by Sarah Craighead Dedmon

Area school boards last week voted against making indoor masking mandatory when schools resume instruction next month. Masking will remain mandatory on all school transportation following a federal requirement.

Schools in Machias, Machiasport, East Machias, Whiting, Cutler, Jonesboro, and Wesley announced their decision after the U.S. Center for Disease Control released guidance recommending universal indoor masking for all people age 2 and older, a position the CDC attributes to the highly contagious Delta variant of COVID-19.