FORT WAYNE, Ind. (ADAMS) – Students at Purdue’s Fort Wayne campus will be wearing their masks for a little while longer.
Last week, the school announced it had extended its ‘temporary’ mask requirement until the Thanksgiving break.
Purdue Fort Wayne says there’s no evidence to suggest that they should end the mask mandate right now. All students, faculty members, and university workers must wear masks while inside campus buildings, even if they’ve been vaccinated.
PFW leaders released the following:
Purdue University Fort Wayne has decided to extend its temporary requirement to wear face masks inside campus structures through the Thanksgiving break, which ends at midnight on Sunday, November 28. This protocol applies to students, staff, faculty, and all visitors—regardless of COVID-19 vaccination status. During its most recent review of COVID-19 data across Indiana and other factors, no evidence-based reason to suspend the current protocol was identified. The university is constantly monitoring local and state conditions and will revisit the mask requirement prior to the Thanksgiving break.
All employees—including faculty teaching in-person classes—must properly wear their face masks while indoors on campus. Individuals may remove masks when in a closed office or a walled personal workspace such as a cubicle, but should always wear a mask when around others, regardless of their vaccination status.
Patrons of on-campus dining are permitted to lower their masks for a reasonable amount of time to eat and drink. This limited exception does not permit individuals or groups to assemble unmasked for other activities in areas within or adjacent to campus dining locations. These expectations also apply to areas of the skybridge between Helmke Library and Walb Student Union, and the library itself.
The PFW Ready website serves as the hub for our ongoing response to COVID-19. Important information will also continue to be communicated through the Inside PFW (for faculty and staff) and Don Life (for students) newsletters.
