Will Hinsdale D-86 Reverse Mask Mandate?

Darien IL

17 February, 2022

7:33 AM

Description

DARIEN, IL — The Hinsdale High School District 86 board plans a special meeting Friday night on its pandemic rules. That discussion is likely to include the mask mandate, which many residents have protested. The board revealed its plan to hold the session late Wednesday afternoon. The Friday meeting is set for 6 p.m. in the Hinsdale South High School library in Darien. According to the agenda, the board plans to hear public comment first, then go into closed session and after emerging, take up the issue of pandemic protocols. It is unclear how the board can legally discuss its mask mandate and other pandemic procedures behind closed doors. Perhaps it plans to hear advice from its lawyer, which are communications that can legally be kept secret. On Wednesday, the district declined to cite an exception under the state's open meetings law for closing the doors. "The board's standard practice is to announce the exception during the meeting as part of the motion to adjourn to closed session," spokesman Chris Jasculca told Patch in an email. The agenda item is listed as "COVID-19 Mitigation Protocols." That was the same wording as the item last week, when the board voted 5-2 to keep the mask requirement in its buildings. At last week's meeting, nearly 200 people showed up, with many protesting the school's continuing mask mandate. This was after a downstate judge suspended the governor's order in nearly 150 defendant school districts, including District 86.