Kaneland school board adjourns early Monday after attendees refuse to wear masks

The Kaneland District 302 School Board adjourned early Jan. 31 after some members of the audience refused to follow the state’s indoor mask policy, which the district follows.

Board members Meg Junk, Ryan Kerry and Jennifer Simmons voted to adjourn until Feb. 3, when the district will have a remote only meeting. Board members Addam Gonzalez and Bob Mankivsky voted against postponing the meeting. Board President Teresa Witt and Aaron Lawler were absent.

“We have asked you all repeatedly to wear your masks more than properly, but we have audience members who will not,” said Junk, who presided over the meeting in Witt’s absence. “I’m sorry that doesn’t affect all of you, but it does affect the entire meeting.”

The meeting was nearly an hour into public comments when Christin Woolmer approached the podium without a mask. The crowd already was riled up after fellow Elburn resident Mary Comer shouted at the administration, “You failed my son!”

“I’m sorry. No one is around me,” Woolmer said when asked to don a mask. “If the president can talk without a mask and the governor can, I will do so, also.”

Junk told Woolmer that she needed to put on a mask for the meeting to continue.

Woolmer refused and began reading aloud from the book, “I Am Malala: How One Girl Stood Up For Education and Changed the World.”

“This is what you’re teaching fourth graders,” Woolmer said as the meeting went into a 10-minute recess. “At first, I was upset with it because it isn’t even PG-13, but now I’m OK with it because she stood up for her rights, which you guys are taking away.”

After the meeting reconvened, only two public commenters were able to speak before Junk called for a vote to adjourn the meeting as some attendees still were not following mask guidelines.

As someone shouted, “Why?,” Kerry fired back, “Put your mask on!”

The crowd didn’t let up after the meeting ended with shouts of “You’re unfit,” “Crybabies,” “Cowards,” and “You should be ashamed of yourself” directed at the board and administration.

The crowd also sent a reminder it wasn’t going away.

“Hey, guys, listen,” Elburn resident Chris Bateman said. “They think that we are a loudmouth minority. Let’s show them next time we are not a loudmouth minority, we are a loudmouth majority that needs to be listened to!”

Some of the agenda items that were pushed to Feb. 3 include resignations, terminations and an employment of staff action item that lists James Horne as Kaneland High School’s new principal, replacing Jill Maras, who is retiring. A student academic update is among the new business.