Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh to require masks in school

Masks will be required for the start of the school year at all schools within the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh.

The mask mandate applies to all students, faculty and staff, regardless of vaccination status — unless a medical or developmental condition prevents an individual from wearing a mask, the diocese announced Tuesday.

“Although we had hoped to be in a position to allow optional masking, that is not possible at this point in time,” Michelle Peduto, director of Catholic schools, wrote in a letter to students, families, teachers and staff Tuesday. “The protocols for quarantining in an optional-mask environment would significantly compromise our ability to provide in-person instruction. We must evaluate how the first month of classroom instruction impacts covid numbers for students of all ages.”

The mask policy will be re-evaluated in late September. The policies may change based on updated federal, state or county guidance.

The Diocese of Greensburg highly recommends that students wear masks but is not requiring them to be worn at this time.

“As we did last year, our schools will provide in-person instruction for students Pre-K through 12 and will operate in accordance with prevailing covid mitigation orders,” Maureen Marsteller, superintendent of Catholic Schools for the diocese, wrote to families last week. “… Rest assured that the diocesan schools will remain aware of all updates to the safety recommendations provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Education and will be prepared to quickly respond to any changes in mandates by the government to ensure the health and safety of the students in our care.”

During the 2020-2021 academic year, schools within the Pittsburgh diocese also maintained in-person instruction, though some grades or schools had to temporarily close to prevent the spread of covid-19.

“Parents, teachers, staff and students demonstrated extraordinary resilience, faith and courage as we met our goals for keeping students, faculty and staff safe and for keeping students physically present in school,” Peduto said. “Our intent is to navigate the covid situation this year as well as we did last year.”

The diocese aims to keep students and staff safe while offering “five-day-a-week in-person instruction,” she said.

The diocese crafted its covid-19 policies based on guidelines from county, state and federal public health agencies, as well as counsel from local pediatric and infectious disease physicians.

According to the diocesan policies, masks will be required inside all school buildings for anyone age 2 or older. Frequent mask breaks will be provided, ideally outside.

Masks will also be required on buses and public transportation.

Classrooms and lunchrooms will be configured to encourage social distancing “in the least restrictive manner possible, while maintaining a self environment,” the diocese said.

The schools will continue to adhere to cleaning and disinfecting protocols, keep classrooms properly ventilated and conduct activities outside whenever possible.

Positive covid-19 cases will be reported to appropriate health departments, and the diocese will follow their guidelines regarding quarantining.

“The mission of our Catholic schools is to provide an environment where your children, God’s children, can encounter Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior each day,” Peduto said. “We live that mission by loving God above all things and loving our neighbor above ourselves. It is our belief that this policy statement best demonstrates both.”

School districts throughout the region have split on whether to require masks for students or leave the choice of whether or not to don a mask up to individual students and their parents.

Masks are optional at Norwin, where elementary students may be split into separate classes depending on their masking preferences. Parents also have the option to choose whether to send their child to school with a mask or without one at Penn-Trafford, Highlands and Freeport Area school districts.

North Allegheny School District on Monday reversed a policy that would have allowed parents to decide whether to have their children mask up in schools, as district officials decided to implement a mask requirement. Pine-Richland is also requiring masks for all students and staff to start the year, along with New Kensington-Arnold. Fox Chapel Area’s school board approved a universal masking requirement, despite strong opposition from some parents.