Same goes for certain school staff who don't want to take weekly COVID-19 tests for not being vaccinated. Masks optional at each Illinois school district's discretion; CPS will DeVore filed the suit on behalf of a father of a student in Breese School District 12 in Clinton County, about 40 miles east of St. Louis. The complaint, filed in local district court, alleges Pritzker overstepped his authority in signing an executive order last week mandating masks in all preschools, elementary and secondary schools in Illinois. Complaint filed . In some locales, there were protests at school board meetings. Attorney General Kwame Raoul agreed with Pritzker that the ruling would make it more difficult to protect students and school employees from the virus, and said he would appeal. Sangamon County Circuit Court Judge Raylene Grischow heard oral arguments in the case earlier this month prior to granting the temporary restraining order. All Rights Reserved. Lake County school districts named in the, Amber/Orange light (with AirPods in): Your AirPods are charging inside the case. CHICAGO AREA, IL Masks in schools have been a topic of debate for parents since face coverings first became required for kids attending school in Illinois. A Sangamon County judge has ruled. The judge filed a temporary restraining order against Bond CountyCommunity UnitSchool DistrictNo. "We have heard from all sides throughout the pandemic about their feelings regarding masking and the quarantine.". DeVore is behind that and almost ten other similar cases. "I'm upset," Limjuco said. When it comes to relaxing mitigations in schools, Fauci said, "We're not there yet. Michigan judge dismisses school staff as defendants in lawsuits over Jeff Schuler, Community Unit School District 200. Sangamon . The Illinois Supreme Court granted Gov. What are the names of the school districts being sued over mask J.B. Pritzker's mask mandate being found null and void by Sangamon County Circuit Court Judge Raylene Grischow Feb. 4. DeVore was in the process of writing a temporary restraining order in the latest lawsuit Thursday afternoon. Parents have stormed school board . J.B. Pritzkers emergency rules for COVID-19 mitigations in schools null and void, effectively stopping the states mask mandate in school buildings. Mask optional on Tuesday. Mask-less Chicago Public Schools students sent home, but CPS CEO Pedro Massive parents' class action says Pritzker, schools overstepped We interviewed our tech expert, Jaime Vazquez, to learn more about accessible smart home devices. In fact, the safety mitigations encompassed by the State's guidance, as well as vaccinations for children and adults, are the best ways to keep schools open and everyone healthy. FOR WHICH THE SCHOOL DISTRICTS CAN BASE THEIR. ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) Parents from 145 school districts in Illinois are suing Gov. As we have from the beginning of the pandemic, the administration will keep working to ensure every Illinoisan has the tools needed to keep themselves and their loved ones safe., Download the WQAD News 8 App Subscribe toourdaily newsletter Subscribeto ourYouTubechannel. The grave consequence of this misguided decision is that schools in these districts no longer have sufficient tools to keep students and staff safe while COVID-19 continues to threaten our communities and this may force schools to go remote, he said. Parents from Dunlap, two school districts in Metamora, Germantown Hills, Eureka, Brimfield, Mortonand Limestone in Bartonville are named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit. In the metro-east, Red Bud CUSD 132 in. More and more Illinois schools going mask optional after court ruling Schools without mask mandates face penalties from the state education board. Dozens of students showed up at Naperville schools Monday maskless. HIRING! Greenville-based attorney Thomas DeVore, the plaintiff in the case, said those executive orders were trying to get around the law of the court and due process. "Due to the multiple interpretations of the ruling and the status of the State mandates, there is a strong likelihood that there will be disruption in our schools which will have a substantial negative impact on the delivery of instruction and the health and safety of our students and staff," the district said in a letter to families. Crystal LakeElementary District 47issued a similar message explaining "face masks will be strongly recommended but not required at school and at all school-related events for staff and students, as well as visitors and volunteers.". Some Illinois parents are urging their kids to go to school without a mask today to protest Gov. Soon after the Pritzker administration adopted the suggestions, school boards across the state took the CDC's advice and applied it in many different ways; some mandating masks regardless of vaccination status, some requiring masks only for certain grades and some eschewing masks altogether. Illinois schools were scrambling to react after a ruling by a downstate judge Friday placed a temporary restraining order on Gov. District 202 made note of the fluid situation in its message. "We have had parent contact at board meetings and had conversations with a variety of parents, including the ones listed not all of them but also additional parents who have shared their concerns on both sides of the issue with the district," O'Laughlin said. For others, the mask optional decision was long overdue. Illinois parents sue Pritzker over school mask mandate They were separated out and did e-learning activities. If such overreach is allowed to stand, the separation of powers will have been reduced to ashes and the executive will be allowed to disregard the legislature and create law, rules and regulations at his or her pleasure, the suit said. Pritzker wins injunction against 3 Illinois schools not complying with "Why are you continuing to enforce a mandate that is null and void?" It is not the children you care about.". In south suburban Burbank, School District 111 will "fully comply with the court's ruling," but recommends masks be worn by all students and staff in school buildings. Pritzker had harsh wordsfor the judge's decision and quickly urged the state's attorney general's office to appeal, suggesting the ruling could spark another surge in the virus. It has supreme authority in matters of quarantine and isolation. This comes as school districts scrambled to reassess COVID mitigations after a judge granted a temporary injunction last week. Other causes include side effects from certain medicines,, PEOPLE's source continued, "Ken felt disrespected