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Chicago Tribune
07-03-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Indian Prairie School District 204 board hopefuls talk safety, diversity and budget priorities at candidate forum
On Thursday, five candidates for the Indian Prairie School District 204 Board of Education presented their platforms as they vie for four four-year spots on the district board in the April 1 election. The candidates at the forum were current board president Laurie Donahue, current board vice president Susan Demming, current secretary Supna Jain, current board member Allison Fosdick and resident Allison Albert. At the virtual event on Thursday, hosted by the League of Women Voters of Naperville and the Indian Prairie Parents' Council, the five candidates answered questions about topics ranging from school safety to block scheduling in the district. The Indian Prairie Parents' Council fielded questions from the school community to create questions for the forum, Shelby Schultz, the president of the Executive Committee of the council, said at the forum Thursday. It was moderated by Jan Dorner from the League of Women Voters of Elmhurst, and did not include debate or comments from the public. Donahue is a retired senior director in the telecom industry, who said at the forum she has subbed at least once at 30 Indian Prairie schools. Demming, the current board vice president, is a public relations, marketing and workforce development consultant, according to past reporting, who has been involved in the district since her children began school there in 2001. Jain works as a senior lecturer for North Central College, and Fosdick is an adjunct professor of English at Aurora University. At Thursday's forum, both Jain and Fosdick also noted having children in the district. Albert, the only non-incumbent, said at Thursday's forum that she is a business owner, former teacher and parent. The first question asked of candidates was about digital literacy and technology use. Donahue noted how technology can allow students to get extra support on lessons, but cautioned that content needs to be moderated on school computers. Fosdick and Jain said they want the district to ensure students know how to differentiate between biased and unbiased information, between accurate news and misinformation. And both Demming and Albert talked about digital literacy as a critical workforce skill. The district's bond sale referendum in November came up in discussions of school safety, with candidates emphasizing improving safety as a top priority and lauding the improvements the referendum is set to pay for – like stronger security at the entrances of school buildings. Jain also noted the district's strong relationship with local police. Possible changes to district programs and operations were also up for discussion – namely, the future of the district's Project Arrow program – a program for academically talented students – and possible changes to the district's school day schedule. In terms of Project Arrow, the current board members emphasized that the district is auditing the plan to determine if it was having a positive impact and whether changes should be made going forward. Albert noted a need for more transparency about the program. 'Educating parents more on Project Arrow and how it is that children are selected for that program … will allow more parents to advocate on behalf of their student for entry into that program, for access to those opportunities,' Albert said at the forum. The group was split, but largely opposed, when asked whether the district should consider a modified block schedule and an altered school start time schedule like the one recently proposed in Naperville District 203. Albert and Fosdick said they were not supportive of a change to block scheduling and shifting start times so high school students started later at this point. Families rely on their older children to get their younger siblings to school, both candidates said, and it could pose transportation issues. Fosdick also said it might not be best for students who struggle to focus for extended periods of time. Jain also noted concerns about transportation, but said that block scheduling might allow classes to dive deeper into subject matter and better prepare students for college classes. She said she would be open to a pilot program. Demming and Donahue said the district would need to do more research on the possible benefits and downsides before trying to implement a similar change. Conversations about diversity and inclusion in the district also factored into candidates' answers about the district's Equity Belief Statement, mental health resources for students and budget and staffing priorities. All of the candidates were supportive of the district's statement, and several of the candidates were involved in its crafting. 'We are one of the first … districts at the state to make sure that that equitable lens was at an administrative level,' Demming said, noting that District 204 presented its statement at the state level to other districts. Albert said the district should do more. 'We've had a persistent, consistent achievement gap that has not … decreased over a long period of time,' Albert said. 'The actions need to match the statement.' In discussing mental health challenges for students and staff, particularly in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, both Jain and Demming noted their interest in maintaining equitable access to mental health resources by removing cost and transportation barriers. The district spent time pursuing grants to offer free counseling sessions for students. Several candidates also pointed to the district's mental health symposium on March 8. As for budget and staffing priorities, Fosdick, Demming and Donahue said staff to assist English Language Learners was a major concern. 'Unfortunately, our infrastructure isn't set up to support that,' Fosdick said at the forum. 'I know that we will need to find a way through probably some creative budgeting as we've done in the past.' She suggested that using the bond sale referendum money for capital projects might free up operating fund dollars to use for staffing needs. Not limited to ELL support, candidates said they hoped to prioritize smaller class sizes and more teaching staff. 'I want teachers and other staff before I want more administrators,' Donahue said, noting that she hoped to encourage the district to pursue outside grants to supplement their budget. The district is currently funded at 85% adequacy based on the state's evidence-based funding model, according to the Illinois State Board of Education. Having a more diverse teaching staff was also a top priority for several candidates. Albert noted the importance of attracting high-quality teachers, and said that as a board member, she would be interested in supporting alternative licensing programs which might allow, for example, community members who do not have traditional educational backgrounds but who want to become educators to do so at a lower cost and in a faster timeline. Indian Prairie is more than 50% minority-identifying students, according to 2024 data from the Illinois State Board of Education, but its teaching staff is nearly 90% white. Jain said students' experiences would be improved by having their identities be represented in the teaching staff. 'I'm a big believer … that, if possible, the staff should reflect the community that they are serving,' Jain said. 'I constantly ask our administrators to look for staff and educators that reflect our students.' A recording of the forum is available at the League of Women Voters of Naperville's YouTube Channel. And the Indian Prairie Education Association and Indian Prairie Classified Association's candidate questionnaires, which discuss the candidates' views on and priorities for the district, can be found at Both DuPage County and Will County have early voting options by mail, and in-person starting March 17. A list of all early voting locations and how to vote can be found on the DuPage County and Will County Clerk's Office websites. The election will be held on April 1.
