A fourth wave of coronavirus infections and hospitalizations is assaulting the state, just as kids ready to go back to school. Stanley Perlman, a professor of immunology and pediatrics at the University of Iowa, says even though the state has outlawed districts from requiring masks in school, parents should still have their kids wear masks to slow the spread.

Perlman says it’s also important that children ages 12 to 17 get vaccinated before heading back to school — to both protect themselves and those around them. According to the CDC, only around 30-percent of Iowa’s kids in this age range have been fully vaccinated.