“You should have due process in place for all schools, all parents who are invested in these schools, whether public or private, and most importantly, the children that attend,” Republican Sen. John Curran of Downers Grove said. | Facebook
“You should have due process in place for all schools, all parents who are invested in these schools, whether public or private, and most importantly, the children that attend,” Republican Sen. John Curran of Downers Grove said. | Facebook
Republican state Sen. John Curran wants to see a clearly defined process for how Illinois schools are punished for violating Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s masking mandates.
Curran recently took the floor at a Joint Committee on Administrative Rules (JCAR) hearing surrounding the issue.
“You should have due process in place for all schools, all parents who are invested in these schools, whether public or private, and most importantly, the children that attend,” Republican Sen. John Curran of Downers Grove said at Tuesday’s hearing of the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, according to the Chicago Tribune.
The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) continues to defend its actions in revoking a school system’s recognition status for noncompliance, despite rising criticism. For schools placed on probation, outcomes for noncompliance result in the loss of state funding and the inability to participate in Illinois High School Association and Illinois Elementary School Association athletic competitions.
Nine schools are “nonrecognized” and four school districts are on probation.
Noncompliance "is not an option," State Superintendent of Education Carmen Ayala told local district leaders, according to the Chicago Tribune. A district would first have its recognition status changed to “on probation,” Ayala said, and be asked to submit a corrective action plan if they didn't comply with the governor's order. Failure to do so would then lead to nonrecognition.
The Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, meanwhile, approved a measure Tuesday recommending ISBE propose additional amendments “expanding and clarifying the school recognition status to include a better-defined process prior to the revocation of recognition,” and requests an update within 30 days.
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