Masks will be recommended but not mandated when Indian Prairie School District 204 classes resume Aug. 19.
Board members — like many in the audience at Monday night’s meeting — were divided over the issue, but ultimately voted 5-2 to implement the recommendation made by Superintendent Adrian Talley.
“I do feel really good about this proposal because the tiered approach to me makes sense,” board member Allison Fosdick said. “It’s tied to our community, not what’s happening in Florida, not what’s happening in (Los Angeles) or (Washington, D.C.).”
Fosdick and other board members noted the plan fits the COVID-19 conditions in the Naperville/Aurora area. DuPage and Will counties have some of the highest vaccination rates in the state — DuPage has one of the highest in the country — and as of Monday, the virus positivity rate was a little more than 2% in the Zip codes the district comprises.
Board members Natasha Grover and Justin Karubas voted against the recommendation. Both supported the continued use of masks, particularly for children 12 and younger who are unable to be vaccinated.
“So long as we are still in a public health emergency, students and teachers should be required to wear masks so students have a higher probability of remaining in the actual classroom,” Karubas said.
Under the district’s plan, masks will be recommended while transmission levels remain low. If those numbers started to climb, they will return to mandatory mask usage, Deputy Superintendent Doug Eccarius said.
Masks will still be required on school buses and three feet of social distancing in classrooms will be maintained.
Quarantining will not be required for vaccinated, asymptomatic students who are in close contact with someone infected with coronavirus and masks will be optional for volunteers if transmission levels are low.
Talley said they would have to consider limited restrictions if infection rates start to climb again.
“The next area would be social distancing, which we really don’t want to do because that would create a situation of possibly looking at a hybrid program,” he said.
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Board member Susan Demming said she “will not hesitate” to lobby for a mask mandate if COVID-19 conditions change or local and state guidance called for it.
“While I support the recommended mask wearing, I desperately urge all families to seriously follow the recommended protocols so we do not find ourselves discussing in-person/remote protocols again this school year,” she said.
Parent Brea Khalid said the optional use of masks was the right call for Indian Prairie.
“I understand there may be some who do not feel comfortable with not wearing them, and they are welcome to continue wearing them,” Khalid said. “I would not impose on their rights to wear their masks, but the rights for my children should not be compromised.”
Some of the 20 people who spoke at the meeting referenced the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recommendation that anyone age 2 and older wear a mask when inside a school, regardless of vaccination status.
Darcy Wexelbaum spoke in support of masks in schools, arguing they are still one of the best ways to prevent contracting or spreading COVID-19.
“I was once told never to gamble with anything that I was not wiling to lose,” she said. “The health and safety of our children, teachers, school personnel and other vulnerable members of our community is at risk. Is this a risk our district is willing to take?”
The school board voted unanimously to give the superintendent authority to modify the plan as needed, similar to a resolution approved last school year.