks will no longer be mandated in public schools in Massachusetts, according to a news conference held by the Baker administration and the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education earlier this month. 

On Feb. 9, Baker announced the statewide mask mandate for K-12 schools will be lifted Feb. 28. Local school districts must individually decide if they want to continue mask mandates in their schools depending on factors like vaccination rates and feedback from families.

However, the Baker administration disclosed that masks will still be required for specific situations. For instance, if a student tests positive for COVID-19, they must quarantine at home for five days and wear a mask the following five days they attend school. Students must also continue to wear masks on school buses because public transportation is under the jurisdiction of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Despite Baker announcing his decision to lift mask mandates in schools, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu announced that masks will still be required for Boston public schools beyond Feb. 28. The decision to lift the school mask mandates, Wu said, will be based on daily hospitalization trends, intensive care unit capacities and community positivity rates.

Boston Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Casselius addressed the issue Feb. 15 during a school committee meeting. Casselius reminded the school district that mask mandates are being taken seriously, saying that “masking has been one of the most important aspects of our health and safety in schools.” The Boston Public School Committee presented a unified front with Wu’s administration on K-12 school mask mandates both right now and in the future.

“We will monitor data and trends and communicate any changes to our masking policy in consultation with the Boston Public Health Commission, our families and staff,” Casselius said.

Wu’s decision to extend the mask mandate for Boston public schools not only affects the students, but the educators as well. Wu came to an agreement with the Boston Teachers Union, or BTU, Feb. 10 that she will ease the vaccination mandate for teachers and other workers within the education field. Changes to the vaccination mandate allowed unvaccinated teachers to work during periods of low virus transmission. During this time, they must also get tested for COVID-19 twice a week. However, when Boston is experiencing high virus transmission periods, unvaccinated teachers will have to take unpaid leave. 

The BTU released a statement in regards to the continuous mask mandate, writing, “while the decision to uphold the mask mandate is ultimately up to the district, we continue to encourage mask wearing in schools until the vaccination rate for students is significantly higher.” 

Boston does have one of the highest vaccination rates in children ages 5-11, in comparison to other Vaccine Equity Initiative cities in Massachusetts.In the three months since Pfizer’s vaccine was approved for that age range, Massachusetts lawmakers have run an outreach campaign aimed at 20 cities and towns that were disproportionately affected by the pandemic. 

The most recent statistics show that 36% of children ages 5-11 are vaccinated in Boston. Alongside students, the majority of educators in Boston are vaccinated — BTU reports that 99% of all teachers are vaccinated or have received an exemption. 

“The union and the Mayor are in agreement that masks be worn in school,” said Michael Maguire, a co-editor for BTU, as well as a Boston Union teacher. Maguire is not a spokesperson for BTU.

Although BTU agreed with Wu on the continuation of mask mandates, there still seems to be some division between Boston teachers. 

“From what I observe, there is little resistance to the mask mandates,” Maguire said. 

Even though there might be conflict within Boston Public Schools, students and school faculty, “will likely wear masks until the end of the school year.” 

While Boston Public Schools will continue their mask mandates, Boston Catholic schools in Boston chose to remove their mask mandates Feb. 9.

“The Archdiocese of Boston is eliminating all school masking mandates on behalf of all Archdiocesan Parochial schools and Archdiocesan-related Catholic schools,” said Thomas Caroll, Archdiocese of Boston Catholic Schools superintendent in a statement to the school community. 

These changes will go into place Feb. 28 alongside Baker’s mask requirement lift.  

In addition to lifting mask requirements in Catholic schools, patrons attending public masses at public Boston Catholic churches will follow the same policies. Private Boston Catholic churches can address their mask policies at their discretion. 

“We will support the Archdiocese decision on these topics,” said Joanne Gallagher, communications director for the Sisters of Saint Joseph of Boston. “I’m mindful that the Archdiocese wants to keep everyone safe and will make decisions that will benefit everyone going forward.” 

Gallagher said all parties involved in the decision are trying their best to play their part and stay safe. 

“I can’t speak for the schools, but I wouldn’t even begin to speculate that they’d make a poor decision,” Gallagher said. “They really care about the students and the faculty. It’s up to the schools to decide, they’ve been very vigilant.” 

Boston Public Schools is not the only district that is continuing the mask mandate beyond  Feb. 28. Chelsea, Cambridge, Somerville, Springfield, Shrewsbury, North Hampton districts as well as Mohawk Trail Regional High School have announced their intent to maintain a mask mandate.

While a few are sticking with Boston, the majority of school districts throughout the state have publicly announced that they will follow Baker’s lead in lifting the mask mandates, including Worcester, Quincy, Danvers, Hudson and Woburn.

Wu has not announced a possible future date for when Boston Public Schools will be lifting its mask mandate.