Sorted by date Results 376 - 400 of 983
Fall MAP scores show students in Community Consolidated Elementary District 181 are high-achievers and, in almost all cases, showing more growth than their peers. “Some school districts only focus on achievement,” Superintendent Hector Garcia said. “We’re very proud of achievement but also focusing on student growth.” Districtwide, 72.1 percent of students met or exceeded the 69th percentile benchmark, while 79.2 did so in math. That percentage falls in line with results for the past six tests in reading (71.9 to 77.3), sa...
The Hinsdale Central girls swim and dive team earned two individual state championships and eight top-10 finishes en route to second place at the IHSA state finals Friday and Saturday at FMC in Westmont. "This is the best state meet we've been a part of - and we've been a part of some really good ones," said varsity head coach Bob Barber, who has led the team to three runner-up finishes. "I didn't think last year's school records were beatable and we took down five more (see...
Monday mornings can be tough. This past one, I lost my credit card before I even got in the shower. I had planned to combine my morning walk with a quick errand to pick up some cold medicine for my daughter. So I put my credit card in my pocket with my earbuds and headed out. To get a full 2 miles in, I headed in the opposite direction of the store for the first half of my walk. By the time I had circled back to my house, I decided to give up on the rest of my walk and just dr...
Hinsdale police are looking for a few good men — and women — to apply for one of two open officer positions with starting pay of $75,885. “We’re aggressively recruiting because the market is so slim,” Chief Brian King said. “We started to see a downward trend during the last cycle.” The department typically recruits officers every two years. Over his 36 years in law enforcement, King has seen cycles with 200 applicants seeking one or two positions. “In our last cycle, I think we had 60 applicants for four positions. We’r...
Sometimes the best therapy comes from a four-legged friend. "Whether we realize it or not, they are good therapy. Animals have a calming effect and that's one of the benefits of a pet with a veteran or anybody who has anxiety or PTSD or suffers from any of those types of conditions," said Andrea Wendlandt, pet therapy/veteran program manager at the Hinsdale Humane Society. "Pets are soothing and calming and there have been studies that have been done to show those effects...
I never asked my dad, who's been gone 20 years, about the time he spent in the Army in Korea. He served there between 1958 and 1960, a good five years after the war ended. I found a photo album after my mom passed away filled with pictures of his time in the service. I wish I could look at it with him. I didn't want to make that same mistake with my birth father, Bob Short. He has shared some stories about his time in the Marines in Vietnam with me since we first got in...
As staffers finalize the fiscal year 2023 budget for the village of Hinsdale, one important component is the capital improvement plan. The five-year CIP identifies $12.5 million worth of expenses slated for 2023-27. Next year’s budget includes $2.4 million — $958,500 for public services, $550,000 for parks and rec, $484,600 for police, $251,280 for administration/finance/information/technology, $135,000 for economic development and $69,000 for fire. Village manager Kathleen Gargano noted the village does not always spend the...
Community Consolidated School District 181 continues to be among the highest-performing districts in the state, according to the 2022 Illinois School Report Cards. All seven of the district's elementary schools earned an exemplary designation and the two middle schools are rated commendable. When the last report was released in 2019, the district had six exemplary schools and three commendable ones. "We are so thrilled that seven of our schools fell into the exemplary range...
Of the six Hinsdale Falcon football teams that made it to the second round of playoffs, only one will head to the Bill George Youth Football League Super Bowl Saturday - the undefeated 11U Silver Team. Head coach Jake Corcoran said he felt a mix of relief, excitement and pride when the buzzer sounded and the Falcons had defeated the Elmhurst Eagles 14-0 to earn the Super Bowl berth. "We spent a ton of time preparing and it definitely paid off," he said. "Obviously everyone is...
I’ve been thinking a lot about the seasons of life. Perhaps it’s the sign of a mid-life crisis (arriving late!) or a symptom of the pandemic’s extended unwind. Maybe it’s my resistance to change, which surfaced early, according to the story my mom used to tell about how I would cry every time she put on sunglasses. On Monday, as I watched our 2-year-old next-door neighbor toddle over and try to decide whether she wanted to say “trick or treat,” I couldn’t help but think of...
Declining SAT scores might be the headline when looking at the 2022 Illinois Report Card, but the picture of how high school students are faring academically is more complicated, said Chris Covino, assistant superintendent for academics in Hinsdale High School District 86. SAT scores for Hinsdale Central students are actually up slightly in math from 2021 and down slightly in English/language arts, based on the percentages of students meeting and exceeding state standards....
I never saw Christina Aguilera's original "Beautiful" video when it came out 20 years ago. I'm not sure I would have appreciated it if I had. But as the mother of a soon-to-be 14-year-old who sees herself as anything but beautiful, I found the remake of the video - released in honor of World Mental Health Day and the 20th anniversary of her album "Stripped" - to be profound. The new video dramatically illustrates the pressures kids are under today, with images from...
Greg Theotikos Senior Hinsdale When did you first start playing soccer? My first time ever playing soccer I was like 3 or 4 during AYSO. I started club soccer probably when I was 10. What do you enjoy most about the sport? The great people. I've been playing with the same group of people for a while. It's always nice to get out of the house and play soccer with a great group of people. It's just fun. It's a sport I've been watching and playing forever. I've come to enjoy...
