Latest news with #NealMathandScienceAcademy
Chicago Tribune
30-07-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Youths question civic leaders about gun-violence prevention; ‘I'm looking for ways to help our community'
Before Melody Neyland, a seventh grader at Neal Math and Science Academy middle school in North Chicago was born, she was a victim of gun violence. She never knew her uncle, but his story sticks with her. 'Before I was born, my uncle was driving and someone shot him,' Neyland said. 'His car went off the road and hit a pole. He was killed. It still affects all of us.' Making an effort to ensure nothing like that ever happens to a family member, friend or anyone else close to her, Neyland said she plans to use her voice and education to prevent gun violence wherever and whenever she can. 'I'm looking for ways to help our community,' she said. Neyland was one of 25 middle and high school students from Waukegan, North Chicago and Zion completing a Youth Firearm Violence Prevention Program on July 24 questioning a panel of civic leaders at Waukegan's City Hall in an effort to make an impact on their elders. Cynthia Harris, the president of Waukegan-based Employee Connections, said her organization received a $120,000 grant from the state to run the program with young people between the ages of 11 and 21 from Waukegan, North Chicago and Zion. It is renewable for the next two to three years. Meeting for 12 weeks, Harris said the six-unit curriculum teaches the group civic engagement, leadership, democracy, legislation and the importance of having one's voice heard to make a difference. Mental health and de-escalation are part of the program, too. 'They learn about legislation and becoming a leader in the community,' Harris said. 'They have the opportunity to practice making their voice heard.' Both Neyland and Michael Womack, a Zion Benton Township High School junior, were part of the panel questioning state Sen. Adriane Johnson, D-Buffalo Grove, Regional Superintendent of Schools Michael Karner, North Chicago Ald. Dante Brooks, 7th Ward, and others. Womack said he was not overwhelmed when it was his turn to question the officials. He knows if he wants to see legislation curbing gun violence, those are the people he must approach to get the desired results. 'I felt very comfortable questioning them,' Womack said. 'They're the ones who are going to help me and my family. Now I know them, and they know me, if I want to go to them for help.' Johnson said engaging with young people is important. She knows a few years down the road they will be replacing her and her colleagues in the Illinois General Assembly. Things like the program prepare them for their responsibilities as citizens. 'I was impressed with how the kids engaged in the process,' Johnson said. 'Being civically engaged strengthens our democracy. Learning how to de-escalate with someone carefully, and not ratchet things up, is important with any issue.' De-escalation is one of the skills Harris said she stresses in the program. The participants put their skills to use role-playing with each other. Womack said it is an expertise he will use if he encounters someone with a gun. 'I will tell them to walk away from gun violence and put the gun away,' Womack said. 'I would tell them gun safety is important because you never know who else will be hurt, like your family or your friends. There is always someone they love. I would also tell the proper authorities.' Mental health is another component of the program. Harris said eventually she would like to see the young people become certified in mental health first aid. The course is given by the Lake County Health Department. 'It's the health of your mind,' Harris said. 'Young people can have a lot on their minds. They might know someone who was killed. Some are dealing with poverty. They may need some kind of help.' Harris said each participant in the program receives a $900 stipend.
Chicago Tribune
09-04-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Congressmen tour Lake County as part of program promoting bipartisan cooperation; ‘It will be easier for them … to work together'
As he toured Naval Station Great Lakes, Neal Math and Science Academy, Zebra Technologies, AbbVie and the Ravinia Festival, U.S. Rep Brad Schneider, D-Highland Park, had company as he made his way around the 10th Congressional District Friday — U.S. Rep. Mike Carey, R-Ohio. Talking to a group of students in the North Chicago Community High School work-study program, both congressmen offered some advice as they learned about the teenagers' jobs and future plans. With four of the five students planning on college, Carey offered thoughts from his own experience. As they talked, he searched on his phone to learn if what he did at community college before heading to Ohio State University might work for them at their schools. 'I was in ROTC,' Carey said. 'It's a good opportunity in college. It will pay for your college. You don't have to go on active duty (in the) Army. You can stay in the National Guard. That's what I did.' Schneider and Carey visited a sampling of locations around Lake County Thursday through Saturday as part of a program sponsored by the Washington-based Bipartisan Policy Center devoted to helping Republicans and Democrats work together in crafting legislation. Just as Carey spent time with Schneider around Lake County last week, over the weekend before Schneider joined Carey in his home 15th District in Columbus and parts of Western Ohio, learning some of the issues there. John Richter, the director of the center's Governing and Civics Project, joined the congressmen making their stops in North Chicago and elsewhere in the district. He said the more Democrats and Republicans get to know each other as people, the easier it becomes to work together. 'The better they get to know people across the aisle, the more they learn what they have in common,' Richter said. 'This program gets them to know each other away from Washington, so it will be easier for them to learn to work together there.' Both members of the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Ways and Means, Schneider and Carey said they find ways to work together on tax legislation despite sharp divisions between their parties in a divisive time in the country. Carey said he is committed to making the tax cuts signed by President Donald Trump in 2017 permanent. Part of the package is limited to $10,000, the amount people can deduct for state and local taxes (SALT). With a large number of 10th District homeowners paying more than $10,000 in property taxes, Schneider is part of a bipartisan group consisting heavily of members from New York, Illinois, New Jersey and California to improve the situation for them. 'The bipartisan group I am working with is trying to find ways to make it happen,' Schneider said. 'We're not sure what will happen yet.' For his part, Carey said some members of his party are unrelenting, while others recognize the amount deducted should be more than $10,000. He is working closely with four members of his party with whom he believes he can make headway. 'Some type of SALT reform is necessary,' he said. 'The number-one issue is what we do about the $10,000 cap. We are looking at a $4.5 trillion tax cut, and a $1.5 trillion cut in spending.' As North Chicago School District 187 Superintendent John Price welcomed Schneider and Cary to Neal, he told them about the five-story state-of-the-art middle school built with a $40 million gift from AbbVie. He stressed the importance of public education to the community. 'This is not just important to North Chicago,' Price said. 'The commitment here shows the important role public education plays in the country as well.' Schneider touted the value of the information he receives when he does town halls at middle schools, which he said he holds as frequently as possible. He said the students speak with a youthful honesty. 'Middle school kids' brains are starting to grow,' Schneider said. 'They ask questions that are really tough. They know what is happening around them, and are not afraid to ask.' Getting a chance to see schools, factories both large and small and a world-famous music venue, Carey said he was highly impressed with the breadth of Naval Station Great Lakes. He spent 10 years in the Ohio National Guard, but never saw anything like the base in North Chicago. 'Great Lakes is pretty special,' Carey said. 'You don't realize how massive it is, and how important it is to the country.'
