DISTRICT 62 IN THE SPOTLIGHT February 20r4

Compliments of Community Relations

Mindy Ward, Director of Community Relations

wardm@d6z.org

The Des Plaines Journal, Wednesday, February 5, 2014

Scouts Take Journal Tour Above: Boy and Girl Scouts from both Iroquois Community School in Des Plaines and St. Emily School iQ Mt. Prospect were part of an interactive tour of the Journal & Topics Newspapers of­fice on Monday, Jan. 20. Iroquois students include (back row from left} William Nowiszewski, Brody Kroschel, Logan Warnock, Ryan Roback, Jack Rowe and Riley Kro­schel, (front row) Dylan Kroschel, Collin Roback, Richie Nowisze­wski, Ava Roback, Madelyn Rowland and Delany Kroschel. Right: St. Emily Pack 235, which has Scouts from Des Plaines and Mt. Prospect, Nathaniel Cha, Matthew Carrasco, Timmy Wiley, Robert Wiley and Dylan Cha. (Photo courtesy of Kelly Roback)

The Des Plaines Journal, Friday, February 7, 2014

Iroquois Kids Display Talent

Several acts take the stage today (Friday) for the annual Iroquois Community School Talent Show.

Enjoy performances from 6 to 8 p.m. in the Iroquois gym­nasium. The school is located at 1836 Touhy Ave. in Des Plaines. Door opens at 5:45' p.m. and the show kicks off at 6 p.m. Participants in the show must arrive by 5:35p.m.

Judges for the event in­clude "Power Stern," "Money Mandel," "Me B" and "Heidi Bloom" with hosts "Canon" and "Carey," similar to the judge and host names on the show "America's Got Talent."

PriZes will be handed out dur­ing the event as well.

The Des Plaines Journal, Friday, February 7, 2014

Register D62 Kids Feb. 11

Tuesday, Feb. 11 is an im­portant date in Des Plaines Elementary School Dist. 62.

When the day is over, Iro­quois Community School and every elementary school in the district will register the first members of the its Class of 2023. This annual event is called Kindergarten Regis­tration and is the tradition of pre-registering students who will be five years old on or before Sept. 1, 2014.

To register, parents or guardians must bring the child's birth certificate and proof of residence in Dist. 62. Parents can apply to the county clerk in the county where their child was born to receive a copy of the birth cer­tificate. Registration forms, immunization requirements, and other materials will be distributed at each school.

Parents must come to the school their child will at­tend to verify registration and receive the necessary materials. Children must be five years old on or before September 1, 20 14 to enroll in kindergarten.

For information on how to obtain a birth certificate, call the Cook County Clerk's of­fice at 312-603-7790.

Registration will take place from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. For more information, contact Dr. Janice Rashid, assistant su­perintendent for Instructional Services, at 84 7-824-1 169.

The Des Plaines Journal, Friday, February 7, 2014

Dist. 62 Sets Make Up Dates Des Plaines elementary stu- ·

dents who enjoyed a few extra days off last month will have to make up those days.

Des Plaines School Dist. 62 will use four of their five emer­gency make up dates. Those make up days are Apr. 21 and June 9- 11 . Those dates were previously non-attendance days for students.

Schoo1 was closed four days in January after bitter cold made travel and attendance unsafe for students. As the cold has persisted, the district even cancelled after school activities on Wednesday, though classes went on as scheduled.

If schools close again. the

district must use their final emergency day of May 23, according to Mindy Ward, spokesperson for Dist. 62.

If further school days are cancelled Ward does not be­lieve they will have to extend the school year beyond June 1 1. She said the district would have to file an Act of God peti­tion with the state of Illinois to forgive those days. The state requires schools to have at least 174 pupil attendance dates.

The Des Plaines Journal, Wednesday, February 12, 2014

Iroquois School Has Talent

Iroquois Community School students with the MBD Martial Arts team display some high energy moves to the beat of "You're The Best" from the "Karate Kid" soundtrack. The act brought the crowd to its feet during Friday's talent show at the Des Plaines school

on Touhy Avenue. Later, Iroquois students seated in the front row get in on the act, danci .. b their part to Lillian Garrett's performance of "What Does The Fox Say?" (Tom Wessell/ Journal photos)

The Des Plaines Journal, Wednesday, February 12, 2014 "Iroquois School Has Talent" (Continued)

Students Show Off Talents

Amanda Byrne, the Iroquois Community School talent show's first solo act of the night, performs "You Raise Me Up" on violin last Friday In school gym. (Journal photo)

The Des Plaines Journal, Wednesday, February 12, 2014

D62 Budget Process Set

The school year is only half over but already Des Plaines School Dist. 62 is looking at next year's budget.

The Dist. 62 school board Tuesday approved the pro­posed time line for the 2014-15 budget. Staffing plans will begin this month as will the bid process for summer 2014 projects.

