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Chicago Tribune
26-05-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Illinois Teacher of the Year from Indian Prairie District 204 has hosted dozens of discussions across the state on belonging
Rachael Mahmood has taught at Indian Prairie School District 204 for the past 20 years — the district gave her her first teaching job, she said, and she's worked there ever since. But her connection to the district goes back a bit further, to when she was in college. She began attending meetings of the district's Parent Diversity Advisory Council, she said, with one of her professors at the time. That group, which focuses on equity and diversity in District 204, hosted what's called a 'World Cafe' about 15 years back, Mahmood recalls. It became a yearly event, she said, and was what first exposed her to the initiative that would later become the focus of a year-long sabbatical she took as Illinois' 2024 Teacher of the Year. 'I just remembered feeling … agency, feeling belonging, feeling like I had (a) voice as an educator,' Mahmood said. The World Cafe is a technique 'based on the understanding that conversation is the core process that drives personal, business and organization life,' per its website, and 'a way of thinking and being together sourced in a philosophy of conversational leadership.' The methodology is outlined in a book, 'The World Cafe Book: Shaping Our Futures Through Conversations that Matter,' by David Isaacs and Juanita Brown. According to its website, the basic format is a series of small-group conversations at small round tables, often modeled after a cafe setting. Each round of discussion is started with a question, and individuals are later invited to share insights with the larger group. Mahmood called it 'a dialogue model' that's meant to solve issues in communities via grassroots conversations. 'It's built on the idea that the collective wisdom to solve any issue in society already exists inside the community,' Mahmood said. 'We just need systems to draw out that wisdom.' Now, 20 years later, Mahmood has spent the past year hosting these World Cafes at school districts across the state, as part of a sabbatical she was awarded to serve as an ambassador for teachers after being named the 2024 Illinois Teacher of the Year. Mahmood was named Illinois' Far West Suburbs Regional Teacher of the Year in 2024, which put her in the running for the statewide title, which she was awarded last May. Being selected as Illinois Teacher of the Year comes with a paid, year-long sabbatical to serve as an ambassador for teachers at events and engagements across the state. District 204 Superintendent Adrian Talley has said Mahmood is the first teacher in the district to be selected for the award, according to past reporting. Recipients of the statewide award typically give talks across the state about teaching, but Mahmood chose to do something a bit different by hosting World Cafes at school districts across the state. 'There wasn't really a lot of opportunities to collect voice-back from educators,' she said. 'So this was a great way to do that in reverse and say, like, 'I'm not just giving inspirational speeches, but I'm also collecting your stories and your inspiration, your ideas.'' The questions Mahmood asked at the discussions she facilitated were about defining belonging in a school, the strengths of their particular school environment, what challenges exist to feeling a sense of belonging and what action steps can their school take to increase feelings of belonging. The World Cafes were originally geared toward educators, Mahmood said, but soon districts asked if parents and students could be part of the conversations. 'We are this delicate ecosystem,' Mahmood said. 'It's kind of like all three pieces — the parents or the community, the students and the educators, their sense of belonging is kind of dependent on each other.' She chose to focus on the feeling of belonging in schools because of her own experiences as a mixed-race student. Mahmood is the daughter of a Russian Jewish mother and an Indian Hindu father, according to past reporting, and grew up around cultural and religious practices from both sides of her family. Indian Prairie's commitment to equity is in large part what informed her interest in working for the district two decades ago when she was first hired, she said. Now, with her sabbatical ending on July 1, Mahmood said she estimates she's spoken to around 6,000 people through World Cafes — mostly educators, but also some parents and students, and hosted around 50 World Cafe discussions so far. The discussions have taken place nearby at schools in Aurora and Plainfield and at districts downstate, for example. Throughout the year, she has been compiling surveys from the discussions, which she is providing back to the school districts. She also has plans to write a book or manual with her findings, she said. In addition to hosting dozens of discussions, Mahmood has also been a part of other events — from speaking at conferences to meeting with government officials to leading fans in singing 'Take Me Out to the Ball Game' for the seventh-inning stretch at a Cubs game during Teacher Appreciation Week in early May. The latter event she tried, unsuccessfully, to keep under wraps. 'I was kind of embarrassed because I'm not a great singer,' she said. 'Joke's on me because everyone watches the Cubs game. And so, my phone was blowing up … It was just all over the place. There was no hiding.' Recently, she's also been preparing this year's winner, East Leyden High School science teacher Víctor Gómez, for the experience of being Illinois Teacher of the Year. And — though she said she has discussions booked out past the end date of her sabbatical, and will continue her responsibilities through January as a state winner of the Council of Chief State School Officers' 2025 State Teacher of the Year — Mahmood is returning to Indian Prairie next school year. Before her sabbatical, Mahmood was teaching fifth grade at Georgetown Elementary. Next year, she's back in the district, but in a different position: teaching fourth grade at Builta Elementary. 'Maybe, I'll have some really good guest speakers,' she laughed, as she described coming back to the district. Mahmood said she's excited to be back, but said she's not sure yet what kinds of changes the past year will bring to her teaching. 'I think that, maybe, most of the changing will be something going on inside my heart,' she said. In the time she was away from the classroom, however, the world of education has experienced considerable change and uncertainty, from threats to federal education funding to federal investigations into alleged racial discrimination at Chicago Public Schools and the University of Chicago as part of a federal crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Despite the uncertainty, Mahmood believes that the Illinois State Board of Education and Indian Prairie District 204 can weather what's to come. And she hopes the discussion model she's shared can help districts across the state handle any challenges that arise. 'I'm hoping that I've left the communities that I've been a part of with a tool that they can continue to use as they move forward with the uncertainty and they are faced with some real issues,' Mahmood said. 'Maybe they can turn to using a World Cafe and the collective wisdom of their community to help to cope, grapple, support, understand, fix, solve what they're facing in the year to come or the years to come.'
