End the Strike: Mom Talk

Right or wrong, teachers need to be part of the solution, too.

It was circa 1982 when Joliet's District 86 teachers went on strike. I was in junior high, and our teachers told us, no, no, they would not strike. They were out three weeks. I couldn't tell you what the details were or who won. But I can recall the names of the two teachers who crossed the picket line. That was a difficult time for my family. My divorced mother worked full time and I had no where to go during the day. At 10, I was home alone. By and large, teachers are undervalued in this country. They deserve combat pay for some of the districts they work in. My close friends are Chicago teachers. If I had a magic wand I would easily triple their salaries, benefits and give them anything else they wanted. Schools should be palaces! With …

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Plainfield Middle School Honor Rolls Released

Acknowledge your family members and friends by leaving a note in the comment box at the bottom of the page and letting them know you're proud of them.

Here are the students who made the 2011-12 Plainfield School District 202 Middle School Quarter 3 Honor Roll. If you know anyone on the list, give them a shoutout in the comment box at the bottom. Indian Trail High Honor Roll             GRADE 06 Garrett Abrams, Joshua Almawi, Diego Angulo, Haaris Arain, Zachary Arneson,Talia Baccelli, Katelyn Berg, Betselot Bezuneh, Kyle Boedeker, Kristina Botten,Evan Dawson, Danielle Elliott, Erica Errera, Tanner Evatt, Cambrie Gallichio,Kate Gabrielle Gallinero, Dominika Gornikowski, Sarah Graham, Carson Gross,Jarett Hardek, Heather Hendrickson, Kennedi Jackson, Katherine Kalebich,Martin Ketter, Katherine Kizorek, Sylvia Knight, Madysen Kulekowskis,Dylan Kurzrock, Jake Lodge, Sydney Macdonald, Andrew …

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Geri McMillan

4:04 am on Tuesday, May 29, 2012

So proud of you Heather Petkewicz,Love U Mom   more ›

Plainfield East, North High School Students Honored

ACT-SO competition highlighted fine arts talents.

Two Plainfield East High School students and another from Plainfield North High School won top prizes for their fine arts talents in the DuPage County ACT-SO (Afro-American Cultural Technological and Scientific Olympics) program held March 17. PEHS senior Hakeem Howard won a gold medal in the Vocal Music/Classical category and a bronze medal for his performance in the Music Vocal/Contemporary category. PEHS junior Olajawon Howard also won a bronze medal in the Drawing category.  PNHS junior Carli Battle won a gold medal in the Painting category. PEHS senior Imani Hughes also participated in the event but did not win a medal. The gold-medal winners each will receive $150 and an expense-paid trip to the national ACT-SO competition in July in…

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Guest Viewpoint

Column: Give Thanks, but Remember Many Still Need Help

District 202 officials see every day the reality of students who don't have enough to eat and families caught in the economic recession.

Now is the time when most of us start to think of the upcoming holiday season, and give thanks for the many good things in our lives. Our students continue to do well in and out of the classroom. Our teachers work hard every day to provide the best possible educational experience for all of our students. Our staff and board of education sacrifice daily to save taxpayers’ money and struggle to use our limited resources cost effectively and efficiently on behalf of our students. Our families support all of this work to the best of their abilities. Yes, Plainfield School District 202 has much to be thankful for. Yet, despite these and many other celebrations and successes for which we are rightly grateful, there are also many causes for …

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Know a Student Middle School Honor Roll? Check the List

Here's the complete list of the middle school students who made the high honor roll and honor roll in Plainfield School District 202.

Here are the honor roll lists for the first quarter for Plainfield School District 202 middle school students. Indian Trail High Honor Roll             GRADE 06 Garrett Abrams, Jaclyn Alvarez, Haaris Arain, Betselot Bezuneh, Kyle Boedeker,Kristina Botten, Dustin Boyd, Jimmy Cowan, Angela Dagnino Canedo, Evan Dawson,Erica Errera, Tanner Evatt, Cambrie Gallichio, Kate Gabrielle Gallinero,Dominika Gornikowski, Sarah Graham, Francisco Guzman, Jarett Hardek,Heather Hendrickson, Kailey Janik, Patrick Jastre, Martin Ketter,Sylvia Knight, Madysen Kulekowskis, Sydney Macdonald, Andrew Mankunas,Crystal Martillo, Viviana Medina, Taylor Miller, Griffin Mitchell, Rylee Mudry,Elizabeth Murray, Audrey Nelson, Alexis Obman, Carlos Palomo,Dimitar Pendurkov…

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12 Students Publicly Touted for Academic Achievement

The students were recognized at Monday's SD 202 board meeting being cited by the National Achievement and the National Merit scholarship programs.

