Last week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorized and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended that the Pfizer version of the COVID-19 vaccine booster be made available to people ages 12 and older. Based on these actions, District 86 is partnering with Jewel-Osco to host a clinic at Hinsdale Central on Monday, Jan. 24, from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. during which those who meet the eligibility requirements can get a booster shot or the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Please note that the Pfizer booster and vaccine are the only ones that will be offered during this event.

In order to receive the booster shot, you must be 12 years or older and have completed the two-dose series of the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine at least five months ago (i.e., no later than Aug. 24, 2021) or received the single-shot Johnson and Johnson vaccine at least two months ago (i.e., no later than Nov. 24, 2021).

While the Pfizer vaccine is currently available to anyone who is 5 years or older, Jewel-Osco will only be providing the first dose of the age 12+ formulation during the clinic on Jan. 24.

This event is open to any member of the community who meets the eligibility requirements for the booster or first dose of the vaccine that are listed above. It is also open to:

We will share more information about the clinic in the days ahead, including the link you can use to schedule an appointment. In the meantime, you can utilize the links below to learn more about the FDA and CDC providing increased access to the booster.

In November, we announced that we will be administering "no harm" final exams for first semester. "No harm" means that the score a student receives on a final exam cannot lower their grade for first semester - i.e., if they have an A going into the final, that is the grade they will receive regardless of how they do on the test.

Below are a few reminders about these exams, which will take place Jan. 12-14.

You can access additional information about first semester final exams, including the schedule and attendance protocols, by visiting https://bit.ly/30dMSR0.

During its meeting on Nov. 18, the District 86 Board of Education decided to extend our expanded free meal program for everyone through the end of first semester. The board also decided that evening to shift the availability of the program for second semester to students who qualify for free and reduced lunch or have an approved demonstrated need. That shift will take effect on Jan. 19.

In addition, Quest Food Management Services has informed us that it will be raising prices on several lunch items at the start of second semester. These increases, most of which are either $0.25 or $0.50 per item, are due to the challenges created by the ongoing global supply chain issues (e.g., not enough workers to process, distribute and deliver food, increased fuel prices, ocean freight disruption, etc.). Below is a list from Quest of the items being offered second semester, with the ones featuring price increases highlighted in yellow..

If a student has food needs that we can help address through our expanded free meal program, please share that information with their counselor or social worker. If you have questions or need more information about our free meal program in general, please contact Julie Van Ness (630-570-8214) at Hinsdale Central or Kristin Scamehorn (630-468-4216) at Hinsdale South. If you have questions or need more information about the price increases, please contact Josh Stephenson at jstephen@hinsdale86.org.

District 86 created a video that highlights our world language program. In the video, teachers and students from across the district share their experiences with language learning. They also talk about the benefits that such learning can have in high school and beyond, and offer advice to students who might be interested in studying a language in the future. You can check out the video by visiting https://youtu.be/cTsjWr8bujw.

Students in District 86 can enroll in five world languages: French, German, Latin, Spanish and American Sign Language. We offer a full four-year sequence of study in French, German, Latin and Spanish, and a two-year program of American Sign Language through the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Department that is housed at Hinsdale South.

We want to thank everyone who took part in the video for helping us showcase the tremendous opportunities and endless possibilities that are available through our world language program.

Jui Khankari from Hinsdale Central is one of 300 high school seniors who have been named scholars by the Society for Science in conjunction with the organization's annual science and math competition. The international competition drew over 1,800 applications from more than 600 schools.

The scholars were chosen based on their "exceptional research skills, commitment to academics, innovative thinking and promise as scientists as demonstrated through the submission of their original, independent research projects, essays and recommendations" (Jui's project is titled Automated Detection of Arterial Landmarks and Vascular Occlusions in Acute Stroke Patients on Digital Subtraction Angiography Using Deep Learning). They and their schools will receive $2,000 each.

On Jan. 20, the Society for Science will select 40 finalists from the group of 300 who will take part in a week-long competition (March 10-16) that will feature more than $1.8 million in awards.

You can access additional information about the competition by visiting https://bit.ly/31A1sTG. We congratulate Jui on this impressive accomplishment, and wish her all the best in her bid to be named a finalist.

In November, Hinsdale South's fine arts department presented "RENT: School Edition." In December, the Illinois High School Musical Theatre Awards, which is an organization that celebrates outstanding achievement in musical theatre by Illinois high school students, featured the following members of the show's cast on its Facebook page.

Bravo, Hornets.

The world language teachers from Hinsdale Central select a Star Student two times per semester. These are students who:

Below is the list of individuals who were recently named Star Students. We congratulate them on this accomplishment.

The Illinois Civics Hub recently interviewed Hinsdale South social studies teacher Kelly Van Hout for a blog post about service learning and civic engagement that was featured on its website. In the piece, Van Hout talks about the service learning project her civics classes participated in first semester. She also discusses how the project benefited students from an academic and personal standpoint.

You can check out the post by visiting https://bit.ly/31u3ODr. You can also watch the video about the class and project that we produced for our "Inside the Classroom" series by visiting https://youtu.be/hEfY-vKKlm4.

The following faculty and staff members were selected as the winners of Hinsdale Central's Make A Difference Award for the second quarter of the 2021-22 school year.

These individuals earned this recognition for going above and beyond the call of duty for our students.

We congratulate all of the winners, and thank them for everything they do on behalf of the Red Devil community.

Keith Bockwoldt, who is the district's chief information officer, was among the leaders in education who were interviewed by THE Journal for an article titled "13 Predictions for K–12 and Technology in 2022." In the piece, which you can access by visiting https://bit.ly/3HNc0xY, Bockwoldt talks about some of the issues that he thinks schools will focus on in 2022, including:

The next District 86 Board of Education meeting will be held on Thursday, Jan. 13. The agenda and packet of materials for the meeting will be posted on BoardDocs (https://bit.ly/394u9as) and shared via email tomorrow (Jan. 11).

You can access a more detailed breakdown of this data by building at https://bit.ly/3d93aws.

Employees who work in the administration building or are not assigned to a specific school - 98%