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Mask opt-out rules begin Monday for Palm Beach County public schools

Emma Orell raises her hand in fourth grade class at iPrep Academy on the first day of school, Monday, Aug. 23, 2021, in Miami. Schools in Miami-Dade County opened Monday with a strict mask mandate to guard against coronavirus infections. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)
Lynne Sladky
/
AP
Emma Orell raises her hand in fourth grade class at iPrep Academy on the first day of school, Monday, Aug. 23, 2021, in Miami. Schools in Miami-Dade County opened Monday with a strict mask mandate to guard against coronavirus infections. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Students in Palm Beach County can go to school with or without masks depending on their parents’ wishes starting this Monday, according to the school district.

The move came after a ruling Friday by Division of Administrative Hearings Deputy Chief Judge Brian A. Newman where he decided a group of school districts failed to prove that the Florida Health Department’s emergency rule, which allows parents to opt their child out of quarantining or wearing a mask, illegally overstepped its legislative authority.

In a letter, the school district still strongly encouraged children to wear a facial covering while indoors. However, it directed parents wanting an opt-out to send in a signed note to their student’s first-period teacher.

Read more from our news partner at The South Florida Sun Sentinel.

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