Starting Wednesday, masks are optional at all Dare County schools.
The Board of Education voted 6-1 at its Tuesday meeting to drop face-covering requirements, effective Feb. 9.
Face coverings are still required on all school buses or other school transportation due to state and federal mandates.
Masks in schools has been a hot-button issue across the nation as the COVID-19 pandemic enters its second year. In October, state health officials said they no longer recommended universal masking in schools. But as the omicron variant raged across the state and country, 85 out of North Carolina’s 115 school districts continued or reinstated mask mandates, the News & Observer reported.
The Dare Board of Education voted in September to continue requiring face coverings as the school year began.