We have partnered with Osco to secure doses of the Pfizer vaccine for eligible students (must be 16 or older) from our district and several of our peer districts in DuPage County. The first dose of the vaccine will be administered on May 20 at Hinsdale Central and May 26 at Downers Grove South. The second dose will be administered exactly three weeks later - i.e., June 10 at Hinsdale Central and June 16 at Downers Grove South. All inoculations will take place between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., and be provided free of charge.

Families can learn more about this opportunity and/or register eligible students for an appointment by visiting https://conta.cc/2S90NU0.

We are inviting our students, staff, families, alumni and community members to help us celebrate Teacher Appreciation Week (May 3-7).

If you have expressions of gratitude (e.g. kind words, artwork, photos, videos, etc.) that you want to share about our teachers, please email them to agroh@hinsdale86.org by noon on May 7. Please note that anything you send us may be posted on the district's social media sites in accordance with board policy.

Below is the district's schedule for May. There are a couple of things we want to highlight.

Below is the COVID-19 data for the district as of Friday, April 30.

You can access the dashboard where this information is being stored by visiting https://bit.ly/3d93aws.

Hinsdale Central and Hinsdale South recently inducted new members into their chapters of the National Honor Society (NHS). You can access photos from the ceremony at Central by visiting https://bit.ly/3u9L5q2, and photos from the ceremony at South by visiting https://bit.ly/3e1P4iH.

NHS, which was established in 1921, highlights a school's commitment to the values of scholarship, service, leadership and character. You can learn more about the organization by visiting https://www.nhs.us/about/.

We congratulate the students from both schools who earned this honor.

Every year, the DuPage County Illinois Principals Association recognizes students for outstanding achievement, making positive contributions to their schools and communities, showing strength of character and achieving high academic standards. Below are the names of the five students from Hinsdale South who were honored this year for their leadership at the school or district level.

We congratulate these students on this well-deserved recognition.

A number of students from District 86 have been named 2021-22 State Scholars by the Illinois Student Assistance Commission. You can access the list of students from Hinsdale Central by visiting http://bit.ly/2rhPBYb, and the list of students from Hinsdale South by visiting http://bit.ly/2OT1DjJ.

We congratulate all of our students on this outstanding achievement.

Last month, Pillars Community Health asked people to nominate school social workers who they believe should be recognized for their contributions to their school community.

We are pleased and proud to announce that Lance Martin from Hinsdale South was among the individuals that the organization chose to highlight. He was nominated for this honor by Dr. Robin Vannoy, who is the director of deans at South. In her submission, Dr. Vannoy wrote that she was nominating Lance "because he is able to reach the most difficult, lost student. He forms relationships with students from all backgrounds. Lance is dedicated to helping students and families. He thinks outside the box and is a culturally responsive practitioner."

We congratulate Lance on this well-deserved recognition.

The Hinsdalean recently published an article about a podcast titled "Hold Me Back" that was launched in March by Hinsdale Central sophomore Aidan ElDifrawi and his father Ash.

In the podcast, Aidan and Ash discuss and debate their views on hot topics with an eye toward modeling a new way for generations to communicate with each other.

You can check out the article by visiting https://bit.ly/3e2KP6p. Photo credit to Jim Slonoff from The Hinsdalean.

Junior Aminah Ahmed wrote an article for the Devils' Advocate at Hinsdale Central about how students are balancing school with Ramadan, which is a holy month of fasting, introspection and prayer for Muslims. In her story, Ahmed provides an overview of Ramadan, and highlights the challenges that fasting creates for some students during the school day. You can access Ahmed's article by visiting https://bit.ly/3e6n51n.

Meanwhile, senior Lauren Packard wrote an article for Hinsdale South's Stinger newsmagazine titled "An Introduction to Mindfulness." In the piece, Packard addresses some of the misconceptions about mindfulness, and highlights how the practice can benefit people physically and mentally. You can access Packard's story by visiting https://bit.ly/3gTmIZM.

The District 86 Board of Education will hold its reorganization meeting today (May 3) at 5:30 p.m. During this meeting, the board will recognize outgoing members, administer the oath of office to new members, and elect its president, vice president and secretary for the 2021-22 school year.

You can access the agenda for this meeting by visiting https://bit.ly/3aOdDgY.

The Global Humanitarian Club from Hinsdale South will be hosting a Yemen Night in the school's auditorium on May 6 at 5:30 p.m. During this event, the group will screen a brief documentary about the current crisis in Yemen. This will be followed by a discussion about the film and the issues the country is facing.

While the event is free and open to the public, the club will be accepting donations that will go to help people in Yemen who are facing a number of serious and significant health and humanitarian challenges.

You can access a flyer for the event by visiting https://bit.ly/3nkoF2v.

On May 23, The Community House will host the 14th Annual Walk the Walk for Mental Health. All of the money raised in conjunction with this event will be used to provide individuals and families with equitable access to critical mental health services.

You can access additional information about the event by visiting https://bit.ly/3gMt7Ga. You can also learn more about The Community House by visiting https://bit.ly/3aULtRD.