On Friday, February 25th, Wake County’s mask mandate was lifted on Wake Forest and many of its surrounding areas. Businesses will still be allowed to enforce mask mandates individually at their discretion.

Governor Roy Cooper said that as cases are falling rapidly across the state, it is alright for low risk areas, including public schools, to wear masks optionally. However, Wake County ended its mask mandate on Friday, and Cooper said that for public schools, it was best to wait another few weeks to allow individuals to get vaccinated, if they wish. The Governor then said that schools would be allowed to make masks optional starting March 7th.

In lieu of this announcement, on February 22nd, the Wake County public school board met to discuss the policy of masks in Wake County schools. It was decided that on March 7th, 2022, Wake County students will no longer be required to wear masks inside the school building. This includes during the school day and for afterschool activities including sports, band, and theater.

Wake County as a whole will keep their mask mandates as optional, so long as the positivity rate is as low as 5% or 10%, and cases aren’t spiking. With proper precautions being taken, the new mandate may be a return to pre-COVID normalcy.

As of right now, the CDC still advises vaccinated individuals to quarantine for 5 days if they test positive, with additional quarantine after for another 5 days.