Brown University Hopes to Drop Masks in Classrooms This Spring

Brown University may allow students to finally ditch their masks this spring, barring any new disruptive variants, said President Christina Paxson. “I would love to lose the masks,” Paxson said in an interview with Bloomberg News. Going maskless allows people to see people’s smiles and confused faces, expressions that matter in an educational environment, she said. Providence, Rhode Island-based Brown, like many other institutions, is preparing for the point when Covid becomes endemic. Two years into the pandemic, that day may be nearing, with vaccines required by many colleges and the contagious omicron variant starting to pass its crest in the U.S. Paxson said she consulted with Ashish Jha, dean of Brown’s School of Public Health, and the institution could end indoor mask mandates in the coming months.