At Marist High School, our number-one priority is creating a safe and nurturing environment for our students, faculty and staff. We are dedicated to building a community where our students can thrive and where curiosity and well-being come first. This sometimes means going through a challenging time, but we can always get through challenging times when we work through them together.
On Friday, a court ruled against Governor Pritzker’s executive order requiring masks in schools. As you know, Marist High School has been complying with this order because it has applied to all schools in Illinois whether public or private. The state announced it will appeal this ruling, which might lead to its immediate reversal. We are closely monitoring the case, which will likely involve continued litigation.
It has been a goal of Marist High School to keep the school open with the fewest possible disruptions to learning. This has been a fluid situation, with both the virus and our strategies to contain it evolving over time. We understand the tremendous value of in-person learning – not only for academics but for emotional health, personal development, healthy relationships and building community.
For the time being, we will continue to apply the same COVID mitigations that have been in place – which includes all students, faculty and staff wearing a mask while at the school.
We recognize that this direction may not be popular with everyone at this time, but our administration feels that this is the best course of action until the case is concluded and a final decision is made. I will continue to communicate openly about what action will look like until a final decision is made by the appellate court.
Thank you for everything you are doing to keep our community safe.
