Cleveland schools will require masks during first 5 weeks of school year Cliff Pinckard, cleveland.com CLEVELAND, Ohio — Students, faculty and others will be required to wear masks inside buildings for at least the first five weeks of the school year, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District announced Monday night. The mask mandate will include those who are fully vaccinated, the district says. Three-foot social distancing also will be enforced. The district is following updated COVID-19 coronavirus guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, Cleveland Schools CEO Eric Gordon said in a video statement. The mask mandate will be in place for at least five weeks or until the CDC changes its recommendations.