Pritzker's Face Mask Order To Remain In Effect At D218 Schools

OAK LAWN, IL — CHSD 218 students and staff at the district's high schools will continue to wear face masks after a Sangamon County judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s face mask mandate to combat the spread of COVID-19 school buildings. Over 150 lawsuits have been filed against the governor involving parents and teachers claiming government overreach.

The Illinois Attorney General’s office has filed an appeal to the temporary restraining order halting any outcomes associated with the ruling. CHSD 218 Superintendent Ty Harting said in a statement on the district's website that rules and mask guidelines for Richards, Shepard and Eisenhower high schools would remain in effect for all students and faculty "except for the one party who was part of the lawsuit."

“After consultation with our insurance and general counsel and further investigation, we have been advised that the ruling applies only to the individual parties in the case,” Harting said.

Last Friday’s ruling also overrode several other parts of the governor's mandate, including one issued last year mandating school employees to be vaccinated. Pending the outcome of the governor’s appeal, the governor's orders remain in effect. The district “will revise the face mask policy if the courts rule accordingly.” A ruling is anticipated this week.

“We understand that there are strong opinions on both sides of this issue (and even people that are neutral as well),” Harting said. “We are not trying to pick a side. We are, however, attempting to follow the mandate imposed on us by the State of Illinois.”

During a news conference Monday morning to discuss efforts to prevent expressway shootings, Pritzker said the judge's ruling "cultivates chaos" and that, "poor legal reasoning should not take one of our most effective tools off the table so again, I have asked the attorney general to continue to aggressively appeal this decision."