Denver Public Schools will require universal masking indoors for the coming school year, the new superintendent told staff Tuesday, a district source confirmed.

The mandate orders visitors, staff and students to wear masks indoors beginning Aug. 9, according to a message sent to district leaders. Charter schools will be allowed to make their own policies, the source said.

District spokesman Will Jones confirmed the news in a statement early Tuesday afternoon.

In addition to masking, the district will require self monitoring symptoms; building occupants maintain distance when possible; meet virtually when possible and wear masks when in person; and practicing good hygiene, according to a document detailing the strategies obtained by the Gazette.

Alex Marrero, the district’s new superintendent, said in a message to school leaders that the decision to require masks “was made in consultation with and has the support of the (Denver Department of Public Health and Environment),” and aligns with recommendations from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.”

“Over the past weeks there has been an increase in COVID rates in our community and in many areas across the state and country,” he wrote. “As a result, in accordance with the guidance of our health experts, we are returning to strong masking requirements in all DPS buildings.”

The news comes just 24 hours after Denver Mayor Michael Hancock announced that all school staff in the county will be required to be vaccinated by the end of next month. It also comes on the heels of repeated shifts in masking guidance, both from the state and federal governments. 

On July 20, the state “strongly” recommended that districts institute “layers” of infection control. Officials stopped short of requiring or endorsing one specific measure. But 10 days later, updated state guidance recommended that districts either require their unvaccinated staff to wear masks or mandate everyone in the buildings – inoculated or otherwise – don face coverings.

A similar shift has come at the federal level. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended last week that all residents wear masks in certain areas with high spread, including Denver and most Colorado counties. The agency had also recommends masks in schools, as does the American Academy of Pediatrics. 

Some health experts had warned of the threat facing schools this fall,  including the surging delta variant, which is more transmissible and more severe than other strains.

“School re-opening will bring more mixing,” Jon Samet, the dean of the Colorado School of Public Health said last month, adding that “requiring masks per the (American Academy of Pediatrics) is a ‘no-regrets’ strategy. Probably helps some and is without harm – setting aside the politicization of masks.”

Another public health expert, also speaking last month, agreed.

“Given the large numbers of unvaccinated school children (including all kids under 12 years), I believe that a universal mask-wearing policy in schools will be a very beneficial and low-cost strategy to reduce transmission,” said Glen Mays, also of the Colorado School of Public Health. “I anticipate that many school districts will need to consider such a policy this fall, despite the fact that mask requirements remain unpopular among some groups.”