Dupage Policy Journal

State Sen. John Curran (R-Lemont) is demanding answers over enforcement of the governor's mask mandate for schools. 

“Does the board plan to file administrative rules to implement EL 2021-18 or the revised public health guidance for schools,” Curran recently quizzed Illinois School Board Education (ISBE) deputy legal officer Kristen Kennedy at a recent Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) meeting. “If plans are in motion, when should this committee expect to see a rulemaking? If plans are not in motion then please aid the committee in understanding the board’s legal reasoning for not following administrative rules.”

While Kennedy made it clear ISBE has no such plans, she declined to speak for others while defending Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s executive actions mandating universal masking for schools as “lawfully issued and enforceable.”

Later, Curran pointed out Timothy Christian as a school placed on probation by the ISBE for flouting mask rules.

“What due process was Timothy Christian afforded in the decision that was made the same day to pull the recognition process?” he asked. “Is the lack of due process, or alleged lack of due process for those school districts, is that a subject of any of the pending litigation?”

"ISBE has a few pending lawsuits against it regarding masking and enforcement," Kennedy replied, "and we are unable to answer certain questions because of that litigation."

Curran said he expected the litigation.

“I would say that’s not surprising that you’re now dragged into court again because this on its face is a very heavy-handed tactic that does not afford any due process,” he said. “You have a process in the rule … that lays out a due process timeline and calls for meaningful discourse between a school district and the department and really also allows cooler heads to prevail, which I think is why you have some time markers in the process. I would certainly encourage the department and quite frankly ask the department in making these decisions they should be following whether the school is private or public.”

To date, four public schools and nine private schools across the state have been penalized for not complying with the governor’s dictum, with the private schools having been stripped of recognition status that could bring a lack of government funding and being declared ineligible for ISHA sanctioned sporting competition.

The four public schools have been placed on probation.