Amid COVID surge, masks required for Cape Girardeau students

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (AP) — With COVID-19 cases surging in southeast Missouri, the region’s largest public school district is now requiring face coverings. The Southeast Missourian reports that the Cape Girardeau School Board voted Tuesday to require masks. Classes began Aug. 25 and already, eight of the district’s 10 schools have seen average attendance dip to 90% or below — the level triggering the mask mandate. Superintendent Neil Glass says 306 students have been quarantined as of Tuesday night, and 28 students currently have COVID-19. Information from the state health department shows that cases and hospitalizations have risen dramatically in southeast Missouri over the past few weeks.