Chicago Tribune
05-03-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Naperville D203 school board candidates agree district moving too fast on proposed changes
The five candidates running for Naperville District 203 School Board say they do not support changes to the district's start and end times and implementation of middle and high school block scheduling as they are currently being proposed. The candidates addressed the Innovative School Experience, the formal name for the plan currently under discussion at the board level, as part of a candidates' forum this week sponsored by the League of Women Voters of Naperville and the district's General Home and School Association. Five people are seeking to fill four, four-year seats on the board, including incumbents Charles Cush and Amanda McMillen and newcomers Holly Joy Blastic, Jillian Langer and Marc Willensky. The election is April 1, which coincides with the district's spring break. The Innovative School Experience is an administration-recommended plan to alter the start and end time of the elementary, middle and high school day, add 15 minutes to elementary school, add more time for math instruction for middle school students, decrease the time high school students are in school and switch to a block format with longer class periods for middle and high school students. The proposal has not yet been voted on, but the administration has recommended that it take effect in the 2025-26 school year. The district has faced some pushback in the last two months from parents, teachers and students. Candidates for school board said while they appreciate innovation, they aren't sold on the plan as it currently stands. Cush, an incumbent who may be voting on the proposal, said that while he believes the reasons behind the Innovative School Experience proposal are the right ones, he doesn't support the plan right now. 'We have two major constituents, both the parents as well as the teachers who don't believe we are ready as the plan is currently constituted,' Cush said. 'I have concerns with the implementation side of it.' McMillen, the other incumbent in the race, said that while she applauds the district for trying to close the achievement gap, especially in math, the district needs to take more time to determine how to implement the plan and perhaps look to pilot certain pieces, such as changes to the early childhood education, before moving forward. Langer said the district is on the forefront of developing new curriculum and policies to push the students forward. However, she said, she is concerned for the teachers who will need to prepare new curriculum and concerned about students sitting through an 85-minute class as part of the block schedule. She said more engagement with the community is necessary to take their feedback into account. 'Trying to roll this plan out in August is going to be a big challenge and might put our students back,' Langer said. Willensky said the district needs to separate the components that will benefit students versus those that improve the district's operations. 'August 2025 is just too soon to do this,' Willensky said. 'There's been a lot of pushback from the community about the timeline to get this all implemented in six months. We have to give teachers time to work on their lesson plans. Families need to plan their schedules. Students need to be prepared for the changes that they will be going through. Right now we have a great school district, and I'm concerned that if we don't do the implementation right, our children in the next year will suffer because of that.' Blastic said families need more time. She noted parents like herself want to sign up for after-school care for the next school year, but they don't know what the school day will look like. Parents also need to be given the data that shows the administration proposal meets the district's goals, she said. In addition to the changes in the school day, candidates also addressed the importance of digital literacy, possible elimination of the federal Department of Education, mental health and how the board can be more accessible to the community. On the topic of digital learning, Willensky said careers in artificial intelligence did not exist a few years ago, and it is important to embrace changes while teaching students how to use the tools in a responsible way. Cush said digital learning tools are here to stay, but the district cannot lose focus of teaching critical thinking, communication and adaptability skills. 'These (digital) tools can enhance these skills but they are not going to be a replacement for them,' Cush said. '…Tools will come and go, and there will be new tools we don't know about right now, but it's the skill sets that are critically important.' Candidates noted that the federal government funds about $10 million, or about 3% of the district's budget and would have to carefully prepare for any impacts that eliminating the Department of Education would bring. Blastic noted that the federal dollars go towards low-income students, school lunch programs, special education, teacher training and English language learners, which are critical components of education. She said that education is mostly a state prerogative, and the state offers laws and protections for its students. 'We follow Illinois law. We follow Illinois curriculum,' she said. 'We would lose resources. We would lose funds, and I would hope we would be able to keep as many as possible. But we are Illinois. We are Naperville, so we will have state protections for … our students with disabilities to protect all of our students and protect our curriculum.' McMillen said the district has always prioritized inclusion and equity, which would not go away if the federal government eliminates the education department. The district would have to adapt if necessary to covering the 3% of the district's budget that is federally funded. 