MILTON-FREEWATER — As Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced last week, masks will have to be worn by all students and staff in Oregon schools after all.

While her announcement came on July 29, the document governing the upcoming school year, didn’t come until Aug. 2.

Before, the state had announced it would issue recommendations that masks be required indoors at school, but the final decision would be left to the districts.

The Milton-Freewater and Athena-Weston school districts had decided not to require masks for summer programs or when school starts up in the fall.

Now that the decision has officially been made at that state level, leaders of both districts have responded.

“While this may not have been the direction that some in our community were hoping for, we continue to recognize the importance of getting students back to in-person school and returning to an environment that is safe and as normal as possible,” Milton-Freewater Superintendent Aaron Duff said in a statement.

“As far as the current rule, things will look similar to how we ended the ’20-21 school year, with students and staff wearing masks inside buildings whether fully vaccinated or not during school hours,” he said. “Efforts will be made to build schedules and opportunities for outside activities and/or mask breaks.”

Duff said his district will begin following the rule on Aug. 9.

“This will allow time for us to inform students, families and staff about this rule change,” he said.

Athena-Weston Superintendent Ann Vescio confirmed her district would follow the new rules as well.

“The district will continue to adapt and adjust to changing conditions and requirements while providing as much stability and as many options as we are able,” Vescio said in a statement. “I appreciate the patience, understanding and resilience of our students, families, staff and community as we navigate this pandemic together.”

Brown’s decision puts Oregon schools in line with guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as with Washington mandates from Gov. Jay Inslee.

Duff said he remains focused on the positive news of having students attend schools in-person.

“This (mask) change can be viewed as a setback, but we are looking forward to the start of the 2021-2022 school year,” he wrote. “We are celebrating that students will be in person, and we have the resources and experience to offer instruction to students who are not able to attend in person.”