Staff will present enrollment projections and the tentative

staffing plan to the board of education at the Feb. 18 meet­ing. The bidding process for summer projects will continue throughout the spring with bid presented to the board as needed.

The school board is ex­pected to approve the 2014-15 staffing plan at their Mar. 17 meeting.

Meetings will be held with administrators and school principal in April to review their preliminary budgets for next school year. Initial bud­gets are due Apr. 23.

Those budget requests should be finalized by June. The board is expected to vote on the tentative budget in July, with the final budget vote coming in September, after the school year has started.

Property tax levy discus­sions will begin in October.

This year's budget called for $92,009,217 in revenues and $97,285,600 in spending.

DP Schools Honor Own Algonquin Middle School eighth grade student Derek Pace was honored at the recent Des Plaines Elementary School Dist. 62 Board of Education meeting at Forest School. Pace earned an Eagle Scout Award for construct­ing lockers for the First Con· gregational Chur.ch's preschool program. With Pace is Dist. 62 board President Brenda Murphy.

During the January Des Plaines Elementary School Dist. 62 Board of Education meeting President Brenda Murphy presented each National Board for Certified Teachers (NBCD recipient with a certificate of Achievement and thanked them for their commitment to excellence in teaching. NBPTS is recognized as the source for the highest standards and practices that lead to improved teaching, leading and learn­ing. From left is board President Murphy, and recipients Jaclyn Fuentes, bilingual kindergarten, Plainfield Elementary School; Jeannie Pantelin, third grade, Cumberland Elementary School; Anne Beranek, physical education/health, and William Snyder, physical education, Iroquois Community School.

The Des Plaines Journal, Friday, February 21 , 2014

Algonquin Middle School in Des Plaines named students in sixth, seventh and eighth grade to the school's High Honor Roll and Honor Roll at the end of the second quarter. To qualify for High Honor Roll , a student must receive a grade point average of 3.61 or greater with no grade lower than a C in any subject. To qualify for the Honor Roll, a student must have a grade point aver­age between 2.9 to 3.60 with no grade lower than a C in any subject.

High Honor Roll

Zachary Abero, Stephanie Acuna, Arsalan Afshar, Camille Ang, Jenny Arenas, Daniela Aristeo, Alan Arizmendi Almaraz, Jhonette Bal­ingit, Caroline Barnett, Maeve Bemero, Oliv ia Bitcon, Alyson Block. Sarah Borgman, Lindsy Brito, Catherine Buchaniec, Dylan Budnik, Brett Candra, Cheyanne Chiero, Haley Clark, Kassan­dra Connor, Joshua Conte, Jaelynne Contreras, Jeidy Cruz Rodriguez, Caitlin Curtin, Kamila Czerlonko, Dorin Drimboi, Natalia Duda, Reilly Duell man, Ashley Dwy, Neveen Elmajdoub, Sara Engel, George Espinoza, Karina Estrada, Blazej Ezlakowski, Olivia Feldkamp, Sara Forystek, Michael Framke, Justin Freko, James Ganza, Jennifer Gomez, Brianna Gonzalez, Jonathan Gonzalez, Crystal Gonzalez, Raha Goodarzi, Stephen Harayo, Romar Harayo, Xiao He, Me­gan Howard, Katherine Hudson, Alexis Huerta, Spencer Huetter, Griffin Huetter, Jennifer Jiman, HetaJoshi,AiexandraJuszczyk,JakubJuszczyk, Madison Kallio, Atakan Keceli, Cole Kelly, Ra­chel Kent, Michael Keo, Sheryar Khan, Veronica Kleinschmidt, Tomasz Kmiotek, Alexander Ko- · ciolek, Maja Kozerski, Logan Krol, Leah Kuhn, RobertKulanda, ClaudiaKupczyk, Skylar Kustra,

