For the first time since the start of the pandemic, students in the Detroit district may soon be able to go to school without having to wear a mask, though some say they’ll continue to play it safe.

A student group is calling for the Detroit school district to remove its dress code policy from the student code of conduct to prevent what they call unfair and unequal enforcement.

Detroit Superintendent Nikolai Vitti says he likely won’t seek to terminate unvaccinated employees, changing his position on enforcing the school district’s staff vaccine policy.

The Detroit school district will start a series of community meetings next month to discuss its proposals to improve its school facilities using $700 million in COVID relief money. 

The state health department has given the Detroit school district the OK to administer the COVID vaccine in schools, part of an effort to raise the immunization rate among the city’s school-age children.

The money would come from one-time federal COVID relief funds, but is only a fraction of the estimated $2.1 billion needed for building issues in the district.

The Detroit school board is looking to increase the amount of money it receives for attending meetings and conducting other board business.

Detroit district students and educators likely won’t return to in-person learning until the end of January, Superintendent Nikolai Vitti said during a school board meeting Tuesday.

Chronic absenteeism rose significantly for Detroit district students last year as families continued to deal with financial, logistical, and health ramifications of the COVID pandemic.

The Detroit school district surprised families with news Thursday afternoon that all schools will be closed Friday.