Dear Woodland Families,

I am writing today with an update for our community as we face the next shift in our pandemic response plans and procedures. I want to thank you for your patience as we awaited the outcome of the appellate court ruling regarding masking, and other COVID-19 mitigations in schools. Late last night, we received the ruling from the courts, and the Board of Education will be meeting to make decisions on next steps for Woodland's mitigation strategies.

The Woodland D50 Board of Education held an emergency board meeting last night to discuss the current COVID-19 metrics in our schools, and Woodland’s plan to transition to a masks recommended, not required status. The Board had hoped to have the ruling from the courts before the meeting in order to vote on the plan last night. Since the ruling came after the meeting, the Board has decided to call a special meeting on Sunday afternoon so that they can provide further direction on how to move forward.

Here is my presentation to the Board regarding the transition to masks recommended, not required. To be clear, the Board has not voted on the plan yet, and therefore they are meeting on Sunday.

Meeting Details:

The Woodland Board of Education will hold a Special Board Meeting on Sunday, Feb. 20, 2022 at 3 p.m. The meeting will be held at the Educational Support Center (ESC) and the meeting will be streamed live on the district website.

Please note: The meeting starts at 3 p.m., but the first item on the agenda is a closed session. The public meeting will begin immediately following the closed session when the Board of Education returns to open session.

The Board invites members of the public to provide citizen statements in-person. To participate, please register in advance using this form (English / Spanish).

Watch: The meeting will be streamed live on the district website HERE

Agenda: View the Agenda HERE

Location: Woodland Educational Support Center, 1105 Hunt Club Road, Gurnee

Thank you again to all of the people who have reached out to add your voice to this discussion in a respectful manner on both sides of the issue.

Your Partner in Education,

• Woodland D50 Board of Education Special Meeting, Feb. 20
• President's Day, Feb. 21 - District Closed
  
• Portillo's PTA Fundraiser, Feb. 21 - Have dinner at Portillo's on Monday from 5 - 8 p.m. Learn More.
• PTA Meeting Rescheduled to Feb. 23 at 7 p.m. - Register Here
• Woodland D50 Board of Education Meeting, Feb. 24

Woodland will once again be offering Wildcat Summer Adventures and Extended School Year programs this summer. There will be both in-person and virtual options. Watch for information coming soon!

Warren Township Youth & Family Services is hosting a parent workshop to inform parents about Special Education Law, and how to be an active and informed partner in the IEP process.

DATE: March 9, 2022

TIME: 7 - 8 p.m.

This interactive workshop will be held via Zoom.

Additional Information and Registration.