D-205 Could Have Handled Pandemic 'Much Better': Board Member

ELMHURST, IL — One of the candidates for the Elmhurst school board gave a poor assessment of the district's handling of the pandemic. It came in response to an Elmhurst Patch questionnaire for candidates.

The criticism did not come from one of the challengers. It was from incumbent Jim Collins, who has served on Elmhurst School District 205's board since 2009.

"Hindsight is 20/20, but I think the school district could have done a much better job of dealing with the coronavirus pandemic," Collins said.

In the questionnaire, he said he has recommended since July that the superintendent form an advisory board of four physicians — an infectious disease medicine specialist, an epidemiologist, a pediatrician and a mental health professional — to help guide the district's actions.

Again in hindsight, he said, the district should have allowed elementary school students to attend school five days a week, in either a morning or afternoon session. The academic subjects could have been covered in person, while the "specials" are done remotely, he said.

Collins also said the district needs to acknowledge that in the last year, only one case of virus transmission was found to have occurred in the schools.

"We need to get all of our kids back into their classrooms ASAP," Collins said in the questionnaire. "The Harvard School of Public Health has determined that 3 feet of social distancing is safe for kids, ESPECIALLY for kids wearing masks! Our students also rely on their extracurricular activities for their social and emotional well-being. We need to get them back on our sports fields and into their extracurricular activities ASAP!"

Other candidates in the April 6 election indicated the district has room for improvement, but none criticized the district's pandemic-related actions. The other candidates are board President Kara Caforio, Athena Arvanitis, Marie Gall, Laurel Schrementi and Gordon Snyder.

The school district is still offering a blend of in-person and remote learning for students. Next Tuesday, Superintendent Dave Moyer is set to present the plan for in-person learning through the end of the school year.

Many parents have called for a return to full in-person learning. A Facebook group called Reopen D205 formed taking that position. In December, one of its leaders, Leslie Stettin, filed to run for school board, but she is no longer a candidate. She told Patch she withdrew her candidacy.