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Jerry and I support Margie Kleber for re-election to the D181 Board of Education for the two-year term. Margie has been our friend for more than 30 years. While being a first-grade teacher at The Lane, I (Lois) was fortunate to have three of her four children in my class. Margie has served a full four-year term on the board and is currently the president. She previously served as the vice president, secretary and was chairman of the facilities committee. She promised to bring the $53 million HMS construction project under...
I hope you will join me in supporting Margie Kleber in her candidacy for the District 181 Board. As the current president of the board, Margie is in the unique position of providing to the new board not only solid leadership but also experience and continuity of leadership, something her opponent lacks. This has been a challenging year for our children and our schools, and Margie has provided the leadership that we needed to get children back in the classroom safely. I have known Margie for many years and worked closely with...
The upcoming election on April 6 covers municipal positions including our school, library and village boards. These are probably on your radar. But the election also includes board and key staff of Downers Grove Township, the unit of local government that you probably don’t know much about (it’s the largest of the nine townships in DuPage County). Most of Hinsdale (the portion west of County Line Road) is in Downers Grove Township, and the township also includes adjacent suburbs to the west and south. The township annual bud...
Hinsdale, we have a problem. Many of us moved to Hinsdale because it is best in class. Consistently ranked one of the top places to live in Illinois, Hinsdale has enjoyed a sterling reputation for its public education system, which ensures our children are prepared for success and our property values remain strong. That reputation is in danger due to the D86 board’s inability to lead. Lack of transparency in governance. Suppression of different views. Curriculum decisions apparently being made without sufficient analysis o...
I am writing to express my enthusiastic support of Debbie Levinthal for the District 86 Board of Education. I’ve known Debbie for 10 years. The first time I heard Debbie speak was at a parent meeting for our children’s preschool. I remember being blown away by her articulate advocacy about food allergy precautions in the classroom. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to work with Debbie on school-related committees. I’ve also sought her opinion on various education topics. Debbie has served as a guide for me as I navig...
I strongly support Jeff Waters and Peggy James for the Hinsdale High School District 86 Board. Jeff and Peggy will bring much needed good governance to the school board. Our high school is the gem of our community. It is widely regarded as one of the best high schools in Illinois, and we need to ensure that remains the case. School board decisions not only affect the quality of our children’s education, they also affect home values, which are directly tied to the quality of our schools. A top quality high school must have a...
I am writing to share my enthusiastic support for Debbie Levinthal for the District 86 Board of Education this April. Debbie is a dear family friend, respected neighbor and an amazingly caring mother to four wonderful children, two of whom currently attend Hinsdale Central. When first meeting Debbie years ago, it was a comical turn of events when my husband recognized her as his algebra II and trigonometry teacher from New Trier High School. From my husband’s personal experience, I quickly learned that Debbie was an e...
I am extremely pleased to support Debbie Levinthal, candidate for the District 86 Board, and in my view, one of the original advocates for maintaining academic excellence in our district. She has been “part of the conversation” since 2019 when the first of the high school curriculum changes was proposed for the science program. Months later, when a new math curriculum was presented, Debbie did extensive research on the proposal and proactively reached out to district administrators to advocate against this curriculum cha...
My name is Haley Dynis, I’m a junior at Hinsdale Central High School and a life-long friend of Kendall Pickering. I’ve recently seen articles regarding the ribbons around town honoring the life of Kendall. As residents have displayed disapproval of the ribbons, I too would like to voice my opinion of their disrespect to our honorable gesture. Loved ones of Kendall took the week after her passing to put up ribbons in her honor. The ribbons stayed up for less than two months before being deemed a controversy in our town. By...
I am writing to announce my enthusiastic endorsement of Jeff Waters and Peggy James for the D86 Board of Education. As the campaign manager for the 2019 D86 referendum, I spent countless hours working alongside Jeff. While attending meetings, knocking on doors and having great dialogue with both “Yes” and “No” voters across the district, I personally witnessed Jeff work tirelessly and passionately for the betterment of all 4,000 students in our district for over five months. I observed him consistently respond to various...
I read with some interest The Hinsdalean’s recent article (Feb. 25) regarding the rezoning application for the property located at 505 S. County Line Road. This property is owned by Fred Krehbiel, a third generation Hinsdale resident. Fred had a very successful business career and has been a major benefactor to the village and other Chicago area non-profits for many years. I suspect that the request for a zoning modification is to preserve the residence. The statement by the ZBA chairman that this request is to enable the o...
Death brings up deep emotions and a desire to honor deceased loved ones. While we feel compassion towards those motivated to express their grief by partaking in the new ritual of tying plastic ribbons around parkway trees, our circle of compassion also includes the health of the environment. We are finding fragments of plastic ribbons on sidewalks, parkways and streets. We are facing a growing global plastic pollution crisis. There is no end in sight as virgin plastics continue to be produced. Plastic doesn’t biodegrade a...
The D86 BOE needs Debbie Levinthal at the table. I know Debbie Levinthal first as a neighbor, but when D86 started discussing curriculum changes, Debbie stepped up to advocate for our kids and the academic excellence of our schools. More than a concerned parent, Debbie approached the proposed curriculum changes calmly as a seasoned teacher — sitting down with teachers and administrators to understand what motivated the changes and what metrics demonstrated these changes would improve outcomes for all students. As a former hig...
