As we head into the winter months, we want to remind students, staff, families and community members about the process, protocols and procedures we will initiate and follow should we need to close our schools due to inclement weather.

Please visit https://bit.ly/3rREamP for information about how and when we will communicate weather-related updates. There are also details about the Emergency Weather Learning (E-learning) Days we will implement if we need to close our schools.

During the District 86 Board of Education meeting on Nov. 18, we announced that we will be administering "no harm" final exams for first semester. "No harm" means that the score a student receives on an exam cannot lower their grade for the 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.

In addition, attendance for these exams will be optional. Students do not have to take final exams, but can if doing so might improve their grade or offer them experience taking a test in a particular subject area.

Please visit https://bit.ly/30dMSR0 for more information about the plan for first semester final exams, including the schedule and attendance protocols.

The speech teams from Hinsdale South and Hinsdale Central continued the strong start to their seasons by finishing in second and third place respectively at the Elk Grove Invitational on Dec. 4.

They also had top three finishes in the following individual events:

We congratulate both teams on their accomplishments.

Last week's edition of The Hinsdalean featured a story about how Hinsdale Central sophomore Sofia Giannini used an assignment from her entrepreneurial studies class to learn about the impact that one person can have on the environment through recycling.

In the piece, Sofia shares some of the key takeaways from her research. She also talks about how making some simple changes to our recycling practices and habits can go a long way toward helping the planet.

You can check out the article by visiting https://bit.ly/3EMcZ0n. Photo credit to Jim Slonoff from The Hinsdalean.

Great job, Sofia.

Hinsdale South has a new Recording and Broadcasting Club that was created so students could explore their passions and interests (e.g., creating podcasts, learning about audio production and engineering, giving musicians access to a recording studio, etc.) beyond a traditional radio station.

Students Henry Sullivan, Matt Sagat and Olutomiwa Adeeyo have been working with English teacher Walter Downing, activities director Nick Chavarria, and the administration from South to launch the club and transform the school's old radio station room into a modern facility where students and staff can not only learn more about making podcasts, music, etc., but also record and share their own creations. Thanks to the fundraising efforts that were spearheaded by Sullivan, Sagat and Adeeyo, the club has been able to purchase new equipment and upgrade the space. There are also more than 20 students who are currently signed up to present their podcasts every week.

You can learn more about the programs that are already part of the club by visiting http://twitch.tv/hinsdalesouthhighschool.

We congratulate everyone who has been involved in this exciting endeavor, and can't wait to check out some of the shows.

We want to congratulate the Hornet Leadership Board from Hinsdale South and the several clubs from Hinsdale Central (National Honor Society, Business Professionals of America and Peer Mentors) that worked together on the toy drive in honor of Joey Ventimiglia. This year's event was the most successful one to date.

Representatives from South and the Ventimiglia family delivered the donations during the WGN Morning News on Dec. 10 in conjunction with the station's 19th annual WGN Morning News Toy Drive.

Huge thank you to all of the students, staff, families and community members who contributed to this important initiative.

Hinsdale South students Rebekah Salvato, Ashley Jimenez-Santiago and Kaitlyn Wong earned top three finishes for the works they submitted in conjunction with the recent Write-On writing competition. Rebekah took second place in the poetry category for her piece titled "Poor by Not Really;" Ashley took third place in the poetry category for her piece titled "Dead Retail;" and Kaitlyn took third place in the short stories category for her piece titled "Letters to You."

Write-On is a series of writing events and activities for kids and teens that is sponsored by the Gift of Carl Foundation. The foundation was formed in memory of Carl Vuillaume, a student from Hinsdale South who drowned in 2005 at the age of 16.

We congratulate Rebekah, Ashley and Kaitlyn on their awards.

Hinsdale South and Hinsdale Central recently celebrated World Language Week (Dec. 1-7), which highlighted the value of multilingualism and cultural diversity.

Students from both schools had the chance to participate in a variety of activities that included:

On Dec. 3, students from Hinsdale South enjoyed a presentation by guest speakers who talked about the positive impact that knowing and speaking Spanish have had on their personal and professional lives. These speakers included South parents/guardians Rudy Flores, Sr. and Michael Ockrim. South alumnus Matthew Bennett, who is currently pursuing his doctorate in Barcelona, Spain, recorded a video message for those in attendance.

Meanwhile, students from Hinsdale Central had the chance to talk to some of their peers about the benefits of being enrolled in two languages at the same time. They also heard from former Etymology students about how the course has helped them on standardized tests and with their education in general.

We thank everyone who participated in the celebration of what it means to be a global citizen. We also want to express our appreciation to all of our world language teachers for organizing this incredible learning opportunity for our students.

The next District 86 Board of Education meeting will be held on Thursday, Dec. 16. The agenda and packet of materials for the meeting will be posted on BoardDocs (https://bit.ly/394u9as) and shared via email tomorrow (Dec. 14).

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%