Colorado students, fully vaccinated or otherwise, won’t be required to wear masks in class during the new school year under a revised coronavirus public health order released earlier this week.

The new order also relaxed rules that closed schools last year amid outbreaks. In addition to ending the requirement that anyone not fully vaccinated be masked, the revised order also exempts school districts from following the state’s outbreak guidance. It’s those outbreaks that had driven schools to shift in and out of hybrid learning.

The change comes as COVID-19 cases in Colorado ebb, running significantly below nearly any other moment in the pandemic. Younger Coloradans, down to the age of 12, are eligible to be vaccinated, and approval for younger ages is expected later this year. Though outbreaks spiked as schools returned to in-person classes this winter and spring, districts largely stayed open, which Gov. Jared Polis had supported.

On Wednesday, the same day that the order was released, five of the seven members of the state Board of Education released a letter urging Polis to use “little to no state-level regulation of in-person learning” for the coming 2021-22 academic year.

“As we enter into the recovery phase of the pandemic, it is paramount for us to prioritize both academic progress and well-being of students who experienced disruptions in their learning opportunities last year,” the board members wrote, according to a Wednesday press release. ” … With COVID transmission rates at a much less dangerous level, we believe it is safe to return to our normal operating practice in Colorado of giving superintendents and local boards the authority to make sound decisions about instruction and school procedures.”

The level of transmission that occurs within schools has long been controversial. Though it’s widely believed to be lower than in the general public, disagreement has arisen, as supporters of public health measures have argued that the low transmission rate can be attributed to mask wearing and other efforts.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues to recommend “consistent use of prevention strategies, including universal and correct use of masks and physical distancing” to keep learning in person.

That guidance from the CDC was last updated May 15. 

In a statement, Amie Baca-Oehlert, the president of the Colorado Education Association, wrote that her organization has “advocated for mitigation controls that help reduce the spread of COVID-19” and that “it is our steadfast belief that the best way to educate students is through in-person instruction, but that must be done in the safest way possible.”

In a separate statement, Jessica Bralish, the state Department of Public Health and Environment’s spokeswoman, said that officials “will continue to work closely with the Colorado Department of Education, Local Public Health Agencies, and stakeholders as we prepare for the 21-22 school year and prioritize strategies to keep schools safe and uninterrupted in the fall.”

The state’s mask order has been progressively whittled down over the past three months, as vaccinations have improved and transmission has slowed. Denver, for instance, released its own new order this week that stuck to the state’s line.

“Face coverings are no longer required in Denver in any setting for children between the ages of three and 11,” the city wrote on its website. “Per the state Order, face coverings are no longer required for unvaccinated people 12 and older in schools or Colorado Division of Motor Vehicle offices.”

In Denver and statewide, masks are still required for partially or unvaccinated staffers, patients or residents in a handful of limited settings, including homeless shelters, correctional facilities and health care settings.

The order eased reporting requirements for hospitals, which no longer have to report new hospitalizations and their capacity levels daily. The facilities now need to report that data from Monday to Friday.