Wichita State President: Staff, students and visitors may have to wear masks indoors

Wichita State staff, students and visitors may be required to wear masks indoors on campus beginning Monday, university president Richard Muma said Thursday.

On Wednesday, Gov. Laura Kelly said state employees and visitors to state buildings in counties with high and substantial transmission of COVID-19 would be required to wear a mask. That would apply to most counties in the state. Muma tweeted Thursday that the announcement may apply to Wichita State.

“We believe this new mandate applies to all WSU employees, students and campus visitors,” he said. “But we are awaiting confirmation. We will communicate that information to the campus community once we know more. I feel confident that we can handle this change as we’ve handled so many others. I implore those of you in Shocker Nation to get vaccinated against COVID-19 if you are able.”

Kelly’s announcement came one day after the Centers for Disease Control issued new guidance recommending everyone wear masks indoors in areas where there is high or substantial transmission of COVID-19, regardless if they’re vaccinated.

The new CDC guidance and Kelly’s requirements come as Kansas sees a surge of cases from the delta variant, which Kelly called a “self-inflicted problem.”

“The deaths from COVID delta could have largely been avoided with a simple vaccine,” she said.

Kelly’s requirements apply to most of the state, according to CDC data. The data shows Mitchell and Marion counties are the only counties in the eastern half of the state that are not under high or substantial transmission.

The state is averaging 777 cases per day, up 215% from two weeks ago according to the New York Times.

Contributing: Katie Bernard and Jonathan Shorman at The Kansas City Star