From the Archdiocese of St. Louis: 

Archdiocesan Parishes: 

The mask mandate now only applies to all parish faithful who have not received a vaccination against the COVID-19 virus. Following the CDC guidance issued (Friday), capacity restrictions and social-distancing measures at archdiocesan parishes will be determined by the parish pastor based on the size and construct of the parish, and what he deems is needed to provide for the safest possible environment. These changes in guidance are effective immediately; however, the timeline for implementation in each parish will be determined by the pastor based on specific needs to make a safe and appropriate transition. 

Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski leaves in place the dispensation for Sunday Mass at this time, but will be re-evaluating the need for the dispensation in the coming weeks. 

Archdiocesan Schools: 

Archdiocesan schools will continue the mitigation strategies they have had in place that have led to a successful full year of in-person learning. These guidelines, created in cooperation with local health departments, remain in place for the last two weeks of school. This includes all end-of-year activities. 

Maintaining the schools’ current mask measures is being encouraged by local health officials supporting our school nurses, who say that masks greatly reduce the impact of quarantine requirements when there is a close contact of a COVID-19 positive case in the school setting. The archdiocesan Office of Catholic Education and Formation will review this new guidance as they plan for summer school. We will communicate any changes to staff, students and families as soon as possible. In addition, new guidance will be shared over the summer regarding the opening of the 2021-2022 school year. 

Because the guidelines addressing church and school are different, and in order to promote consistency between the two as much as we can, the following will be in effect through the end of the school year (May 28*):

• In church, masks should be worn by those who are not fully vaccinated, and we will continue to promote social distancing. Those who have been fully vaccinated do not need to wear masks.
• In school, masks should be worn by everyone (because our students and a few of our staff are not fully vaccinated) and we will continue to promote social distancing.

That means teachers and students will continue to wear masks and maintain social distancing in school and church through the end of the school year. That also means, for the school and its staff, everything remains the same as we have already planned. We will continue to re-evaluate our protocol as we continue to receive additional guidance from the CDC, the St. Louis County Department of Public Health and the Archdiocese of St. Louis.