2021-2022 SCHOOL YEAR

• All students will be back for full-time, in-person instruction for the 2021-2022 school year.
• All students, educators, staff, and visitors will be required to wear face masks inside of school buildings, regardless of vaccination status, for the start of the 2021-2022 academic year.
• Parents or guardians will not be able to opt children out of in-person instruction as allowed for the 2020-2021 school year.

Indoor Mask Requirement - All students, educators, staff, and visitors will be required to wear face masks indoors for the start of the 2021-2022 school year. Effective Monday, August 9, 2021, masks are required in the indoor premises of all public, private, and parochial preschool, elementary, and secondary school buildings, with limited exceptions, outlined below.  This mandate is required as per Executive Order 251.

Exceptions to the mask requirement remain unchanged from the 2020-2021 school year, and include:

• When doing so would inhibit the individual's health, such as when the individual is exposed to extreme heat indoors;
• When the individual has trouble breathing, is unconscious, incapacitated, or otherwise unable to remove a face covering without assistance;
• When a student's documented medical condition or disability, as reflected in an Individualized Education Program (IEP) or Educational Plan pursuant to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, precludes use of a face covering;
• When the individual is under two (2) years of age;
• When an individual is engaged in an activity that cannot be performed while wearing a mask, such as eating and drinking or playing an instrument that would be obstructed by the face covering;
• When the individual is engaged in high-intensity aerobic or anerobic activity;
• When a student is participating in high-intensity physical activities during a physical education class in a well-ventilated location and able to maintain a physical distance of six feet from all other individuals; or
• When wearing a face covering creates an unsafe condition in which to operate equipment or execute a task.

As of May 17, 2021, New Jersey's travel advisory is no longer in effect.

The CDC, however, has recommendations for both vaccinated and unvaccinated travelers. Travelers leaving New Jersey should check with the travel destination and transportation carrier (i.e., airline, cruise ship, etc.) to see if there are additional health and safety protocols or requirements, such as proof of a negative COVID-19 test within days of departure. Travelers should also check with their employers, schools, and other entities that may have quarantine policies for individuals returning from travel.