Recently in Education Category

BY MIKE CETERA

Parents who preach traditional values should be apoplectic. But there has been virtually no backlash over two local high schools' selections for spring musicals that deal in very adult issues. Have we turned a tolerance corner, or have people just stopped paying attention?

West Aurora High School just wrapped up its performance of "Rent," a rock opera that centers around a cast of gay characters struggling to make a life "under the shadow of AIDS." Related story here.

And Oswego High School is set to perform "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" later this week. "Sweeney Todd," is a musical revenge story about a barber turned serial killer. Related story here.

BY DAVE PARRO

As if things weren't bad enough in the East Aurora School District already, now a principal is being investigated for helping students cheat on ISAT standardized tests.

While district officials are downplaying the "improprieties" as isolated incidents -- which they very likely could have been -- there's a larger question here of why the Krug Elementary educator would set such a poor example for her students. In a financially struggling district that has landed schools on the state watch list in the past based on adequate yearly progress standards, the pressure to perform has to be immense.

Has the federal No Child Left Behind Act put administrators in the terrible position of being tempted to cheat on standardized tests, especially in poor districts where budget cuts have led to fewer resources?

BY MIKE CETERA

Ever heard of a niece who "moved in" with her aunt and uncle so she could attend a preferred school? Or how about the athlete who doesn't like the makeup of the team in his district who conveniently moves just down the road?

I suspect the idea of falsifying your address to get out of a bad school district (or to get into a good one) is more common than we think.

And now the West Aurora School District is confronting the issue.

Board members Monday reviewed the plan to scrutinize documentation of student addresses and educate administrators about residency requirements.

Administrators have so far identified "more than 20 students" who do not live in the district but are enrolled in West Aurora Schools, said district spokesman Mike Chapin.

"This is a crime," said Superintendent Jim Rydland. "We are systematically and consistently going to investigate."

Some suspect the illegal students are coming from the neighboring East Aurora School District.

BY MIKE CETERA

It looks like people opposed to the Indian Prairie boundary changes (and the new location of Metea Valley High School) are getting ready to sue.

They've set up a Web site basically announcing an impending court fight:

We are also unhappy with the decisions of district officials and concerned about the future of the district...and, to that end, have secured legal counsel to explore options ranging from stopping the new high school location to overturning the 2006 Referendum.

Did you think it was over? It is not over. Our legal team thinks we have a fighting chance - so should you.

The local news media has stood by the school board and administrations' comments and either lacks the ability or the interest to delve into details of how taxpayers have been misled in a classic "bait and switch" to build a school that is poorly located, too large by any measure, and perhaps, not even needed. Where was the unbiased journalism? The investigative reporting?

BY DAVE PARRO

East Aurora school officials found themselves doing damage control this week after they chose not to immediately notify parents about a threatening post on a former high school student’s MySpace Web page. There’s a lesson there, especially in the wake of the shooting at Northern Illinois University that killed five students.

Instead of parents and students receiving official word about what happened — police deemed the threat not credible — rumors spread over the Internet. The district spent Tuesday combating unsubstantiated fears.

The result was frantic parents and low attendance, as many students simply stayed home.

BY MIKE CETERA

In the Oswego School District, all seems calm over proposed boundary shifts. Not so much in the Indian Prairie School District, where parents are hopping mad.

Boundary changes are often an emotional issue, where an arbitrary line can literally divide neighborhoods, and kids who have gone to school together all their lives suddenly find themselves ripped apart from their classmates.

But if the issue is so contentious in one district, why isn't it in the other?

BY MIKE CETERA

Do you attend NIU? Do you know someone who does? Share your thoughts on the Northern Illinois University shooting after the jump.

BY MIKE CETERA

There's a great deal we don't know about what happened last month at an East Aurora teachers union meeting. But I think it's fair to ask why School Board member Rayanne Carlson was there in the first place.

The union, according to a story by staff writer Heather Gillers, has filed a complaint with the Illinois Educational Labor Relations Board. Because no one is talking, the details are a bit sketchy. Still, Gillers learned the union wants the state board to take action to prevent Carlson from "busting into our meetings, encouraging our members to engage in unlawful activities and suggesting that union members assist (board members) in their personal agendas."

State law is sufficiently vague on what school district officials -- including board members -- can or can't do when it comes to teachers unions.

BY MIKE CETERA

UPDATE 2/5: The School Board voted to put a referendum on the November ballot.

The East Aurora School Board tonight is expected to discuss whether to put a referendum on the November ballot. If board members vote yes, that gives the district plenty of time to make a case for increasing taxes. But will any effort in this district be futile?

Time and again, voters have rejected a tax hike. Some residents say they can't afford it; others say administrators haven't done enough to show they are responsibly managing the district's finances. What, if anything, would make you support a referendum?

BY DAVE PARRO

Kaneland school officials have identified at least six seniors as the vandals who deflated dozens of bus tires last week and unplugged diesel engines in subzero weather.

While there will definitely be discipline coming from the school, including making the students pay back $4,000 in damages, no criminal charges have been filed. Meanwhile, in Naperville, police are asking for information on vandalism that caused $30,000 in damages to school bus tires.

What punishment best fits the crime for what essentially amounts to a student prank?