Montgomery County Public Schools staff can expect to receive access to new KN95 face masks every week starting on Monday.
Maryland’s largest public school system told WTOP that all 24,589 staff members will be offered one of the masks. This included administrators, teachers, bus drivers and custodians.
Chris Cram, a spokesperson for the school system, confirmed that employees can expect access to a fresh mask with enough supplies to last until roughly mid-March.
The mask order, a total of roughly 250,000 KN95s, was financed using the congressionally-approved Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund. Cram has since confirmed that the district has received “just about all” of their quarter-million mask order.
Cram also told WTOP that, given the number of people staffing Montgomery County schools, people shouldn’t expect to immediately see masks for all employees on Monday.
“It won’t be everyone receiving one Monday morning,” Cram said, ” We will begin on Monday and go throughout the week.”
Officials noted that the more than 209 schools, over 100 offices and several warehouses, plans remain to get trucks and mask supplies to supervisors on Monday morning. For some staff, this translates to an immediate mask-in-hand, for others it may take a day or two.
The school system said that, as far as supply chain issues go, all masks will be up-to-code and no problems arose. Officials remained unconcerned ahead of the return to work on Jan. 3.
Masks for students and staff have been made available at all schools and locations since the beginning of the school year, according to school system officials. Schools continue to staff “welcome stations” and follow COVID-19 protocols as outlined.
WTOP’s Kate Ryan and Matt Small contributed to this report.
