PORTLAND, Ore. — Starting March 1, masks will become optional for Portland Public Schools while outdoors on district campuses, such as when students are on recess and lunch.
The state's largest district, with more than 47,000 enrolled students, is preparing to make changes to its COVID protocols as COVID cases decline in Multnomah County.
Apart from outdoor masking becoming optional, the district said it plans to bring back school dances and other in-person school events as well as overnight field trips starting on March 1.
The district has yet to make any decisions on whether it will lift the indoor mask requirement come March 31, when state leaders have signaled Oregon's mask mandate will end for indoor public places and K-12 schools. Oregon could end the requirement before then if COVID trends and hospitalizations decline at a faster rate than experts have forecasted.
After March 31, Oregon school districts would be making their own individual decisions on whether to require masks, the state has said.
"We expect to seek guidance from our public health experts, and look forward to collaborating with Multnomah County’s Health Department to determine what is best for our local community," said Ryan Vandehey, a spokesperson for Portland Public Schools.
Some districts have already announced plans to ease up on masking.
Newberg Public Schools said earlier this week it will end its indoor mask mandate in school buildings on April 1. In a post on its website, the district wrote that masks will be "strongly recommended, but not required, in our school buildings."
Amity School District superintendent Jeff Clark told KGW his district will lift mask requirements as soon as the state mandate ends. He said he would make masks optional sooner if he could, citing low case numbers and hospitalizations in his district population.
The Yamhill Carlton School District and Canby School District also announced in letters to parents that they would make masks optional after March 31.
The Sheridan and Willamina school districts both said they were still working on the topic or gathering feedback, with plans to be announced in the coming weeks.
KGW reporter Galen Ettlin contributed to this report.