A downstate judge is considering a bid to halt COVID-19 mandates for Illinois schools.
Fresh off a round of school closures driven by the omicron variant, Illinois school districts could soon be facing more upheaval as litigation challenging Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s mask mandate and other COVID-19 protocol lands before a downstate judge.
“If there’s an exclusion from school, before a child is told, ‘get out of here,’ they have the right to due process,” he said. In a Thursday letter to parents, Barrington School District 220 Superintendent Robert Hunt said the district would keep its current COVID-19 mitigation strategies in place until there is a ruling from the judge, which is not expected until Jan. 28 at the earliest.
“If this were to happen, or if the judge’s ruling upholds the governor’s mask mandate, Barrington 220 will continue to adhere to universal masking inside our school buildings,” he said. Gracia and Aaron Livie at their home with their children Isaac, 2, Sophie, 10, and Lila, 6, in Naperville, Jan. 20, 2022. Gracia Livie says the state's rules have been a disaster for countless children, including Lila who has cerebral palsy.
Attorney Kathleen Gibbons, who represents Valley View Community Unit School District 365 in the lawsuit, challenged DeVore’s contention that the mask mandate is causing “irreparable harm” to students, along with the notion that children infected with the virus are unlikely to become gravely ill.