Algonquin Students Earn Honor Roll Spots

Matthew Lach, Jessica Lima Lezama, Michael Liston, Sarah Liston, Jessie Long, Jessica Lopez, Patricia Lopez, Natalie Lopez, Elena Lozano, Al­exandra Malewicz, George Markakis, Marisabel Martinez-Mata,Abigail Milovancevic,Jacqueline Miranda, Ashwini Modi, Sara Montes, Anahl Moreno, Claudia Morrison, Garrett Morrison, Maria Mraz, Jennifer Muhr, Valeria Murillo, Brandon Murillo, Sara Niedzielski, Stephania Nutu, Nestor O ' Brien, Robert Ochoa, Marycruz Olague, Paul Oliva, Andrew Orlowski, Nina Palmer, Nikko Pancho, Anne Jazmine Pangani­ban, Samantha Parcell, Shaira Pascua, Yogi Patel, Nancy Patel, Shree Patel, Shivam Patel, Kesha Patel,Jelena Pejovic, Braulio Perez Ibarra, Besnik Perezic, Collin Peters; Jose Quintana, Vanessa Reyes, Christopher Rios, Jenna Robbins, Ma­son Robbins, Stephanie Rodriguez, Yolianette Royal, Jada Rugnone, Josephine Ruiz, Ivan Sanchez, Marty Iinette Sanchez, Alicia Sanchez, Benjamin Sanfilippo, .Alexis Santos Melchor, Anthony Saucedo, Kevin Schill, Zoe Schmidt, Sydney Schroeder, Josthel Sebastian, Jacqueline Sepulveda, Kristen Sevcik, David Siek, Aaron Smeya, Hilton Steele, Jessica Steingard, Peyto n Sturgeon, Justin Subovitz, Mary Jane Sullivan, Lauren Szeszol, Nicole Taneva, Marlene Tapia, David Thacker, Jacob Thvedt, Ilia Tomov, Jas- · min Torres, Jizelle Torres, Norris Tran. Alondra Trejo Diaz, Jacinth Valera, Lydia Varghese, Andrea Vavrinek, Vanessa Vazquez, Salomon Vazqtiez Gomez, Brandon Velazquez, Cecelia Vergil, Grasiela Victor, Amber Ward, Zachary Ward, Andrew Willett, Nicholas Wojtan, Joseph Wright, Alexis Yacobucci, Ramsen Youssef and Magda Zarebski.

Honor Roll Megan Adamowski, Maraya Adams, Randy

Aguilar, Meltem Aksoy, Darla Alanis, Cody Albecht, Guadalupe Alcaraz, Obada Almassri, JonathanAlvarez,CamilleAng, YeseniaAparicio, Anela Arapovic, Ashley Arias, Daniela Aristeo,

Julian Bahena, Adrian Banat. Nichola~ Basista, Holly Bleeden, Miriam Bowen, Kathryn Bran­ick, Natalia Brazkowski, Lindsy Brito, Andrew Budnik, Johnlyniel Burgos, Vanessa Campos, Ann Janel Canlas. Eduardo Carrillo, Jessica Casillas, Mariano Castro-Nava, Salvador Ccja, Glenda Ceja, Ana Ceja Godinez, Marcelina Chaidez, Nayeli ·Chavez, Esmeralda Chavez, Steve Chrisovitsiotis, Jennifer Cisneros, James Class, Olivia Collins, Noah Condon, Kassandra Connor, Manuel Contreras, Rodrigo Contreras, Demarion Cooley, Jonathan Cortes, Emily Cortez, Josselyn Cru~.Ashley Cmz, Kevin Cuellar, Allan Curea, Caitlin Curtin. Girolama D 'Ugo, Darius Dan, Kristian Dankov, Yesenia Del Rio, Yesica Del Rio, Edgar Delgado, Nicole Dragosh, Dorin Dnmboi, Reilly Ouellman, Alyssa Duty, Taras Dzhul, Paola Espino, Osvaldo Espinoza, Karina Estrada, Gabriella Faraone, Stephanie Felleti, Cazandra Fem'andez-Soto, Kathryn Fitzpatrick, Jason Flores, Jennifer Flores, Patricia Forystek, Olivia Forystek, Diego Franco, Jake Freko ,James Ganza, Julio Gaona, Miguel Garcia, Daniel Garcia Eustaquio, Jessica Garibay, Alejandro Garibay, Peter Giannopoulos, Angel Gomez, Brenda Gomez Garcia, Yoselin Gomez Gomez, Jonathan Gonzalez, Crystal Gonzalez, Ken Marty Gorospe, Kielle Anais Gorospe, Jose Graciano Pinedo, Jareli Grimaldo, Hannah Gutstadt, David Hall, Stephen Harayo, Tyler Helgesen, Miguel Hernandez, Hector HemandezAcevedo, Nicholas Horcher, Arianna Hom , Lionel Huerta, Spencer Huetter, Alishia Hussain, Alexandra Ibarra, Kevin Jacob, Dayanne Jacome, Jordan Johann, Ellie Johnson, Ruth Joides, Matthew Jordan, Sabina Jurczyk, Laxman Chowdary Kakara, Tina Karajic, Sophia Katsikaris, Michael Keo, Ayesha Khan, Sheryar Khan, Michael Kleszcze­wski, Margot Koenig, J akub Kozak, Logan Krol, Robert Kulanda, Skylar Kustra, Andrew Leon, Patricia Lopez, Jocelyn Lopez, Natalie Lopez, Jorge Lopez, Hannah Lund, Joel Magana Cante, Dian Margarijo, Claudia Marron, Jose Martinez,

