Recognition of Accomplishments
The board recognized the following individuals and teams for their accomplishments at recent state competitions.
- Boys swimming and diving team from Hinsdale Central - State title; five championships in individual events; three state records; 18 top 10 finishes; most points scored by a state champion in nearly 50 years
- Speech team from Hinsdale Central - Fourth place overall; six top five finishes, including a state championship in Humorous Duet Acting (Tess McArdle and Jackie Vogel)
- Destiny Prater from Hinsdale South - Third place in the Poetry Reading event for speech
- Cody Tavoso from Hinsdale Central - Fourth place in his weight class for boys wrestling
- Marko Ivanisevic from Hinsdale Central - Fifth place in his weight class for boys wrestling
Board Liaison Reports
Hinsdale Central's Meghna Mitra and Hinsdale South's Makena Camden presented the board with information from their student liaison reports. You can access Mitra's report by visiting
https://bit.ly/400702r and Camden's report by visiting
https://bit.ly/3yqHckd.
Superintendent’s Report
Below are the topics that Superintendent Tammy Prentiss addressed in her report to the board.
- National School Social Work Week
- The Illinois 5Essentials Survey
- Upcoming events
New Contract with HHSTA
The board ratified a new four-year contract with the Hinsdale High School Teachers Association (HHSTA). You can access an executive summary and statement about the new contract by visiting
https://conta.cc/3ylfWnh.
Board - New Business
During the portion of the meeting dedicated to new business, the board:
- Discussed the process for hiring a new assistant superintendent for academics to replace Dr. Chris Covino. Dr. Covino announced last month that he had been hired to serve as the new superintendent for LaGrange District 102 beginning July 1, 2023. Following its discussion, the board directed the administration to post the position and secure a proposal from the Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) that details the potential costs and logistics associated with having them help coordinate/lead the search. The board asked that the proposal be brought to them for review, discussion and possible action on March 23.
- Approved the selection of May 3, 2023, as the date for the organizational meeting that, per policy 2:210 (Organizational Board of Education Meeting), must be held in conjunction with the consolidated election on April 4, 2023.
Committee Reports
Members of the Parent-Teacher Advisory Committee (PTAC) provided the board with a report from their
meeting on Feb. 28. The board also approved the release of the draft minutes from this meeting as part of the consent agenda.
Consent Agenda
The board approved the consent agenda as presented. Please visit
https://bit.ly/3kWzLOq to access the consent agenda items beginning under number 10.
Board President's Report
President Held talked about Dr. Chris Covino. He shared that it was a privilege to work with Dr. Covino, and said that he was an outstanding addition to District 86 whose impact will be felt for years to come. He stated that his absence will be felt across the district and congratulated him on his new job.
President Held also thanked Dr. Patrick Hardy for sharing information about Women's History Month earlier in the meeting. He encouraged people to explore the works of female authors and provided several examples that he would recommend.
Future Agenda Items
During the portion of the meeting about future agenda items, President Held shared that the discussion about the changes to the social studies curriculum and follow-up presentation about the costs associated with the work of the strategic plan are scheduled to take place on March 23. He also shared that the presentation about the performance of students who were previously enrolled in the district's AR and G-level courses is scheduled to take place on April 27.
In terms of other future agenda items, board member Debbie Levinthal reiterated her previous request for a discussion about finding creative ways to provide students from both campuses with access to courses. In addition, member Levinthal shared that the plan for discussing potential changes to policy 2:105 (Ethics and Gift Ban) was still being determined.
Summer School
- The start and end dates for each semester
- Details about registration, transportation and materials
- Information about course, enrichment and workshop offerings
Preliminary Staffing Recommendation
The administration presented the board with its preliminary staffing recommendation for the 2023-24 school year. The board is scheduled to take action on this recommendation during its meeting on March 23.
Audience Communication
Members of the public spoke about the following topics during the two opportunities they had to give audience communication:
- The new teacher contract, including the timing of the agreement and inclusion of early release Wednesdays
- The availability of course offerings on both campuses, and the cancellation of courses due to low enrollment
- Balancing enrollment
- Public access to information prior to board meetings
- The framework that is used to help guide staffing decisions
- Equal educational opportunities
- The district's program of studies
- The demand for biology classes
- Board candidate perspectives on diversity, equity and inclusion work
- The impact of early release Wednesdays
- The performance and support of students with IEPs
