SCCC Requiring Masks to Start Fall Semester Regardless of Vaccination Status

BY PHILLIP LEE

LIBERAL, Kan. – Seward County Community College will require masks on campus, starting on Monday, August 9. All students, staff, faculty and visitors – vaccinated or unvaccinated – will be required to wear masks while inside campus facilities.The increase in positive COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations in the area due to the new delta variant – in the surrounding areas and around the country – led to the decision of the mask mandate.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that all individuals, regardless of vaccination status, wear masks in areas of high spread. Seward County is currently listed as one of those areas.

“The decision was a difficult one, but we wanted to proceed with caution,” said Dennis Sander, SCCC interim president and vice president of finance and operations. “Throughout the pandemic, we have put the safety of our campus population first, even if it means (the inconvenience of) mask mandates and social distancing.”

Dorm residents are required to show either proof of vaccination or a negative COVID-19 test result received within the 72 hours before they move in. While masks are not required inside the dorms, all residents are required to follow mask protocols on the main campus (including the student union).

SCCC will reevaluate the mask requirement after September and noted it could be lifted if positive cases and hospitalization rates decrease.

For more information, go to scccnews.com and click on the COVID-19 toolkit tab.