Jaime Martinez, Isabel Mena, Yvette Michael, Kaitlyn Mimp, Dev Modi, Pablo Montes, Sarah Montes, Anahl Moreno, Jennifer Muhr, Yasmin Muniz, Daniela Murillo, Valeria Murillo, Bran­don Murillo, Matthew Mustari, Redir Nanakaliy, Jose Narez, Cristopher Nava, Zachary Nelson, Nicole Niedzielski, Melissa Nim,Abigail Nunez, Sarah Nuscher, Stephania Nutu, Paul Oliva, Caleb Olmeda, Grace Olsen, Alejandro Olvera, Muktar Omar, Danna Ortiz, Derek · Pace, Mar­garet Packard, Shaira Pascua, Patryk Pasierbek, Kesha Patel, Saira Perez, Daniel Perez, Sandy Perez-Lara, Julio Pereznegron, Anastasi Peric, Akash Pillai, Sarah Powell, Nicole Powell, Belen Ramirez, Raul Ramirez, Victor Ramos, Samuel Rath, Leonardo Reyes, Noelia Reyes Marin, Chris Rizos, Fernando Rodea, Juan Rodea, Karen Rodriguez, Maribel Rodriguez, Mel issa Rodri­guez, Eva Rodriguez Reyes, Olivia Rog, '!3dwin Roman, Maria Romero, Pedro Romero Flores, Osvaldo Rosas-Pachuca, Yolianette Royal, Jada Rugnone, Josephine Ruiz, Jessika Ruzga, Ivan Sanchez, Stephania Sanchez, Liliana Sanchez, Jasmine Sanchez, Margarita Sanchez Garcia, Anthony Saucedo, Elizabeth Serrato Romero, Thomas Sevcik, Adeirah Shelton, Jalen Smith, Kacper Sobotka, Angel Soria, Michelle Starc­zewski, Nicholas Stathis, Hilton Steele, Chase Stephen, Abigail Straessle, Mary Jane Sullivan, Fariba Sultani, Sam Suriano, Emma Tammo, Nicole Taneva, Susana Tecalero, James Thomas, Jalyssa Thomas, Vanessa Torres, Brianna Torres, Eyzel Torres, Mark Toscano, Manuel Toscano, Angel Trejo, Daniel Trejo, Rebecca Troncoso, Lindon Ujkashi, Alexandar Urdov, Jocelyn Uribe, Jacinth Valera, Elizabeth Vallejo, Marcus Varga, Lydia Varghese, Evelyn Vega, Britney Ve­lazquez, Liliana Vences, Victoria Venetsanakos, Pieter.Venter, Nataly Victor, Andrea Villalobos, Teresa Villalobos Rivera, Nicole Voss, Sebastian Walkosz, Brandon Walski,Amber Ward, Danielle Wendtland, Patrick Worley, Jason Ybarra, Tiana Ynocencio, Ramsen Youssef, Yvette Zalewski and Stephanie Zepeda.

Chicago Tribune, Sunday, February 23, 2014

F. g a new funding fonnula Lawmakers talk about ways to level playing field for schools BY DIANE RADo Tribune reporter

State officials are pushing to overhaul how Illinois pays for public schools, a dramatic and potentially unpopular move expected to take money away- from wealthy districts scattered across the Chicago region.

Instead, more state dol­lars would flow into impov­erished and less affluent districts that can't raise as much from their local com­munities for schools - most likely downstate as well as disadvantaged districts in Cook, Lake and Kane coun­ties, a Tribune analysis found.

The concept isn't new -shifting money to more needy districts h115 long been a cornerstone· of the state's efforts to distnbute tax dollars fairly to schools. But education reformers say the system used to dole out state money, created in 1997, has become inequita­ble and outdated.

"Today, the law doesn't reflect priorities - it re­flects the priorities of 1997, not of 2014, and the state is very different today;• said state Sen. Andy Manar, co­chairman of a Senate com­mittee that is recommend­ing school funding reforms. Manar,_ who represents a Downstate district, cited the rise of schoolchildren in poverty and declines in property wealtli. that help generate local school taxes.

Experts say this is the most serious effort in nearly 20 years to fix a troubled system plagued by inequi­ties. But some lawmakers think a major overhaul would be a tough sell in an election year.

The proposed changes generally would meat) a loss of state dollars for many of Illinois' premier school dis­tricts - typically affluent, high-performing districts in the Chicago region, school finance experts say.

"That's just a given - any districts of decent wealth are going to receive a lot less (state) revenue in the end," said Michael Jacoby, a for­mer superintendent and executive director of the Illinois Association of School Business Officials.

Overall, 75 percent of the wealthiest school districts in Illinois are iii the Chicago region - i;n Lake Forest, Wlllnetka, Hinsdale and other affluent enclaves, state data show.

If state dollars decline, local taxpayers might be asked to increase the~r property taxes to maintain school programs, though they already carry a heavy load. The state contributes 27 percent 7 even though the Illinois Constitution says the state has the "pri­mary respo_nsibility" for fi­nancingpublic schools.

