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Peoria Public Schools postpones board meeting due to group's refusal to wear masks

Jeffrey Smudde
/
WCBU

The Peoria Public Schools Board of Education chose to postpone Tuesday night’s meeting because a group of attendees refused to wear masks.

Board president Gregory Wilson asked the group multiple times to put on masks, or they would be asked to leave, to which the group responded by asking that “a law” be shown that states the requirement.

In response, the board's attorney explained that Executive Order 2021-22 that requires masks in public spaces was still in effect, and the board of education was abiding by it. After members of the group did not comply, Wilson got a consensus from the board to reschedule the meeting.

“There’s a time and a place for everything. For your voice to be heard, there’s a correct time and place to make that happen,” Wilson said in a phone call following the meeting. “Unfortunately, that just wasn’t the correct outlet for that type of activity as far as coming unmasked into an indoor school board meeting. There is still a mask mandate in place, and we just want to follow that mask mandate, and we always strive to put safety first.”

The board has stated at past meetings that District 150 would be adhering to the guidelines in its Back to School Plan that was approved over the summer. It requires masking district-wide. Wilson said those guidelines can be reworked, but a timeline is uncertain.

“You really can’t tell, I can’t give you an answer for that because it’s an ongoing situation that continues to be looked at, continues to be evaluated, and then continues to be discussed,” he said.

The agenda for Monday’s meeting included items to approve calendars for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years, new curriculum purchases, and other policy updates. Wilson said, as of Tuesday night, he is unsure of the rescheduled meeting date.

Mike Rundle is a correspondent at WCBU. He joined the station in 2020.