Spectators at indoor sporting events at Manteca Unified schools will be required to go through a self-screening procedure for COVID-19 symptoms before they will be allowed to enter venues.

They also will be required to wear masks. The mask rule is mandatory even if a person is already fully vaccinated.

The district is following mandates handed down by the California Department of Public Health that has jurisdiction over schools.

It mirrors what the district’s 26,000 students and staff have to do on a daily basis before they are allowed to step on a campus for in-person learning.

The only difference will be instead of using a device such as a smartphone to self-screen in advance of leaving for school, spectators will be allowed to do so at venue entrances.

The first indoor sport affected by the rule will be volleyball.

Outdoor sports such as football will not require self-screening or the wearing of face masks.

That, however, could change if mandatory protocols are handed down by the state as the days and weeks unfold.

“People are being asked to social distance as much as possible,” noted Manteca Unified Director of Outreach Victoria Brunn of spectators at outside sporting events such as football.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com