Boise State, other public universities in Idaho mandate masks indoors on campus
Public four-year research universities in Idaho will require masks indoors for everyone as students and staff return to campus in the next couple of weeks.
The mandates comes as COVID-19 cases have been rising steeply in Idaho and public health officials have been warning about the spread of the more transmissible delta variant.
Starting Thursday, masks will be required in “indoor public spaces owned or controlled by the university as well as in crowded outdoor spaces,” according to an email from Boise State President Marlene Tromp and other members of the school’s administration.
The University of Idaho and Idaho State University also updated their websites to reflect the new masking requirements.
“Although we hoped that this year would look more like pre-pandemic years, sharp increases in Delta variant COVID infections are concerning,” the Boise State email reads. “The Delta variant is highly contagious — CDC projects that it may cause more than twice as many infections as earlier variants.”
The decision was made after consulting with the State Board of Education and the other four-year public universities in Idaho.
It also comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention updated its guidance recently to recommend “universal indoor masking for all teachers, staff, students and visitors to schools, regardless of vaccination status,” and masking for fully vaccinated people in “areas of substantial or high transmission.”
Immediately after the CDC update, universities including Boise State and U of I put out new guidance strongly encouraging people to wear masks indoors, but stopped short of a mandate at the time.
Since then, cases in Idaho and across the country have continued to rise.
For months, universities across Idaho have been encouraging people to get vaccinated before returning to campus, calling it one of the key tools to slowing the spread of the virus and allowing for more normal school settings.
“Although this will help mitigate the spread of the Delta variant, the safest and most effective way to protect yourself, your friends and loved ones, as well as our community, is to get vaccinated,” according to the Boise State email.
“COVID vaccines are proven to significantly reduce your chances of getting infected, and if you are, to reduce the likelihood that you’ll become seriously ill.”
This story was originally published August 11, 2021 at 3:47 PM.
