The Naperville Unit 203 Board of Education on Aug. 4 approved a position statement urging Naperville city leaders to vote against renewing their contract with the Illinois Municipal Electric Agency (IMEA), a move board members said is necessary to preserve the district's carbon‑reduction goals and students' long‑term health.
Board liaisons to the district's carbon action planning team, board members Mark Walinski and Joe Kosminski, presented the statement and asked the board to adopt it. “As leaders, we have an obligation to make sure we’re looking out for the health and safety of our students,” Walinski said, noting that the carbon action plan was unanimously approved by the board earlier this year and that students helped craft it.
Members of the public, including Pat Caruso of the Naperville Environment and Sustainability Task Force and Joe Huss, who leads the city's energy team, urged the board to support the statement. Huss told the board that IMEA’s generation contributes “3,500,000,000 pounds of pollution every year” for Naperville’s electricity and said the IMEA contract contains no commitments to transition to cleaner power.
Student speakers and parents also urged action. Allison Lee, a Naperville North student, said the district could “pave the way for a better future” by opposing the extension.
Action: The board voted to approve the position statement by roll call. The motion passed with board members voting in favor. The statement is intended to be sent to Naperville elected officials ahead of the city's scheduled council vote on the IMEA extension.
Why it matters: Board members said a long contract extension with a coal-heavy power provider would make the district’s carbon-reduction targets harder to achieve and could affect student health; board members framed the vote as amplifying student and community voices.
Next steps: After board approval, the statement will be transmitted to Naperville city leaders and used to encourage public comment at the city council hearing on the proposed IMEA contract extension.