Illinois Schools Will Close for the 2019-2020 School Year

Today, Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced that Illinois schools will remain closed for the rest of the 2020 school year.

"I know that many have felt this was inevitable – but trust me when I say, this was not a decision I made lightly," Pritzker said. "The importance of our schools and our in-person school days is not just a question of tradition and sentimentality, as essential as those things are – the shutting of in-person classroom time also risks a drop in instructional time, an extended window in which students can potentially experience summer learning loss, and an educational landscape in which some districts have more experience with remote learning than others.These challenges weighed heavily on me as we came to this decision – but my priority remains unchanged: how do we save the most lives during this difficult time? The answer to that question leaves us only with the path forward."

Schools across the area celebrated their 2020 seniors by turning on the lights on football fields, baseball fields and the community participated by turning on porch lights.