Chicago Tribune
11-04-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
District 204 Superintendent Adrian Talley announces he's stepping down after next school year
Indian Prairie School District 204 Superintendent Adrian Talley is stepping down after next school year, the district leader announced Wednesday in a message posted to the district's website. Talley told the Indian Prairie school board in an executive session in March that he would not be renewing his contract, according to an email statement from Talley to The Beacon-News on Friday morning. Per Talley's announcement on the district website, the board had offered to renew his contract beyond the 2025-26 school year. Talley highlighted the district's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and its efforts to support mental health as key achievements during his tenure in Wednesday's message. He also credited the passage of the district's $420 bond sale referendum question that is paying for capital improvements in the school district as having 'laid the groundwork to make District 204 safer and stronger for years to come.' Talley told The Beacon-News he plans to 'continue to work through the next school year until the very end.' He also plans next school year to catalogue monthly what work needs to be done by the new superintendent going forward. He said in his announcement on the district website that the timeline for his stepping down was to give the school board 'ample time to conduct a thorough search for the next superintendent, who will begin on July 1, 2026.' This is similar to the process previous District 204 Superintendent Karen Sullivan followed when she retired, Talley told The Beacon-News. Talley said he doesn't know what his next steps will be after leaving the superintendent's role at the end of next school year. On Thursday, Indian Prairie school board President Laurie Donahue released an announcement via the district's website about beginning the process of searching for a new superintendent. The school board has authorized sending a request for proposals to search firms that will help select a new superintendent, according to Donahue's message. Those will be due April 25 and then evaluated by the board, with semi-finalists selected by May 5. The board will then meet with the semi-finalists and approve a firm on June 9.
Chicago Tribune
10-04-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
School District 204 board approves 3.9% raises for administrative and non-bargaining employees
The Indian Prairie District 204 school board this week approved 3.9% raises and renewed the contracts for administrative and non-bargaining employees in the district for the 2025-26 school year. These raises are less than the cost of the increase for teacher salaries per the district's collective bargaining agreement, according to Monday's meeting agenda for the board. The district employees receiving these raises next year are administrative employees and non-bargaining employees, which, according to Monday's agenda, includes occupational therapists, physical therapists, registered nurses, administrative assistants, business support staff, HR support staff, tech support staff, communications support staff, science lab technicians, piano accompanists and facilitators of Title I funding, a source of federal money distributed based on a district's low-income population. Teachers in the district are currently in a negotiated agreement through 2026, the district's Chief Human Resources Officer Carey Beth Harry confirmed in an email to The Beacon-News. The district did not present recommendations for teacher raises to the board on Monday, and Harry noted that discussion about raises for teachers are handled through the negotiation process. In 2022, the school board approved a four-year contract for District 204 teachers. The terms of the agreement included a one-time $1,500 bonus and 5% raises in the first two years of the contract, followed by salary bumps equal to the Consumer Price Index capped at 5% for the last two years of the contract.
