School’s in? Pritzker says state’s classrooms can reopen in fall — with masks, temperature checks, other precautions

Middle school pupils in their classroom in Boulogne-Billancourt, outside Paris, on Monday, as primary and middle schools reopen in France. | Thomas Samson/AFP via Getty Images

The state’s 2 million-plus elementary and high school students can return to the classroom this fall, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced Tuesday.

The governor’s guidance for a return to in-person classes comes after the coronavirus pandemic scrapped the end of the school year across Illinois.

The state will provide more than 2.5 million cloth face masks for students to use, under the guidelines issued by Pritzker’s office.

Schools must follow Illinois Department of Public Health requirements to reopen. Besides face coverings and social distancing, those include prohibiting gatherings of more than 50 people, symptom screenings and temperature checks for anyone entering school buildings, and increased cleaning and disinfection.

Colleges and universities will also be able to reopen, Pritzker said.

“Classroom learning provides necessary opportunities for our students to learn, socialize, and grow. The benefits of in-person instruction can’t be overstated,” Pritzker said in a statement. “In close consultation with IDPH, infectious disease experts at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and other public health professionals, the guidance focuses on keeping students, teachers and families healthy and safe. It recognizes that Illinois is a diverse state, and school districts and institutions of higher education across Illinois will face unique challenges in how they’ll operate within their communities.”

The Democratic governor first shut down schools across the state in mid-March as the coronavirus pandemic gripped the state.

Children queue to enter their classrooms at the Ziegelau elementary school in Strasbourg, eastern France, on Monday.

The plan to reopen them was announced as the Illinois Department of Public Health announced the latest 38 deaths attributed to COVID-19 and 601 new cases of the disease confirmed across the state.

A total of 6,707 people have died in Illinois over the last three months, among the 137,825 who have tested positive for the virus overall.

But cases have been falling for five straight weeks, Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike said.

“These actions have given Illinois a leg up against this virus,” she said.

Read the full school reopening guidelines here:

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