Illinois High School Association supports Executive Order 85 mandating masks with sanctions for non-compliant schools

 

[August 26, 2021]  At the August, 23, 2021 Illinois High School Association Board of Directors Meeting, the board made the following decision regarding the use of masks:

ACTION

1. The Board approved a recommendation to institute two measures related to member school adherence to the state’s current Executive Order 85 mandating masks. IHSA schools will not be allowed to participate in the State Series for a sport if they remain on Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) probation for non-compliance with the state mask mandate on the date of seeding (or the list of participant entry deadline) in that sport. Additionally, the IHSA staff has been directed to set appropriate timelines based on the schedule for each fall sport to begin relieving schools of their State Series hosting responsibilities if they are currently on ISBE probation due to non-compliance with the state mask mandate.

Sport	State Series Seeding/Entry Date
Boys & Girls Golf	September 22
1A Boys Soccer	September 23
2A/3A Boys Soccer	September 30
Girls Volleyball	October 7
Girls Tennis	October 13
Boys & Girls Cross Country	October 18
Football	October 23
Girls Swimming & Diving	November 1

IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson:  “The IHSA Board of Directors did not look at this situation as being a pro-mask or anti-mask issue, nor did they view their ruling as any type of political stance. Setting aside their own personal opinions, they were unanimous in the belief that the IHSA is a rule-driven organization that should continue to align with ISBE rules for the good of its membership. The Board felt that not following the mandate was akin to a team picking and choosing what rules they were going to follow in a football game or volleyball match. Anecdotally, they shared a growing frustration among schools on how the scheduling process has been impacted by schools not following the mandate, which ultimately led them to set forth measures that they believe will help prevent some of those same issues from occurring during the postseason.”
 

IHSA Executive Director Craig Anderson:  “We continue to have great experiences hosting IHSA state tournaments in the greater Peoria area and are appreciative of East Peoria High School and the Peoria Chiefs’ desire to continue hosting state soccer and baseball, respectively. Both are championship caliber venues with amazing staff members and community members working behind the scenes to create once in a lifetime memories for our student-athletes, coaches, and fans.”

Web Release: Click here

[IHSA News & Announcements Archive]