Lake County Gazette

On Feb 23, Warren Township High School District 121 announced it was going 'masks recommended.'

The school system oversees the education of nearly 3,900 students in two locations.

Remote learning was held Tuesday amid the transition to “mask recommended.”

“All WTHS students will have an eLearning day on Tuesday, February 22,” the school said on Facebook. “Students will work asynchronously and will not report to school."

Twitter user Jon J. Kerr had a theory about the remote-learning day.

“One large unit district that remained stubborn with forced masking is @wths121. They are flipping to ‘mask recommended’ beginning Wednesday. For some reason, leaders felt the need for a ‘transition’ day Tuesday. Students are remote. Translation: union concession,” Kerr posted.

A Twitter user identified as Trent pointed out the school is still requiring vaccines to attend the prom.

The move to mask-recommended comes after an appellate court sided with a lower court against Gov. J.B. Pritker’s continued mask mandates.

Pritzker has appealed that ruling to the Illinois Supreme Court.

The Fourth District Appellate Court backed up an earlier ruling by Sangamon County Judge Raylene Grischow overturning the mask mandate.

In that ruling, Grischow said Pritzker’s blanket state of emergency school mask and testing mandates through the Illinois Department of Public Health were "null and void." She said the governor and his agencies have been mandating masking rules upon students illegally.

The district is one of several going mask-optional following the judge’s orders.

Chicago Public Schools is most notable in its defiance. The school district is responsible of over 340,000 students, and is the third largest in the country. Its CEO has been called into court for a contempt hearing for alleged abuses of students by not adhering to court orders.

Parents across the state have continued to protest until their schools overturn mask mandates and other protocols.

Over 700 of the state's 849 school districts have made masks optional following the ruling. 

Pritzker was accused by Senate Minority Leader Dan McConchie (R-Lake Zurich) of attempting to subvert the courts to re-institute the mask mandate and other protocols.