Twelve academically talented high school students who have achieved national recognition were honored Monday by the Plainfield School District 202 board. Kyndal Currie and Grace Latimore, Plainfield North High School seniors, were recognized for being named outstanding participants in the 2011 National Achievement Scholarship Program. The program honors academically promising African-American students, and only 3,100 students nationwide were named outstanding participants out of more than 160,000 high school students who seek the recognition. The board also acknowledged 10 district students who were named “commended” students in the National Merit Scholarship Program. These students rank in the top 5 percent of the 1.5 million students who…

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District 202 Partnering with Charity to Help High School in Liberia

Unneeded school supplies are being gathered for school that has almost nothing in aftermath of long civil war.

Mr. Charity Foundation has partnered with Plainfield School District 202 and a Liberian school to help send unneeded school supplies overseas to help children of a country trying to rebuild after a long civil war. Plainfield resident Anthony Scala, founder and president of Mr. Charity Foundation, said he has been collecting school supplies that would have otherwise been discarded to help the St. Peter Claver High School in the West African nation of Liberia. At the end of the school year, Scala collected used pencils, half-empty boxes of crayons, half-filled notebooks and other items from Plainfield schools that children would have tossed in the trash before heading home to summer vacation. He has also collected from the district about 450…

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Photo Slideshow: First Day of School

Send us your first day of school pics to karen@patch.com.

Emotions run the gamut on the first day of school, from excited to nervous to annoyed. And it's a day that parents love to document, capturing all of those emotions and more. After all, not only is another milestone in a child's life, it's one of those universal experiences to which we can all relate. If you send us your first day of school pics (e-mail them to karen@patch.com) or feel free to upload them directly to this article. Please make sure to include who is in the photo and who is submitting the photo. Thanks and have a great school year!

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Dist. 202 Schedules Curriculum Nights for Parents

Program's a good way for parents to find out what their children will be learning this year, to see their schools and to talk directly to teachers.

Plainfield School District 202 schools will hold curriculum nights in August and September to let parents and guardians see what their students will be learning this year, talk to teachers, and see their schools. The schedule is: Bonnie McBeth Learning Center: August 31 o   6:30-8 p.m. – LEAP program and Multi-needs classes o   6-7 p.m. – morning classes o   7:15-8:15 p.m. -- afternoon classes Plainfield Academy, Turnabout, TAP and P-STEP: August 24 o   7 p.m. ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS Central: August  23 o   5:45-6:30 p.m. -- kindergarten o   6:40-7:25 p.m. – 1st grade o   7:30-8:15 p.m. – 2nd grade August 25 o   5:45-6:30 p.m. – 3rd grade o   6:40-7:25 p.m. – 4th grade o   7:30-8:15 p.m. – 5th grade Charles Reed (Parents Only Please): August 25…

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Back to School ... By the Numbers

All the back to school clothing, apples for lunches and teacher salaries add up. With students heading back to school, we've compiled some interesting facts.

Plainfield School District 202 students started the fall 2011 semester on Thursday, another summer gone and another year of reading, writing and 'rithmatic under way. What better time than now to look at what that means in dollars, cents and numbers as compiled by the government in the 2010 U.S. Census. $7.4 billion: The amount of money spent at family clothing stores in August 2010. 55.5 million: The projected number of students who will be enrolled in the nation's elementary through high schools (pre-kindergarten - 12th grade) this fall. 77 million: The number of children and adults enrolled in school throughout the country in Oct. 2009. This includes students enrolled from nursery school to college. 74 percent: Percentage of children 3 …

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