Highland District 5 superintendent calls state legislature ‘cowards’ over mask mandate

Highland District 5 schools will comply with the state mandate to require masks, even as parents threaten to order their children not to obey.

Superintendent Mike Sutton and several board members expressed frustration Aug. 11 with Gov. J.B. Pritzker and the state board of education, as earlier mandates had left the question of masking to individual districts.

Pritzker, however, issued a new order last week mandating masks after the federal Centers for Disease Control and American Academy of Pediatrics recommended all K-12 schools have universal masking regardless of vaccination status.

Sutton called the state legislature “cowards” for what he perceives as its inaction.

“One size does not fit all in the state of Illinois,” he said.

Sutton and some board members said the courts have so far upheld the governor’s authority to pass these mandates, and the consequences for Highland could be significant. For one thing, Sutton said, lack of compliance will impact athletics as other districts can choose not to play them.

Illinois State Superintendent Carmen Ayala had sent an open letter to all school district leaders making it clear there would be significant consequences to defying the mask mandate.

“I understand the pressure some school and district leaders may be facing from community members, and I will provide you with every support to understand, communicate, and comply with the order,” Ayala said. “However, noncompliance is not an option.”

Ayala clarified that local school boards do not have the legal authority to defy the governor’s order.

That’s exactly what many Highland parents wanted the board to do, however. Nearly all of the 24 speakers at the Aug. 11 public hearing told the board members to defy the governor’s mandate and alleged that requiring masks was an infringement on freedom. One referred to “communities that stood up to tyranny” and another said it was “a hill worth dying on.”

Melissa Edwards, secretary for the Highland Education Association, said while the teachers’ union does not have a general consensus, she believed they should have the chance to at least start without masks, but do not want to go back to teaching students online.

One speaker, a nurse, described the devastating impact of COVID on her patients and the huge increase in cases she has seen in the last few weeks. Other attendees began shouting over her, however.

Some parents referred to the masks as “torture” for children, and a few said they would not allow their children to wear masks regardless of the school rules. Some said the vote would require masking for their children forever. “Let’s choose freedom,” one parent said.

Indeed, Sutton said an informal poll taken of Highland families showed the overwhelming majority wanted the board to defy the mandate.

Legal liability, potential loss of insurance

But Ayala’s letter pointed out such an action leaves districts open to legal liability and possible loss of insurance, and repeated noncompliance could lead to total loss of state funding and ability to engage in athletic competitions.

“School districts have the moral and legal obligation to follow public health requirements and guidance to keep their students and staff safe,” she wrote. “I know (wearing a mask) can be uncomfortable sometimes, but so are football helmets and seatbelts. Sometimes we have to bear a little discomfort for the sake of safety and because it’s the law.”

Sutton said “every bone in my body” said to go against the governor’s order, but he believed the consequences would be severe enough that he recommended compliance.

Board members decide to adhere to order

In the end, board members voted 5-2 to comply with the governor’s order and amend the COVID plan they had just adopted to require masks for all students. Zach Lewis and Joe Mott were the two members voting no.

“The board expressed frustration that local control was taken away from them yet again,” Sutton said. “Regardless, our school community will band together and meet the challenges of this school year just as we did last year.”

In a subsequent letter to parents, Sutton pointed out that while masks will be required, students will attend full days of school, will eat lunch at school, will have access to the playground with no masks required outdoors, school events will not have capacity limits, and vaccinated people who come in contact with a positive case will not have to quarantine.

“It has been frustrating for educators to see kids put in the middle of this battle. We are now in a no-win situation with many in our local communities and even some within our own buildings,” Sutton wrote. “We will not quit the fight to advocate for ALL students, though it seems that when we advocate for some, others are left out.”

‘Extremely difficult positions’

However, Sutton said parents ordering their children not to follow the mask mandate are putting teachers and school workers in “extremely difficult positions.” He clarified students who do not wear masks will not be permitted into the classrooms and if they continue to refuse they will be sent home.

“We do not want this, we want kids in school,” he wrote. “This is why we worked so hard last year to keep in-person learning a priority. No one is going to win this battle, especially our students. Why draw this line?”

Sutton wrote he is aware that some parents plan to demand school entry without masks. “We have no choice but to enforce the rules within our buildings,” he said. “I hate masks, COVID, and mandates just like many of you. But above all other things right now ... I value the education of our students more than anything else. We cannot jeopardize education even for one year in order to ‘call a bluff’ or ‘fight government overreach.’”

This story was originally published August 16, 2021 at 9:24 AM.