Dozens of Illinois school districts on probation for defying governor’s mask mandates

About 30 public school districts across Illinois have been put on probation for violating Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s (D) statewide mask mandate for K-12 schools to help curb the spread of COVID-19 infections caused by the highly transmissible delta variant. 

Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) spokesperson Jackie Matthews told The Hill that several of the school districts that have been put on probation have since said they would comply with the mask requirements. 

“These districts now have the opportunity to meet with ISBE and to submit a corrective action plan to address the deficiencies that are presenting a danger to students and staff,” she explained. “School districts that do not submit an approvable plan will lose recognition status, meaning total loss of access to state funding and the inability to participate in IHSA [Illinois High School Association] and IESA [Illinois Elementary School Association] sports.”

“We will continue to act swiftly with both nonpublic and public schools that have confirmed they are not implementing universal indoor masking as required by” the executive order, she told The Hill. “ISBE will not compromise students’ health and safety.”

Matthews went on to say, “masking is a safe, easy, and effective way to ensure all students can attend school in-person this fall, where they can learn and grow to their fullest potential.” 

A group of superintendents and other members of public school districts continuing to defy the mandate gathered at the education board meeting in Springfield Wednesday to express their opposition. 

Former Warsaw Community Unit School District 316 board member Steve Lucie urged the board to reconsider allowing local jurisdictions to make their own decisions on masking. 

“I’m asking you to do the right thing here for the people in the community … They’re not just going to sit and roll over and take that,” he said, according to the Chicago Tribune. 

Other state educators and parents expressed their concerns to the board at Wednesday’s meeting, even after Illinois State Board of Education Superintendent Carmen Ayala said that they would not be discussing the mask mandate. 

When announcing the mask mandate earlier this month, Pritzker defended the measure as a way to reduce some of the strain being placed on hospitals in the state amid a surge in delta variant infections. 

“Given our current trajectory in hospitalizations and ICU usage, we have a limited amount of time right now to stave off the highest peaks of this surge going into the fall,” he said in a statement. 

The governor also announced a mask requirement for employees at state-run living facilities, and also encouraged “every Illinoisan who is eligible to get vaccinated as soon as possible, as millions of their neighbors already have.” 

“This vaccine is safe, effective, and essentially eliminates the risk of hospitalization and death even from the delta variant,” he said. “In short, it’s the best tool we have.”