D-205 Inconsistent On Handling Of Pandemic: Board Member

ELMHURST, IL — An Elmhurst School District 205 board member said this week that the district has been inconsistent in its handling of the pandemic from school to school. She urged officials to "tighten it up."

At a board meeting Tuesday, member Courtenae Trautmann expressed her concern about how rules are being applied.

"I do think there is a lot of inconsistency on how these things are being implemented from school to school," Trautmann said. "When some kids are eating lunch on the floor and others are not, parents see that," Trautmann said. "I think the consistency across the board is something I really think we should look at, not just how they're eating lunch, but about how they're quarantining."

For example, Trautmann said, "there are parents who have reached out to me and said, 'Do you know my daughter had to get a COVID test to come back to elementary school because she had a runny nose because of allergies?' And that's an aggressive stance that's not being taken across all the schools."

Trautmann said she did not know if the district had suffered a breakdown in communication in carrying out the rules. She wondered why vaccinated teachers were required to get tested for the coronavirus if they're out for a day.

Assistant Superintendent Kevin Rubenstein said the district could look into the issue of vaccinated teachers.

"If you are vaccinated and you have symptoms, you do need to get a test to come back to school," he said. "It's still a part of the protocol. You can still have COVID even though you have been vaccinated."

School officials have said they are mandated to follow the state's rules.