Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Fourteen students from Downers Grove South and 10 from North were listed among the top 2 percent of their senior classes academically, district officials said.
Community High School District 99 in Downers Grove has announced 24 seniors—10 from North High School and 14 from South High School—who are part of the top two percent of their senior classes academically in 2013. “Being a member of the top two percent is a most distinguishing academic honor, as it acknowledges a consistently high level of academic performance across seven semesters of high school,” said District 99 Superintendent Dr. Mark McDonald in a press release. “In addition, these students have excelled in various extracurricular and athletic programs, making them incredibly well prepared for future success.” The top two percent of students, listed alphabetically, from North High School are: Mary Bedalov is the daughter of Lynn and …
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
More than $370,000 in main hallway improvements at both schools could be deferred if the board goes with the recommendation of its facilities committee.
The District 86 Board of Education’s facilities committee recommended after a three-hour meeting Thursday that the board direct administration to rebid several previously approved summer projects and defer others to future years, board member and facilities committee chairman Ed Corcoran said. Among the items that the committee wants to defer is $372,000 in main hallway renovations at Hinsdale Central and Hinsdale South that would include new lighting, flooring, and paint. “Those projects are being recommended to be deferred until we are able to review the cost for doing that on a campus-wide basis,” said Corcoran, who serves on the committee along with Michael Kuhn and Richard Skoda. Corcoran, an engineer who was elected to the board in …
Saturday, May 11, 2013
A long-time Downers Grove resident, the popular social studies teacher and tennis coach with a knack for bringing out the best in students died Friday at age 32.
The Downers Grove and Oak Lawn communities are reeling from the death of a popular teacher and tennis coach, who lost his battle with cancer Friday. Parents received an automated voicemail from Richards High School Principal John Hallberg informing them that social studies teacher and tennis coach Matt Gavin had passed away at age 32 on Friday morning. A Downers Grove resident, Gavin was raised in town, attending Hillcrest Elementary, O'Neill Middle and Downers Grove South High School. Listen to the automated message from the Richards High School principal by clicking on the video attached to this article. After the news broke late Friday afternoon, many parents and students left messages of sadness and grief on Richards’ Facebook page, …
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
The magazine's 2013 report out this week recognizes several Illinois schools.
On mobile? You can see interactive map here. Newsweek has ranked Hinsdale South High School at No. 389 among high schools in the country, with a "Newsweek Score" of 3.28. For its rankings, Newsweek sent out a survey to more than 5,000 high schools in the U.S., with about 2,500 schools responding in 2013. You can see the details about Hinsdale South's ranking, and every other ranked high school by clicking on the markers in the interactive map above. The survey scores were then weighted and calculated using several criteria including on-time graduation and college acceptance rates. In addition, instead of averaging the number of courses offered, this year Newsweek considered the percentage of students enrolled in AP, IB or Advance …
Barrett attended her last District 86 board meeting as a member Monday night at Hinsdale Central, and had some words of advice for her successors.
Dianne Barrett’s favorite experiences as a District 86 board member were her talks with dedicated Hinsdale Central and Hinsdale South parents about their kids. “I was all ears to the parents who had issues and wanted to see them heard,” the board member who has waged a long legal fight against the district over access to records said during her final board meeting Monday night at Hinsdale Central. Barrett, who served two four-year terms and chose not to run for re-election this spring, addressed the audience about her hopes for the new board after she was honored along with fellow outgoing board member Dennis Brennan and DeeDee Gorgol. Barrett said she hopes board members who often vote as part of a minority will not be denied information …
Nancy Kupka and newcomer Rick Pavinato prevailed over Debbie Boyle and Mike Davenport, respectively, after a contentious vote Monday night.
School board members in Community High School District 99 reignited discussion about board dynamics and cooperation Monday night during two contentious votes to elect a new president and vice president. The board voted 4-3 to elect Nancy Kupka as its new president, with board members Debbie Boyle, Keith Matune and Michael Davenport casting the dissenting votes. Newcomer Rick Pavinato was elected vice president just minutes after being sworn into his first term. The vote was again 4-3, with Boyle, Matune and Davenport dissenting. Kupka, who was elected to the board in 2011, was nominated for the position by board member Julia Beckman. "I believe she will bring to the board the unity and consensus building that we need," Beckman said. The …
About 8,000 students nationwide earned the award, including 108 from Illinois.
The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) announced their 2013 Merit Scholar designees and $2,500 scholarship award-winners on Monday, including a Darien resident and two other Hinsdale South students. Among the awardees were: According to an NMSC press release, the winners are the finalists who are determined “to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills, and potential for success in rigorous college studies,” based on an appraisal of academic records, standardized test scores, extracurricular activities, a recommendation and a finalist’s own essays. About 8,000 students nationwide earned the award, including 108 from Illinois The total scholarship money awarded is over $35 million, the release said, with most “…
Monday, May 6, 2013
The man who was picked to replace Dennis Brennan as board president Monday night said efficiency is one of his top priorities and that he's not a "one-issue board member" defined by last year's Hinsdale South movie controversy.
The new District 86 Board of Education took its first actions Monday night and among them was the appointment of a new board president. Victor Casini was elected by a unanimous board vote to take over the body’s leading role that for the last six years has been filled by Dennis Brennan, whose four-year term ended Monday night along with those of DeeDee Gorgol and Dianne Barrett. Casini, a Hinsdale South parent and Burr Ridge resident, is among the three new board members elected along with incumbent Kay Gallo on April 9. The attorney and former Gower School District 62 board member said he does not see himself as above the other six board members, and one of his main goals as president will be to make board meetings more efficient. “I like…
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
District 86's general contractor said the low number of subcontractors bidding on several summer-improvement packages is actually due to a construction market on the rise and a corresponding lack of desire by firms to take on small-scope projects.
The District 86 Board of Education approved the summer construction bids recommended by its general contractor last week despite two board members being unhappy with two one-bid packages and a request from a future board member to postpone the vote until the new board is seated. Board members voted 5-2 on April 22 to approve the selected subcontractors, who are expected to carry out about $1.1 million in construction work the board budgeted for this summer, including main hall renovations at both Hinsdale Central and Hinsdale South, a new girls locker room at South, and new exhaust fans at Central. Dianne Barrett and Richard Skoda casted the “no” votes. Both dissenters said receiving only one bid on two of the eight packages—electrical …
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Freshman orientation will take place on the Tuesday before, with two teacher institute days in between, according to the calendar approved Monday by the District 86 school board.
The first days of the District 86 school year will go differently this August than they have in years’ past. The District 86 Board of Education approved by a 6-1 vote Monday a 2013-14 calendar that schedules freshman orientation on a Tuesday and the first full instructional day the following Friday in order to preserve the orientation day while keeping semesters balanced and complying with a new state statute. According to next year’s calendar, which got the support of all board members except Richard Skoda, freshmen will come in for orientation on the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 20. Two teacher institute days will then take place on Aug. 21 and Aug. 22, before the entire student body comes in for the first full day of instruction on Friday, …
Ed Corcoran
12:21 pm on Thursday, May 16, 2013
Sue - this project and others need further review and we have no information on what this project costs if the entire school was remodeled in this manner. There should be no panic and all measures of prudence and review should be undertaken to protect both students and taxpayers. The Remodeling project is much more than painting - it is new flooring, locker painting and maintenance, new lighting… more ›