South Dakota Mines is following the South
Dakota Board of Regents by removing mask and social distancing requirements
for most of campus on Monday, May 10, at the start of summer operations.
While face coverings and social distancing will no
longer be required on campus, anyone who chooses to wear a mask is still
welcome to do so.
The mask mandate will remain in effect for at least
the first part of summer in the Museum of
Geology. The museum will lift social distancing and capacity limits on May 10,
but the mask requirement will remain in place to protect guests and staff. While
much of the campus is a little quieter in the summer, museum traffic is the opposite.
The Museum of Geology is a popular destination for thousands of visitors from
outside the region. The museum mask mandate will be reevaluated mid-summer
based on COVID vaccination numbers and community spread.
The lifting of the mask mandate begins the university’s return to normal operations for fall
2021, including in-person
classes, hands-on lab instruction, and social/networking events.