'I think we are very fortunate not to rely too much on the federal government, so we will be able to easily adapt,' McMillen said. On the topic of mental and physical health, Langer said she would advocate for teacher trainings to recognize some of the early warning signs for mental health issues. 'We did not get out of the pandemic for free,' she said. Blastic said one of parents' concerns is the sense that they have to fight to get services for students with disabilities or special needs. She said it needs to be more of a collaborative rather than combative experience for families. Willensky said the district should always do more and ensure mental health is as much of a priority as physical health. The district should strengthen existing and create new partnerships with community organizations. 'Early screening to identify issues and problems is very important,' he said. 'I also want to make sure we are bringing the community together to talk about what it is that we can do.' Candidates agreed the school board can work on different ways they can be accessible to the community. Cush said each board member has adopted various schools and the board utilizes emails and forums to talk with its stakeholders. He said he believed more outreach can be done on a one-on-one level. Langer said parents have had enough of surveys and feel their feedback isn't taken into consideration so they don't bother to respond. 'I would like to improve the ways in which we engage with the community … in order to make it more meaningful for them,' she said. McMillen and Willensky said it would be nice to have listening sessions to hear from the community in a way that doesn't violate the Open Meetings Act. Blastic said the board needs to be more transparent in its communication. She cited the Innovative School Experience as an example in which high school students were coming home mentioning a block schedule. But block schedules or school start times weren't mentioned to parents during listening sessions before winter break, she said. 'We aren't using the plain clear language and being transparent with parents and the community about what we are really doing,' Blastic said. Each of the candidates said they have a vested interest in the district and they have a passion for service. Blastic, an attorney for crime victims rights, has four children in the district. She is co-founder of Naperville Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense. Cush, a father of three who has served on the board since 2016, is the owner of a consulting business and an adjunct professor at College of DuPage and St. Catherine University in Minneapolis. Langer, mother of two district students, has a master's degree in public health and is the current home and school president at Maplebrook Elementary School. She is a veteran of the U.S. Army. McMillen, a licensed clinical social worker, has worked for 20 years in nonprofit organizations that focus on children and families. She has four children in district schools and is running for her second term. Willensky has more than 30 years' experience in finance and is a former certified public accountant. He said the district's teachers inspired his daughter to study education at Illinois State University. A video of forum is available on the league's YouTube channel,
Chicago Tribune
25-02-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
LWV of Naperville schedules candidate forums for the Naperville D203, park board races
The League of Women Voters of Naperville is holding two online candidate forums in March, one for those running for the Naperville District 203 School Board and the other for the Naperville Park Board. In the first, scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 4, school board candidates have been invited and are expected to attend. They include Holly Joy Blastic, Charles Cush, Jillian Langer, Amanda McMillen and Marc Willensky, an LWV news release said. The event is being co-sponsored by the Naperville School District 203 General Home and School Association. Voters who want to submit questions for the candidates should email them to lwvnaperville@ by 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 28. The second forum for park board candidates will be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday, March 12. Candidates scheduled to attend are Rhonda Ansier, Aishwarya Balakrishna, Natalia Dagenhart, Zachary Jarrell, Leslie Ruffing & Alison Thompson. A deadline to submit questions for the candidates at lwvnaperville@ is 5 p.m. Friday, March 7. Videos of both forums will be posted afterwards to the League of Women Voters of Naperville's YouTube channel. Both forums are free to watch, but advance registration is required. Zoom links can be found on the League of Women Voters of Naperville's webpage, A previously announced forum for the candidates running for Naperville City Council will be held from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. Saturday, March 8, at the Nichols Library, 200 W. Jefferson Ave., by the Chinese American Women in Action and the Alliance of Indian Americans of Naperville Area. All eight candidates are confirmed to participate, organizers said. They are Meghna Bansal, Jennifer Bruzan-Taylor, Mary Gibson, Ian Holzhauer, Nag Jaiswal, Derek McDaniel, Ashfaq Syed and Benny White. Residents interested in attending should register at