Lawmakers started dis­cussing the proposed re­forms in a hearing last week in Springfield. The General Assembly and the governor would have to sign off on any changes. And even if reforms are approyed, the state would not immedi­ately cut funds to districts, allowing them to adjust to changes over a three- to five-year period

Recommendations by the Senate Education Advisory Committee include: · • Creating a new funding formula that folds almost all state dollars for operating schools into a single pot that would be distributed based on district property wealth. Typically, more local wealth means less state aid. Now, less than half of state dollars for schools are distributed based on district property wealth. • Eliminating the "poverty grant" program that doled out millions of state dollars, even to rich school districts. The program has ballooned because of an increase in the number of poor stu­dents under a more liberal definition of low income. The Tnbune wrote about the practice last year, re­vealing that many affluent suburban districts receive poverty grants. • Eliminating a se_earate chunk of money - called a block grant - that is ear­marked for Chicago Public Schools for certain pro­grams. Instead, CPS would get money for those pro­grams, the same as others, through the new formula

In a recent analysis, the state calculated that CPS got nearly $484 million in 2011-12 through block grant programs. It would have received $249 million if had it been treated like other

districts through the cur­rent formula

The state's largest district is "still evaluating the de­tails'' of the funding propos­als to see if it would gain or lose overall, a spokesman said • Giving districts extra money for students who need more help, including low-income children, those who have not mastered English and special educa­tion students.

The new formula also uses "weights:• a funding

calculation common in other states. For example, a district would get 25 per­cent more - or a weight of 0.25 -for each low-income student. Some students could be assigned multiple weights, depending on their needs.

Under the funding pro­posals, districts_ would re­ceive an extra $25 to $50 for each student labeled as gifted, though the number of students would be capped in a district

Facing budget troubles, the state wiped out $19 million for gifted programs that served about 165,000 students in 2002-03, leaving districts on their own to

· fund them. Some money was restored in 2008-09 but cut again after that.

Chicago Tribune, Sunday, February 23, 2014 "Finding a new funding formula " (Continued)

The thinking seemed to be that ''these kids are smart, and they'll be .fine no matter what,'' said Georgia Nelson, a longtime teacher of gifted students at Hough Street Ele­mentary School in Barrington, where District 220 has maintained gifted programs using local tax dollars. In reality, the students often need acceler­ated programs and become bored or lost . in regular classes, Nelson said.

In a recent gifted class at . Hough, groups of third-, fourth- and fifth-graders were working at small ta­bles to solve problems in the "24 Game:' an activity that requires students to · use multiple ways to get to the number 24. The problems involve square roots, deci­mals, fractions and algebra­ic principles usually taught in higher grades. ·

The property-rich dis­trict is likely to lose state funds under the broader proposals.

"I don't see us winning;' said Tim Neubauer, the district's chief financial offi­cial.

Barrington 220 is one of 66 school districts in the state with the highest prop­erty wealth- generating an abundance of local tax dol­lars for schools. Of those 66 districts, 82 'percent are in the Chicago region, state data show. An additional 177 districts are in the sec­ond-highest category of

wealth. Of those, 72 percent are in the Chicago region.

The last group, 617 school districts, are in the lowest category, with 83 percent of them downstate.

The Chicago region has 106 of these districts, but many have relatively high property wealth compared with downstate districts. Those with very low wealth would likely benefit from the funding proposals, in­cluding districtS in Aurora, Cicero, Dolton, Harvey, Ford Heights, Waukegan and Zion.

Several of these are large districts with thousands of disadvantaged kids. Ad­·vance Illinois, an influential education reform group, thinks the majority of

schoolchildren in the Chi­cago region would benefit

·from the proposed funding changes.

The effect on the state's nearly 300,000 special edu­cation students isn't yet clear. The proposals in­clude melding most chil­dren with special needs into the new funding formula and granting them addi­tional "weights," which have not been defined.

Now, special education is funded separately from the usual system. Students who require more extensive services would continue to be funded separately under the Senate committee's pro­posals.

Bev Johns, chairwoman of the Illinois Special Edu­cation Coalition, is con­cerned.

"The fundil1g recom­mendations in this report would result in even more students in Illinois not re_. ceiving essential special ed­ucation services:' she said.

Manar, a Democrat whose district includes Springfield and Decatur schools, said he will file legislation soon that will provide more details . Changing the func;Jing sys-tem could be a ''long and difficult road;' Manar ac­kpowledged.

Given the state's budget troubles, lawmakers and educators agreed it may be a challenge to boost school funding. And without more state money, the reforms would be less palatable to lavvr.nakers. .

Asked if he thinks the funding overhaul will be approved this spring, DeKalb County Rep. Robert Pritchard said, "Honestly, no."

Pritchard, the Republi­can spokesman on the House committee oversee­ing public school spending, thought the· legislation will be "cherry-picked;' mean­ing some parts could be approved in separate bills.

Not all school-funding issues were addressed in substantive way in the Sen­ate committee's reconunen­dations.

The committee was criti­cal of controversial sub­sidies given to· districts that operate under tax-cap laws that control local property tax increases. But members said more time was needed to address the problem. The Tribune wrote about these little-known subsidies last year.

Districts, including Chi­cago Public Schools, have received the subsidies based on a complex formula

that ~entially pre­tends a district has less property wealth than it really does. Manar called the situ­ation "one of the many anomalies that plague the system."