Chicago Tribune
08-04-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
District 204 board OKs revisions and new textbooks for several high school classes, new electives for next year
At its meeting Monday, the Indian Prairie School District 204 board approved course updates and new instructional materials for several existing high school classes and two that will be new next year. The courses included in the changes are French 2, Advanced Placement (commonly referred to as AP) Biology, AP Environmental Science, AP United States History, Criminal Law and World History through Media, according to the meeting agenda. Following the board's approval on Monday, the district will be purchasing new textbooks and their accompanying digital resources for all of the courses except World History through Media, amounting to just over $400,000 in total, according to Monday's meeting agenda. The board also approved curriculum revisions to the five courses at Monday's meeting. The courses were updated via collaboration with teachers from the district's three high schools in line with state standards, College Board course and exam descriptions for applicable courses, the district's strategic plan, 'culturally responsive instructional practices' and the district's 'Portrait of a Graduate' goals, according to the meeting agenda. District 204's director of high school core curriculum and instruction Michael Purcell gave a presentation on the proposed curriculum updates for next school year at the district's board meeting on March 24. At the March meeting, Purcell's presentation noted that the proposed revisions would be open for comment until the April board meeting, when they would then be voted on. At Monday's meeting, the district confirmed that there had been no public comment on the changes. The French course and three AP courses are all existing classes at Indian Prairie high schools, Purcell explained in March, but Criminal Law and World History through Media will be new next year. For the French course revision, Purcell noted in his March presentation that the new units for the course align closely with the AP French curriculum that students can take later on in high school, per the district's course catalog. The three AP courses that will be updated for next year are AP Biology, AP Environmental Science and AP U.S. History. The AP Environmental Science course in particular tends to provide students who do not take many other AP classes during their time at Indian Prairie a chance to take an AP course, Purcell noted. 'We really look for those opportunities to, to talk about AP classes that are more accessible than others,' Purcell said at the March 24 meeting. 'It's not easy by any means, but unlike an AP calculus class or an AP physics class, it doesn't require as much background knowledge to access. It requires an interest and a work ethic.' The updated AP U.S. History curriculum focuses on themes including national identity, geography and the environment, migration and settlement, politics and power and American regional culture, Purcell previously said. Asked by board member Susan Demming in March about culturally-responsive instruction, Purcell noted that the new French resource represents French-speaking cultures that are not France, and said that the AP Environmental Science resource showcases more diverse portrayals of scientists. In January, the board also approved changes to the middle school English Language Arts curriculum, which will now use a digital curriculum resource. They also OK'd the district to modify some of the books it teaches: all sixth-graders will read 'The Giver' by Lois Lowry, while seventh-graders will read 'Brown Girl Dreaming' by Jacqueline Woodson and eighth-graders will read 'Twelve Angry Men' by Reginald Rose. The changes approved Monday will also extend to two new course offerings for next year: Criminal Law and World History through Media. The two new courses were brought to the board in October, according to past reporting. They were approved in the fall so that students could enroll in the courses in time for the 2025-26 school year, Purcell explained at the March meeting. The two courses are not AP classes, Purcell said, but rather one-semester social studies electives available to students in grades 10-12. The idea for these courses is to prepare students for the transition between the district's freshman year geography class requirement and the U.S. history course requirement. 'Some of our students leave our freshman social studies class not quite ready to take on U.S. history,' Purcell said at the March meeting. 'So (we) really wrote these classes with that in mind – to really look at, what are those social science skills that students need to bridge that gap.' As for the criminal law class, Purcell noted in March that it was born out of surveys of students and staff on what types of courses they'd like to see, and based on survey data from students of what they want to study in the future or pursue as a career path. The district already offers a business law class for students to take, and Purcell noted that the district wants students to have the option to take both as companion classes. The World History through Media course will include units on topics like historical accuracy, 'What happens when cultures collide?' and 'Does change always mean progress?,' according to Purcell's presentation in March. Students will learn about films as well as podcasts, television, infographics and other forms of media.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Yahoo
Naperville teacher charged with grooming, sexual abuse granted pretrial release
NAPERVILLE, Ill. — A teacher at Neuqua Valley High School, who is accused of grooming and sexually abusing a student, has been granted pretrial release. William Schaub, 56, of La Grange, is charged with felony counts of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, aggravated criminal sexual abuse, and grooming. The judge granted Schaub pretrial release Friday during a court hearing, after agreeing with the defense that he is not a threat to the public. He has no prior criminal record. Police said Naperville officers received an anonymous tip on March 7 alleging an inappropriate relationship between Schaub and a female student. The investigation revealed improper electronic messages between Schaub and the student between November 2024 and March 2025. Officers also discovered evidence of physical contact between the two in December 2024. Naperville teacher accused of grooming and sexual abuse Schaub was the alleged victim's English teacher at Neuqua Valley High School, where students voted him as one of their favorite teachers for three years in row. Schaub also runs the theater department at the school. He was arrested Thursday at a traffic stop near his home. District 204 issued a statement regarding the arrest on Thursday, saying that 'school officials became aware of the allegations on March 7 after receiving an anonymous tip about inappropriate behavior. Upon receiving this information, District 204 immediately started an investigation, placed Schaub on administrative leave, and reported the allegations to the Naperville Police Department.' Schaub's lawyer confirmed his client is a former actor who has appeared in several movies and television shows. A preliminary hearing is set for April 24. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
