District 113 Superintendent Thanks Residents for Involvement in Master Planning

George Fornero tells residents their participation at engagement meetings is "essential to creating a Long Range Facility Master Plan" at Highland Park and Deerfield High Schools.

I would like to thank all those who have attended District 113’s Community Engagement Meetings. Your participation throughout this entire process is essential to creating a Long Range Facility Master Plan for our high schools that addresses several long-term educational and facility needs. As many of you know, this has been an extensive process and the Community Engagement Meetings represent that. The first presentation on Sept. 4 focused on informing residents about the development process and the schools’ serious capital improvement needs and priorities. The second meeting on Oct. 2 was aimed at presenting a number of different and complex construction options to the community for feedback. At our final meeting on Nov. 27, architects …

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Update: District 113 Superintendent Meeting Postponed

Tonight's meeting has been cancelled because of the pending strike by teachers in Highland Park District 112.

(Update) The meeting tonight with Township High School District 113 Superintendent George Fornero and Highland Park District 112 leader David Behlow has been postponed to an unknown future date, according to the League of Women Voters of Highland Park/Highwood. The reason given for the postponment is the Wednesday strike date set by the Highland Park elementary school teachers. (Earlier at 5:30 a.m.) Township High School District 113 Superintendent George Fornero will take your questions at a public forum at 7:30 p.m. today at the Heller Nature Center in Highland Park. Curious about whether or not there will be another referendum to renovate Deerfield High School? Earlier: 113 Takes Another Step Toward Master Plan The event is organized by…

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District 113 Holds First of Three Improvement Plan Meetings

Leadership team members, architects discussed the importance of assembling a master plan and emphasized transparency and community involvement at Deerfield High School on Monday night.

The first of three District 113 community meetings held Monday focused on assembling a master plan to tackle the renovation needs of Highland Park and Deerfield High Schools. Presenting a list of improvements in order of priority, speakers at Monday's meeting discussed ways to improve both the physical and educational aspects of District 113's two high schools. Though no costs for repairs were disclosed, the list was ordered into tiers from need-to-have to nice-to-have. (Editor's Note: Speakers at Monday's meeting indicated that the slideshow with specific details from the presentation would soon be posted on District 113's website. The exact link will be added to this article once the slides are up.) "The exercise that we're embarking …

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Letter to the Editor: Fornero Responds to Patch

District 113 Superintendent George Fornero gives detailed response to District’s denial of FOIA request.

Editor's Note—Patch asked Township High School District 113 Superintendent George Fornero to respond to questions for a story. He wrote the following letter. Though parts of his response are incorporated into a separate story on this page, the letter is published here in its entirety.  In May, 2011, District 113 reached out to residents to volunteer for study groups that would analyze and prioritize the needs at Deerfield and Highland Park High Schools. Six groups were established, one of those groups was the Market Research Committee. This group was made up of professionals with expertise in the field. We would not have been able to afford their services if members hadn’t volunteered for free.  The market research group decided to conduct…

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District 113 Board, Teachers Agree on Salary Plan

The two-year plan involves a salary freeze in the first year and and increase in the second.

Last week, District 113 and the District Education Association agreed to a two-year salary deal that will freeze the current salary schedule the first year and increase it by .85 percent the second. According to a press release issued by District 113 last week, compensation increases will be limited in the first year to step and lane changes, which refers to experience increases and new credentials. Step and lane changes will be honored in the second year of agreement, which extends through the 2013-2014 school year. "Our staff members are keenly aware of the economic challenges faced by schools and communities and agreed to a package that is respectful of taxpayers," Superintendent George Fornero said in the release. "I am proud of our …

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District 113 Responds to Survey Criticism

Survey's goal is to garner community input on a broad basis, says superintendent.

District 113 would be happy to address some residents’ concerns with the facility-technology survey. The survey was created by a market research team made up of individuals in the community with expertise in this area. Last spring, the Board of Education rejected a plan to hire an outside company to conduct similar research. They opted instead to gather together experts in our community who would do it for free. About 35 community members with professional backgrounds in market research are serving on this study group. Their willingness to serve the community has saved the District tens of thousands of dollars and has provided us with a professional product we proudly released. The goal of the survey is to garner community input on a broad…

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David Greenberg

1:56 pm on Friday, January 27, 2012

Beth, that's because a bright line doesn't exist. By way of example: The US Sup. Ct. made a decision on what constituted 'obscenity'. The basic result was "I'll know it when I see it." meaning that it wasn't simple to define. When dealing with limited dollars from taxpayers - it's incumbent upon all governmental agencies to focus on the needs, the so-called 'gotta haves'. Those are going to vary …   more ›

District 113 Debates Class Size Policy

Board discusses responsibility of determining class size limits.

The District 113 Board of Education's role in determining class size was debated at last Monday’s board meeting, after the district's policy committiee recommended a  policy change. The committee recommended earlier in September that the board of education be responsible for approving or not approving the addition of a section of a class when an existing section contains too many students. This came out of the belief that board approval may be necessary in the event that additional staff may be needed to cover new sections. However, some board members feel the decision to split sections is one best made by school administrators. 'We are not educators' “Class size is always a difficult issue,” Superintendent George Fornero said at last week…

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District 113 Tours Assist Study Groups

School officials seek greater public input after defeat of bond referendum.

Tours of Highland Park and Deerfield high Schools were held last Saturday morning for all members of the study groups that were organized to research several aspects of the facility and technology plan for Township High School District 113. "We really want them all to come if they have yet to tour both buildings," Superintendent George Fornero said at a recent school board meeting. At last Monday's meeting, Fornero noted the buildings erected in 1914 and other aging structures such as the pools and athletic facilities in the district would be part of the tours as the study groups surveyed the properties.  "We're finding what is demanded," said Fornero, who supported forming the groups to conduct the survey. "We're looking at any kind of …

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Letters to the Editor

Next District 113 Referendum Will Be More of the Same

Meetings about renovations indicate plan will be a repeat of the last.

District 113 will be hitting up the taxpayers for another referendum. Unfortunately, it's going to be a repeat of last time when the district tried to push us into an expensive referendum. I recently resigned from the "community" group for which I volunteered, the Instruction and Technology Committee. Like the "community meetings" the board conducted last year, the committee was clearly intended to be a rubber stamp for the Board of Education (BOE). Take a look at some of the facts of the Instruction and Technology Committee meeting held on Sept. 6, 2011: Somehow this board does not grasp the fact that they lost the referendum vote in April, nor do they seem to be aware that the local, state, national and world economy is tanking. Under …

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