Under new fund­ing proposals, it's clear that districts with high numbers of

low-income, special educa­tion and limited-English students would benefit, re­ceiving extra money for those children. It's also ap­parent that many districts would no longer receive the same poverty grant funding as they did in the past.

In Des Plaines-based School District 62, high property values generate lo­cal dollars that cover more than 80 percent of the budget. . The district was eligible this year for about $1.4 million in state aid, based on its property wealth. It also was eligible for a poverty grant of rough­ly $3.6 million.

"I can tell you that we will lose poverty grants moving forward;' said As­sistant Superintendent Nel­son Gray, president-elect of the Illinois Association of School Business Officials.

If his district and others lose a hefty chunk of state dollars, they "might need to come back and ask the local community for a tax rate increase, Gray said.

He's prepari.Qg to warn his school board that the district could take a hit.

drado@tribune.com

"The law doesn't reflect priorities - it reflects

. the priorities o/1997, not of 2014.". - State Sen. Andy Manar

District 220, which Includes Hough, has maintained gifted programs using local tax dollars. Sophia Cal, left, and Sofia Rodriguez attend a recent class for gifted students.

Chicago Tribune, Sunday, February 23,2014 "Finding a new fundingformula" (Continued)

Where money could flow A push to overhaul how Illinois funds public schools could mean more state taxpayer dollars would flow into less affluent districts, many of which are downstate, as well in disadvantaged areas of Cook, Lake and Kane counties. Less money is expected to go to wealthy districts, many of which are in the Chicago area If state dollars decline, local taxpayers could be asked to increase their property taxes to make up the gap in funding.

MOST AND LEAST AFFLUENT DISTRICTS IN ILLINOIS By estimated /oc~l property wealth per pupil .

1125 most affluent

Most affluent district: Butler Dlst. 53 (Eiem.) Estimated local property wealth per pupil: $2.1 million

251east affluent

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-/ •··--. . i-'--..6!.. ,.._, ! : f ~ ' L., ·- ..J.. 1 ' ..J -· . ,, ® ,.r, ...... • J '\,_ ). :t \. Sprln&field

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Least affluent district: East St. Louis Dlst. 189 (Unit) Estimated local property wealth per pupil: $16,139

DISTRICTS IN THE CHICAGO AREA Among Cook, DuPage, K,ane, Lake, McHenry and Will counties

Most affluent districts Estimated local property

District (Type) County wealth per pupil

Butler Dlst. 53 (£/em.) DuPage $2.12 million ....... ···-··· ............................ , .. ..... ·············· ........................... ....... . Lake Forest Community Dlst. 115 (H.S.) • Lake $1.68 million

··· ··········· ···· · ·· ..... .. ... .. ...... .. ......... ····· ·· - · ············ ·········· ···

Rondout Dlst. 72 (Eiem.) lake $1.64 million ........................................ ..... . .... ....... .. .............. Salt Creek Dlst. 48 (£/em.) DuPage $1.41 miUlon ... ..... ..... ···· ···· ···· ···· •· •·· ··· ···· ~··· ................ . New Trier Township Dlst. 203 (H.S.) Cook $1.34 million

• Bannockburn Dlst.106 (£/em.) lake .... ······ ·······• •····•·•·· · ·· ·· ··· · ·-··· ······ ···········•···

Hinsdale Township Dlst. 86 (H.S.) DuPage

$1.34 mllllon

$1. 21 m llllon ............. .... ....... .... ....... ............ ............... ...... .. . ............ .. ........... . Twp. Dlst.113, Deerfield..<Highland Park (H.S.) Lake·

Lake Forest D)st. 67 (£/em.) ·· ·· ·····••• ··· ... . ···· ·· •· ····· ·· ·· ·•·•

Northfield Township Dlst. 225 (H.S.)

Lake

Cook

$1.18mllllon

$1.11 million .

$1.01 million

Least affluent districts

District (Type)

Estimated local property

County wealth per pupil

f:!il.~eY_()Ist_._ 1_S,~ .. (~/er!l) Cook $45,030

Cicero District 99 (£/em.) · Cook ... .... .. .. ..... .......... ................ .. ..... .. ................. .

t,'Ur?rii .. E.<i~~-IJ.n.lt_DI~t.1_31_(l!.n.'9....... .. ..... : ....... .. Kane Lincoln Dlst. 156 (Eiem.) Cook

$53,515

$55,462

$57,0 31

c~~~~c~~~: Dl~·i:· i-68~5~~-kvillag~ (ii~~:--;--·-- c~~k-- ..... $6o:oii. Park Forest'Dist.163 (£/em.) Cook P~~~~-~R~bbi~·; ·DI~::i43:s·(£iem.J .... , ......... c;~k

