Dear Purple Eagle Families,
I hope you all are enjoying the mid-winter break. I want to take this opportunity to provide another update on the mask mandate for our schools as we anticipate more announcements coming soon.
Earlier this month, Governor Kathy Hochul stated she will reconsider the current mask mandate in schools after evaluating pandemic trends following the February recess. We have continued to see COVID-19 transmission numbers decrease over the past few weeks in our county and across the state. If the governor lifts the mandate for schools, Albion Central School District will follow state policy and make masks optional for our students and staff. As soon as we have more information on this issue, we will communicate it directly to you.
I continue to meet with our local health department officials on a weekly basis to ensure we are adhering to state guidelines and are doing our best to keep our students safe and healthy. While all local superintendents notified the governor that we are in favor of local control of mask mandates, we are under the jurisdiction of the New York State Education Department and have to adhere to their directives.
As always, I appreciate your patience and understanding as we navigate these unusual and ever-changing times. I hope that we can continue to cooperate to keep the health and safety of our students our number one priority.
Have a great rest of this mid-winter break. We all look forward to having students back on campus as we make the transition into spring.
Mickey Edwards
Superintendent of Schools