Americans are expected to spend more than $3 billion on Halloween decorations this year, the highest amount in the past four years. A quick drive through town demonstrates something we already know. Hinsdaleans like to keep up. New this year is the 12-foot animated hovering witch from Home Depot, spotted in a dozen locations in town (601 & 708 S. Lincoln, 604 & 733 S. Monroe, 123 & 235 N. Washington, 716 S. Vine, 552 Phillippa, 600 Mills and two listed below). She has glowing...
When classes resumed in August, students at Monroe and Elm schools all had the same idea during recess. "The first couple of weeks there were lines of 30 kids deep waiting to get on the zipline," said Lara Massouras, president of the Monroe School PTO. "In a perfect world, we probably would have got two of them." The new zipline at Elm, also purchased by the school's PTO, was just as popular. "It is one of the hottest items out there. There is always a line to use the...
Mike Wiggins' first introduction to the Hinsdale Central soccer program was at an Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association Banquet at the Starlight Inn off Interstate 294 near Rosemont. Wiggins was a high school senior, there to be honored, and his own coach was busy organizing the event. Coach Dick Flesher approached him with an invitation. "I'm pretty sure you're Mike Wiggins. We've got a couple of seats over here. Why don't you come and join us?" Wiggins remembers...
"Don't worry, be happy." You can still hear it, can't you? "Ooh, ooh, ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh, don't worry Ooh, ooh, ooh ooh oo-ooh ooh oo-ooh, be happy." Ah, Bobby McFerrin, so much easier said - or sang - than done. Which is why authors like Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, who penned "The Power of Positive Thinking," and Dale Carnegie, author of "How to Stop Worrying and Start Living" have sold millions of copies. And why magazines like Real Simple publish special editions...
Hinsdale trustees voted unanimously Tuesday to approve changes to the landscape and site plan for a two-story medical office building at 110 E. Ogden Ave., despite objections from adjacent homeowners. The plan calls for 21 15-foot arbor vitae and two 9-foot Douglas firs to be planted along the property line to provide screening for Dr. Cara VanWormer-Hartman’s new chiropractic clinic. “Our code says clearly that the only screening that is required is 6-foot trees,” Village President Tom Cauley said. “What the owner has don...
If you’re lucky, you have a great pic of your kids in their Halloween costumes taken by Jim Slonoff at one of Hinsdale’s Fall Family Fests. My favorite one of Ainsley is from 2009, when she was just 10 months old and dressed as an adorable pink bunny. She’s sitting by a pint-sized pumpkin with her cloth carrot resting in her lap and one of her silly little half smiles on her face. She’s had some great costumes over the years — Minnie Mouse, a witch, Cinderella and Laura Ingall...
When Becky Schreiber left a career in accounting to stay home with her young twins, she wanted to find a way to give back to the community. She decided to support education, first by volunteering at the twins' preschool and now Madison School, where she is co-president of the PTO with Heather Rooney. "I do have time and flexibility in my schedule," said Schreiber, who was the PTO treasurer before becoming co-president two years ago. "What greater way to give my time and resour...
Pending board approval later this month, Hinsdale High School District 86 will have its first unified program of studies for both high schools for the 2023-24 school year. “This is not Central’s. This is not South’s. This is D86. That’s a huge accomplishment that cannot be underscored enough,” board President Erik Held said. Chris Covino, assistant superintendent for academics, said this effort by administrators and teachers has been underway for some time. “We have been working over the last three years to get to the place t...
If it weren’t for Eric Riegger, the Hinsdale Central boys and girls varsity golf teams each would be short one player this season. Emil, a senior, and Lilly, a freshman, both point to their dad as the reason they got into golf. Emil remembers some early morning play when he was just 9 and 10 years old. “When we lived in Ireland, we used to go in the morning around 6 a.m. to just play nine holes and then come back,” he said. That experience might come in handy this weeke...
Sophia Kim senior Hinsdale When did you first start playing tennis? When I was about 8 years old. I initially tried a lot of sports when I was younger. I did soccer, volleyball, swimming. Tennis is the one that really stuck. I started competing more regularly and traveling to more tournaments when I was 11 or 12. That's kind of when I decided tennis was my main sport. What do you enjoy about being on the high school team? Tennis is typically an individual sport, but in the...
While reading Sarah Ban Breathnach’s best-seller “Simple Abundance” years ago, I first encountered the term “secret anniversaries of the heart,” a line from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem “Holidays.” “The holiest of all holidays are those Kept by ourselves in silence and apart; The secret anniversaries of the heart ...” The phrase struck me when I read it and is on my mind this week, even though the anniversaries of the heart I am celebrating are not particularly secret...
Hinsdale voters will elect officials and weigh in on a proposed amendment to the state constitution and various referendums when they head to the polls Tuesday, Nov. 8. Of course, they don’t need to wait until Nov. 8 to vote (see sidebar). Constitutional amendment The proposed constitutional amendment would add a new section to the Bill of Rights Article of the Illinois Constitution that would guarantee workers the fundamental right to organize and to bargain collectively and to negotiate wages, hours and working c...