and was livid to see Rudy was under the mask which is why he, 365 reasons why I love you list for boyfriend, 365 Reasons why I love you PDF, 500 reasons why I, When you're lacking oxygen, you get that cold feeling and fatigue, says Dr. Morgan. MACOUPIN CO., Ill. (WCIA) A long list of parents filed a lawsuit against 145 school districts in Illinois Wednesday. To learn more about ChatGPT and how we can inspire students, we sat down with BestReviews book expert, Ciera Pasturel. "This decision sends the message that all students do not have the same right to safely access schools and classrooms in Illinois, particularly if they have disabilities or other health concerns. A Sangamon County judge issued the order after 145 school districts, including Rockridge, were named in a lawsuit in October 2021. The state's two. "We now have vaccinations," said Robert Frost Junior High parent Brian Watson. Lawsuit Seeks to Strike School Mask Mandate | Chicago News | WTTW "Some people were saying like, 'Oh yeah this is so exciting finally!' Tony Sanders said in a letter to parents. Pritzker said students and staff would no longer be required to wear masks at Illinois schools starting Feb. 28 after the Illinois Supreme Court declined to take up the case. 1998 - 2023 Nexstar Media Inc. | All Rights Reserved. CPS said in a statement last week that the court's ruling does not prohibit the school district from continuing its COVID-19 mitigation policies and procedures, including universal masking, and that the district "will stay the course.". This Executive Order from Gov. Metro East schools make policy changes after Illinois judge's - KSDK ", Abudayyeh said the governor "was encouraged that the court made it clear that school districts can continue to keep their own mitigations in place.". Unlike most of the suits filed by DeVore and others in the last 18 months, Mondays lawsuit does not challenge Pritzkers ability to issue continuous disaster declarations beyond the 30-day period provided for in the Illinois Emergency Management Agency Act, or IEMAA. The lawsuit begins with laying out current COVID-19 statistics in Illinois, including a calculation that the survival rate for children and young adults up to age 20 who contract the virus is 99.9973%, citing 20 COVID deaths in that cohort in Illinois since the pandemic began. All rights reserved. The court also disposed of Pritzker's contention that his executive orders, despite the JCAR ruling, were still in effect. Thus, it does not appear the school districts are temporarily restrained from acting by the courts TRO. Despite the IEMAAs silence on school districts, DeVores suit points to the legislatures creation of the Illinois School Code and the invention of local school districts themselves as evidence enough that local school boards are the only entity with the authority to adopt and enforce all necessary rules for the management and governance of the public schools of their district.. The parents from District 203 read from the temporary restraining order. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois State Board of Education last year, arguing there was no due process in Illinois statewide mask order. "I think they should follow health recommendations, which right now say kids should be in a mask<' said Reid McCollum, pro-mask parent. (AS TO ALL PLAINTIFFS, IDPH AND SCHOOL DISTRICTS) 11. mopeyjoe 1 yr. ago. 2 in September. "This type of evil is exactly what the law was intended to constrain., The state of Illinois plans to appeal the decision, Pritzker said late Friday, calling the judge's decision "misguided. Pritzker added it didn't stop businesses or local governments from creating and enforcing mask requirements. The complaint alleges Pritzkers executive order implementing a school mask mandate is substantively similar to that bill, and therefore is tantamount to the governor unilaterally crafting law. Hundreds of Peoria teachers, staff haven't taken COVID vaccine, district says, A Peoria teacher quits and the video goes viral, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. How many Illinois school districts are mask optional? According to the ruling, such agreements remain enforceable, like the one between Chicago Public Schools and the Chicago Teachers Union. That bill, HB 2789, passed the Illinois House on party lines in April, but never received a vote on the Senate floor this spring before the legislature adjourned. JB Pritzkers mandate requiring all students, faculty and staff at Illinois schools wear masks in the face of the coronavirus more contagious Delta variant spreading across the state. It also says its unlawful to require masks as a type of treatment without parental consent or a quarantine order from the courts. Missouri Republican Attorney General Eric Schmitt completed on Friday a promise made earlier this week by filing lawsuits against 36 public school districts for requiring masks. The class action lawsuit against 140 school districts around Illinois was filed Wednesday at the Macoupin County courthouse in Carlinville. The grave consequence of this misguided decision is that schools in these districts no longer have sufficient tools to keep students and staff safe while COVID-19 continues to threaten our communities and this may force schools to go remote, Pritzker said. SEE ALSO | Restaurant vaccine mandate, indoor mask rules could end 'soon' if COVID cases stay in free fall. . Pritzker. Some said they will continue to strongly encourage their use, others that these are decisions that should be made at home, like the Superintendent of Timothy Christian Schools in Elmhurst. Judge blocks schools from enforcing Pritzker's mask, vaccine mandates This shows yet again that the mask mandate and school exclusion protocols are essential tools to keep schools open and everyone safe. A temporary restraining order issued Friday by Sangamon County Circuit Court Judge Raylene Grischow has reduced schools' ability to require masks and vaccinations. Those who are exempt dont have to wear masks. "We recognize the challenges this decision may have on our families, but given the fluidity of the situation we strongly feel that this time is necessary to effectively plan for any potential impact on our students, staff, and school community," said Dr. Kent Mutchler, superintendent. Also going "mask optional" are large suburban public school districts across the area, including those in Schaumburg, Elmhurst, Arlington Heights, Barrington and Wheaton, where Shannon Limjuco has two elementary school grade children. We believe we can achieve this," said Matt Davidson, superintendent for Timothy Christian Schools.