For the first time in 724 days, New York City students and teachers stepped inside their school buildings Monday without having to wear a mask.
The end of the school mask mandate for staff and kids 5 and above marked a significant milestone in the city’s efforts to dial back educational pandemic restrictions that began when COVID-19 first shuttered schools in March 2020, Mayor Eric Adams said Monday.
“Having our children go to school without masks — these are all the symbolic and substantive things that we need to do,” Adams said. “I keep saying this over and over again: Our prosperity is going to be tied to symbolism and substance.”
