Last week, Governor Walz surprised Minnesota by rolling back mask mandates. However, it's going to take a little longer before the Pine City School District will fully go back to normal.
Pine City Superintendent Dr. Curt Tryggestad said he was surprised like everyone else when the order came.
"I'll be honest, most of us didn't know this was coming. We were surprised with everyone else at the rollback of the mask mandate."
The district had a back and forth with the Minnesota Department of Education and Department of Health to get better context following the announcement. It was determined that schools still have to adhere to the Safe Learning Plan outlined by the MDE.
"This morning and yesterday morning, kids and staff have their masks on," Tryggestad told WCMP. "For us, it is kind of business as usual."
The Safe Learning Plan ends on the district’s last day of in-person classes.
Dr. Tryggestad says he’s not sure if the fall of 2021 will look like it did pre-pandemic for Pine City Schools. Personally, he thinks that would hinge on student vaccinations, but that will be a State decision.
The FDA recently approved the use of the Pfizer vaccine for children ages 12-15.
