Kanawha County Schools made mask-wearing optional for students and staff this week. The decision was made due to Kanawha County’s positive case numbers going down after seeing an increase during the winter holidays, according to a news release from the school system. If a Kanawha County student or staff member does test positive, regardless of masking or vaccination, they should stay home for at least five days and isolate from others, the school system said. Parents of students can find daily school-specific positive case updates in Schoology.