Will County Gazette

The debate over whether to keep the Monee Education Center in Monee, Illinois, open while work is being done on an addition was ignited during a recent Crete Monee School District board meeting.

Christine Conlon, a teacher at the specialized school, advocated to keep the center open May 17.

"Vote no and allow MEC to remain open as is until the new addition is completed," Conlon said during the meeting. "Let us continue to support students with significant social emotional needs, help those students who are falling through the cracks. Be a safe space for kids that learn differently and are not successful in the general school environment.”

Transition is hard for many kids, but especially those with trauma and instability, she said.

“Having students leave their safe space and temporarily return to a place where they are unwanted, unsuccessful and unloved is a recipe for disaster," Conlon said.

After about 25 minutes of discussion, the motion to close the school building failed with a 5-2 vote. Community members and teachers could be heard celebrating the decision in video of the meeting posted on YouTube.

Debate among the board members and community centered around the MEC's purpose, and whether the center served as a disciplinarian school or if it transitioned into a more therapeutic way of learning for students with social-emotional needs and trauma.

The center's mission is to provide "a supportive and unique educational environment that allows students to complete their grade-level classes in an alternative setting," according to the MEC website. The MEC claims to focus on "restorative, therapeutic approaches to support students' social and emotional needs while empowering them to become independent and actionable individuals."