.............. ............ ................................................. ..................

~~~_k_eg~n C.o.".l~~-"-'~--~lst: .~-~ ('!_~!~!.._ Lake North Chicago Dlst, 187 (Unit) Lake .. ...... ......... .. . .. ........ ....... .. Round Lake Area Dlst. 1\6 (Unit) Lake

$60,125 .............

$60,361

$62,781 $64,844

$66,994

NOTE: Estimated local property wealth per pupil is based on the 2011 district equalized assessed value, a property wealth measurement used In calculating state aid for each district. divided by the average dally attendance In each district. SOURCES: A Tribune analysis of Illinois State Board of EducatiOn school finance data. ESRI TRIBU.NE

The Des Plaines Journal, Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Rivers Donates $20K To School In Chicago

Rivers Casino in Des Plaines presented a check for $20,000 to Daniel J. Corkery Elementary School on Chicago's far south side bringing its 2013 and early 2014 charitable giving to $1.5 million.

The donation to Corkery School was made in conjunction with the WNBA's Chicago Sky team that plays out of the Allstate Arena in Rosemont.

Since the casino opened in 2011, Rivers Casino has donated nearly $3.3 million in charitable giving.

Organizations benefiting from Rivers' charitable giving in Des Plaines, the Northwest Suburbs and Chicago include; the Frisbie Senior Center in Des Plaines, Des Plaines School Dist. 62, Maine West High School, Our Lady of Destiny in Des Plaines, Maryville Academy in Des Plaines, Oakton Commu­nity College, the Des Plaines Chamber of Commerce Young Entrepreneurs program, Notre Dame College Prep in Niles, the Albany Park Community Center in Chicago's Northwest Side, the Chicago Blood Cancer program, St. Zachary School, the Pan-African Association.

The Des Plaines Journal, Friday, February 28, 2014

Bolly-Bound Iroquois Students Learn

Art Of Indian Dance '

By HEATHER HOLM Journal & Topics Reporter

Fifth grader Juhi Soni has taken classical Indian dance lessons since she was 4 years old. She showed progress in her footwork during the school talent show every year starting from ldndergarten.

But this year, she decided to do something different. Iroquois Community School's first Bol­Iywood dance team performed during the Des Plaines school's annual talent show Feb. 7. Soni organized the group and took the initiative in training the girls who signed up.

On stage that Friday night at Iroquois, the group danced to the catchy Indian tune "1, 2, 3, 4 Get on the Dance Floor."

Dancers included Juhi Soni, Katie Benzinger, Jes­sica Pop, Katrina Capozi; Sarai Vasquez, Rosemarie Brain and Dua Mathani. Soni's brother Mohnish was theDJ. None of ~the girls had any dance experi­ence, so Soni kept things simple. The girls worked after school

fro.m 2:45 to 4:15 p.m. every Thursday with Iroquois teacher Melissa Llano. Even.though the girls had some butterflies before taldng stage, the 11-year-old Soni said she provided moti­vation and told them to not be afraid. "I said, 'we will wear beautiful costumes, dance and believe."'

Soni shared a little more about why she enjoys the high-energy Indian dance style. "You do a lot of movement with this kind of dance," she said. "You sha}ce your hips a lot and move your hands. You use your whole body." .

Leading up to the talent show, Soni taught the girls moves such as flicking their hands, raising their knees and doing the wave. She gave each move a fun title so the girls could remember them such as "pass the pizza," "show the sun," or"show people around the world."

Soni is inspired by dance and her passion is to earn a degree in performing arts and become a Bollywood dance teacher one day. Everyone who performed

Iroquois Community School's Bollywood dance team, which performed during the school's

· Feb. 7 talent show, with teacher and dance volunteer Melissa Llano.

at the talent show received a first place ribbon and the girls received a certificate that said "From Bollywood to Holly­wood."

"It was fun," Juhi said. "The girls did a really good job."

The Iroquois troupe wows onlookers with some Indian dance moves during the school talent show Feb. 7. (Journal photo)

The Des Plaines Journal, Friday, February 28, 2014

Dist. 62 School Board Meets Monday

Des Plaines school officials will be grading their own performance at this Monday's school board meeting.

The Des Plaines Elementary School Dist. 62 agenda for 6:30 p.m. Mar. 3 at Forest School, 1375 Fifth Ave., Des Plaines, includes discussion of long­range planning goals for the board of education. Supt. Jane Westerhold and board President Brenda Murphy will lead the discussion.

The school board sets broad goals each summer that guide policies and decisions throughout the year. Mindy Ward, spokesperson for Dist. 62, said Westerhold updated the board on their progress last month.

Ward said the board will likely focus on two goals: first, to provide challeng­ing, interesting and engaging academic work for students every day to prepare them for further education and life; and second, that all teachers and staff will possess the skills to lead, teach, assess and support students for success.

Monday's meeting will include a closed-session period for the board to conduct a self-evaluation. Ward said that discussion would relate back to their progress on annual goals. A representa­tive of the Illinois Association of School Boards is scheduled to be included in that closed-session. No action is ex­pected to be taken Monday.

