PFW extends mask mandate through mid-March

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WPTA) - Purdue University Fort Wayne (PFW) will extend its face mask mandate for anyone entering campus buildings until after the university’s Spring Break.

In a release sent Friday morning, PFW officials said the requirement for anyone inside campus buildings and structures to wear a face mask has been extended through March 18—the Friday following the end of Spring Break.

University policy notes: All students, faculty, and staff 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.

Campus officials say free N95 face masks, which health experts say offer better protection against the highly contagious omicron variant, are available to those who show a campus ID at Rhinehart Music Center’s Shatzlein Box Office. Box office hours are Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. and Wednesdays from 2:30 to 6:30 pm. They say students may also pick up free N95 masks at the Student Housing Clubhouse.

The university says it will revisit the face mask requirement in March. For more information, visit the PFW Ready website for the university’s ongoing response to COVID-19. They say important information will also continue to be communicated through the Inside PFW (for faculty and staff) and Don Life (for students) newsletters.