Breaking News…
Gov. Bill Lee issued a new executive order this afternoon (Monday, August 16, 2021) allowing parents to opt out of mask should they so desire. This order paves the way for Lakeland parents to choose if their student will wear a mask to school.
Update at 5:01pm…
Dr. Ted Horrell, Superintendent of Lakeland School System emailed the following information this afternoon at 5pm:
“We are aware of Governor Bill Lee’s Executive Order #84 which goes into effect immediately and gives parents the right to opt out of the Shelby County Health Department’s mask mandate. Therefore, effective immediately, parents may opt out of the mask mandate currently in effect by emailing their child’s school-based teachers and/or administrators. For the purposes of contact tracing and determining exclusions from school for exposure to Covid-positive individuals, we will continue to apply the standard of a “close contact” being closer than three feet for more than 15 minutes for students who are masked, and closer than six feet for more than 15 minutes for those who are unmasked.
We are grateful for your cooperation and understanding as we try to navigate the various orders that impact our schools.”
The order can be seen below.