The Des Plaines Journal, Friday, February 28, 2014

Former Teacher Positive Till End Dist. 62 Educator Eugene Wasco, 84, Dies From Pulmonary Disorder

By HEATHER HOLM Journal & Topics Reporter

Eugene E. Wasco, a longtime Arlington Hts. resident who worked for Des Plaines School Dist. 62 for close to 30 years, died on Feb. 18 after a battle with cardiovascular obstructive pulmonary disorder.

The 84-year-old Wasco was a teacijet, coach and principal in Dist. ~2: During his tenure, he tauglit math and pHysichl education and sports ranging from baseball and basketball to football, hockey and soccer. He was principal at North Elemen­tary School for about 20 years. He also worked as a coach with the Des Plaines and Arlington Hts. park districts.

Wasco started working in Des Plaines in the 1960s and retired in 1987, according to his wife Trish Wasco.

"He loved teaching and he loved coaching," she said. " A few students have sent their condolences. A couple students have seen him in the

Eugene Wasco

hospital." Trish said even though he was

sick, Gene never let it diminish his positive demeanor. "He was very optimistic and pleasant and usually pretty happy," Trish said. "He was like this all the way up until the end. He was always wanting to go out and do things until the last few weeks."

Wasco was also an avid reader, a Cubs baseball fan and member of Trinity Lutheran Church in Des Plaines for over · 40 years. He was an accom­plished accordion player and previously won the Morris B. Sachs Award.

He graduated from Northern Illinois University and was an all-conference shortstop for NIU's 1951 and 1952 champi­onship baseball teams. He was even inducted into the univer­sity's hall of fame. He played baseball in the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs farm systems along with the Chicago Blades. While serving in the Marines, he was a selective service mail carrier in Japan and played on the baseball team.

Trish met Gene when they both worked for Dist. 62. They celebrated their 50th anniver­sary in July 2013.

"We met when we were both teachers in Des Plaines," Trish said. "I taught at West Elemen­tary i.n Dist. 62 and then they closed it." She decided to stay at

home to raise their son, Michael, and then workedfortheAt-Risk Program at Maine West from 1991 until2000.

Before becoming a teacher, Wasco ran a boys and girls camp called Camp Timber Lake in Summit Lake, WI, which he and his wife owned with another couple who taught in Dist. 62. They owned the camp for about five or six years in the 1 960s.

Wasco passed away on Tues­day, Feb. 18 at Northwest Com­munity Hospital in Arlington Hts. at 84 years old. He is survived by Trish and only son Michael, who resides in Wash­ington, D.C. He is also survived by sister-in-law Shirley, many cousins, nieces, nephews, great nephews and nieces, and great­great nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and only sister, La Verne.

There will be a visitation tomorrow (Saturday) from 9:30 to 11 a.m. and a memorial service from 11 a.m. to noon at Trinity Lutheran, 675 W. Algonquin Rd.

The Des Plaines Journal, Friday, February 28, 2014

State Testing In D62 Begins Monday Des Plaines Elementary

School Dist. 62 students will take state-required achieve­ment tests beginning Monday, March 3 and continuing through Friday, March 14.

Students in grades 3, 5, 6 and 8 wip. be tested in readiJ:lg and mathematics. Students in grades 4 and 7 will be tested in reading, mathematics and science.

These tests are part of the Il­linois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) program, and are required by the state oflllinois to be given to all eligible students. Parents can help their child do his or her best on the test by:

1 ). making sure, if possible, that their child attends school for the full day on the days of testing;

2) making sure their child gets a good night's sleep the night before each testing day;

3) providing a healthy break­fast the morning of each testing day;

4) being certain that their child has a healthy snack and lunch;

5) reminding their child to ask the teacher if he or she does not understand the test directions;

6) letting. their child know that they have confidence in his or her ability to do his or her best; and

7) advising their child not to worry about the test, but to do the best he or she can.

This is the last year that I SAT will be used by the state of il­linois. The state is field testing the PARCC assessment this spring. Various classrooms from across the state will be field testing the Performance-Based Assessment (PBA) and the End­of-Year Assessment (EOY) in Math and ELA.

r----------------------- NASHVILLE AR EA CAREER FAI R GUIDE 2014 DI RECTORY

Engage STUDENTS

Support ACHIEVEMENT

Prepare FOR SUCCESS

For more information about employment, visit www.d62.org/ employment

Community Consolidated School District 6 2

Leon Smooge Administration Center·Humon Resources 777 E. Algonquin Rood Des Plaines, IL 60016

Join School District 62 if you want to serve

with 775+ forward-thinking teachers and

staff in leading, teaching, and supporting

more than 4,883 preK-8th grade students

in a Chicagoland school district.

Community Consolidated School District 62 does not discriminate on the basis of age. race. color. national origin, sex, disability or marital staws in employment or any of the educational programs and adivities that it offers or operates.

An Equal Opportunity Employer.

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