I recommend Terri Walker for the Hinsdale High School District 86 Board in the April 6 election with great enthusiasm. I met Terri several years ago as a neighbor, but I have gotten to know her better through her tireless work as a parent working to improve our schools. I have sought out Terri’s opinion on a number of issues because of her sound judgment. Well before she announced her candidacy for the District 86 Board, Terri demonstrated her commitment to ensuring the children in our community have access to a world-class e...
Ken Knutson’s article from last week was timely for me. I was a “Ribbon Rower,” believing there could be more tasteful, constructive ways to memorialize the loss of a loved one. I thought the above, until three of Hinsdale’s finest police officers paid a visit to the home of my fiancé the evening of Dec. 15. The tragedy of that evening mobilized an emotional support team that I have never witnessed before. Hinsdale Central students, with the assist of parents, quickly began wrapping trees with ribbons. To quote Roger Ebert: ...
As a longtime resident of Hinsdale, parent and committed supporter of District 86, I have been puzzled and appalled by the curriculum changes that have been hastily implemented in our district over the past two years. Families move to our community expecting their children to receive an excellent education. Sadly, the changes made to our science and math curriculum will put that excellence in jeopardy. One size does not fit all when it comes to education and curriculum. The science and math departments at Hinsdale Central...
As a long time resident of Hinsdale since 2001 and having two sons (including a current eighth-grader at Hinsdale Middle School) attend D181 public schools (Madison Elementary and HMS), I have a deep love and respect for one of the finest school districts in Illinois. D181 was the major reason why we moved to Hinsdale in 2001 from Chicago. Therefore, the April 2021 D181 Board of Education election will be crucial given the difficulties and unexpected challenges to education created by the COVID-19 pandemic. I wholeheartedly...
Christine Dannhausen-Brun is a highly-qualified candidate for the District 181 Board of Education. She is intelligent, well-read and a hardworking volunteer. For over 12 years, while her children attended Madison School, we collaborated together in a variety of ways. Christine is an involved parent in her children’s activities, with a wide variety of school endeavors and district initiatives. Her children are very active in Scouts, sports, music and dance, and she often offers her support. At Madison School, she could be foun...
On April 6 there is a vitally important election for the District 86 Board of Education and it is crucial that our community elects Jeff Waters and Peggy James. This upcoming BOE ballot features 10 candidates, which is a testament to the passion and concern of our community for the direction of D86. The seven member BOE has four open seats and it’s composition has never been more important. Three major issues in our district are: (1) the demand from parents to return students to full-time in-person learning, (2) the r...
As an over 30-year resident of Hinsdale, I am more grateful than ever for the thoughtful vision, courageous initiative and effective execution of Superintendent Tammy Prentiss and her team in negotiating a relationship that made COVID-19 vaccinations available to all critical employees of District 86 and the LADSE cooperative last week. While there are many more hurdles before our teens, their families, faculty, and supporting staff can achieve their new normal, it is a real gift to the village that Superintendent Prentiss an...
What a service to the community! As vice president of the DuPage County Board of Health, I have come to appreciate the importance of public-private partnerships for the good of the whole community. It is praiseworthy that Hinsdale High School District 86 has developed a partnership with Osco in order to vaccinate teachers and older residents. The DuPage County Health Department has been seeking additional vaccination sites to help increase the rate of vaccination delivery, and District 86 became one of the health...
Responding to Reid McCollum’s letter last week (Jan. 14) regarding Republicans, it is hypocritical to say one party uses racial stereotypes when your party has the history of racial exploitation and seeking power by maintaining a permanent underclass. Cancel culture and media bias are real. How can we have an honest dialogue and any reconciliation when one side’s facts are labeled as propaganda but then replaced with the other side’s false narratives? — Joe Craig, Hinsdale...
With November’s election behind us, sharp focus should turn to the April 6 consolidated election. One important issue on the ballot that can drastically impact real estate value is the Hinsdale Township High School District 86 Board. Education costs amount up to 80 percent of our property taxes here in D86. In order to remain competitive with Chicagoland suburbs and private schools, voters in D86 must be informed on the issues and vote accordingly. Our kids are hurting. They are struggling emotionally, socially and academical...
When I sat down to hang a picture frame and put my awl to the frame, I remembered Mr. Todd. When I was sanding a piece of wood and knew to trust my own sense of smooth, I remembered Mr. Todd. When I drew the plans for a small bookcase I wanted for my study, I remembered Mr. Todd. Mr. Todd was my seventh- and eighth-grade shop teacher at Hinsdale Junior High School from 1953-55. He began my love of hand tools and the beauty of woods. He looms in my memory as a self-effacing man who taught skills, procedures and respect for...
The American Legion Post 250 of Hinsdale would like to thank each and every one of the Clarendon Hills Middle School PTO members that took time and effort to send gift cards to all the vets who attend programs at the schools. We all look forward to being at school on Nov. 11, on the 11th day, 11th hour. Thank you. — Jack Orbell, commander, and Charley Hartley, chaplain, American Legion Post 250...
