Hinsdale Year In Review 2022

© James C. Svehla/Pioneer Press/Chicago Tribune/TNS (This photo was taken by volunteers setting up the area for photojournalists) National League of Charities volunteers fill shipping containers to Tanzania in Hinsdale, Illinois. Monday, November 14, 2022

From the heat of the culture wars and the Hinsdale High School District 86 masquerade debate to community organizing and academic achievement, here's a sneak peek at some of the most important events happening in Hinsdale in 2022.

An anti-racism councilor receives hate mail from the Hinsdale community, sparking ongoing debates about race and equality.

In January, Hinsdale High School District 86 in North Carolina hired an equity consultant to develop a proposal to train teachers against racism. But before Valda Walbrun joined the school board, she left the school, citing a hostile environment that displayed "racism." In the letter, read aloud by Superintendent Tammy Prentiss, Walbrun said in part: "The rudeness and unprofessionalism in the direct communications I have received from members of your school community demonstrates your lack of goodwill toward diversity, equity and issues of involvement in your district. She had some reservations yesterday and I really thought that Hinsdale was a dangerous place and that I would feel physically uncomfortable there." This week's event sparked a number of conversations in the District 86 community about its reputation and the importance of DEI education in Hinsdale.

To hide or not to hide

After a lower state judge in February issued a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) banning school masks, students enrolled in costume no longer have to meet District 86's dress code requirements. A District spokeswoman 86 told the Pioneer Press there are more plaintiffs. The minors in question are more than 10 students from two high schools and an orphanage. At that week's board meeting, members voted 5-2 to drop the mask requirement over the no-measures policy. At the rally, some parents from district 86, who were against the universal use of masks, made a poster: "Without masks, my health is my choice." Some parents opposed Prentiss and called for his dismissal. However, Hinsdale Central Imaan Zahir called for a united front. "The lack of respect for other people in the area is very bad," Zahir said at the February meeting. "This should not be taken lightly. My message to everyone in this room is this: take a moment and think.

District 86 clears up justice issues with the new president

After disagreements with Equity Consultants, Hinsdale County officials faced a divided community of 86 people who disagreed with the county's needs for DEI, or the people who actually wanted it. Patrice Payne, District Director of Education Equity, conducted the 2021 recruitment, helping both sides understand DEI with presentations highlighting disparities in student achievement across races. Speaking to the Pioneer Press, Payne said some keywords misrepresent justice education and culturally sensitive teaching. "We have to be careful because it's confusing that every time we mention the word 'race,' we automatically associate it with a critical theory of race — something we have to constantly deny," Payne said. "Critical race theory is incompatible with what we do in K-12 education. I'm curious that a theory that originated in the 1970s has suddenly become so popular in 2022 that the way it's portrayed now is inconsistent with it. the truth.

A group of girls raised more than $17,000 for aid in Ukraine

In March, a group of girls attending Walker Elementary School in Hinsdale-Clarendon Hills 181 raised more than $17,000 for aid in Ukraine through a UNICEF fundraiser. Forming a group called Giving Girls in February, the group of six, aged 6 to 8, set out to raise money for children in war-torn Ukraine by selling handmade Rainbow Loom bracelets. But thanks to a push from social media, they managed to raise $17,863 between March 4 and 18 by making 424 bracelets using a loom and some rubber bands.

Hinsdale US Presidential Scholars students are accepted to 18 universities

There are five Illinois-based U.S. presidents in 2022, including Hinsdale Central High School senior Jooey Hankari, who won the prestigious Diana Award last year for her work building an artificial intelligence platform for students of young people. Hankari ranks in the top 2% of his class, scored a 36 on the ACT, and has been accepted to 18 colleges, including Harvard, Yale, Princeton, MIT, Columbia, Pennsylvania, and Stanford. In the end, he chose Stanford.

Hinsdale South Sr. He participated in the Deaf Olympics with his sister.

Jay Young, a senior at Hinsdale South High School, and his sister Judy Young, a graduate of Gallaudet University, competed in the 2022 Deaf Olympics in Caxias do Sul, Brazil, as the first deaf badminton players to represent United States. . As the pair grew up playing badminton and competing in local tournaments, it was their first match in Brazil from May 1 to May 15. "I just want to keep training and fighting so that one day I can go home with a medal," said Jay, who finished 15th in the men's race. “One of my goals will be to be one of the first people in America to bring home a Deaf Olympics medal. (I want to) continue to grow and win everyone.

Voting in the municipality has been postponed

The friendly voice on the other end of the phone at Hinsdale Village Hall has retired after nearly two decades. Kristin Bruton's last day was December 2, but her "cheerful" voice lives on. He always answered the same way: 'This is the town of Hinsdale. I can help you, said City Manager Tom Coley at a November council meeting. "He always said it in a very nice and funny way."

She wants to go to the Tanzanian school that helped build local women

In November, Hinsdale resident Kelly O'Brien took it upon herself to fill a 40-foot "relief container" with 450 Quaker grains, 23,427 pounds of cookware, 450 pairs of shoes, 30 boxes of school supplies, desks, . and chairs, as well as 12 boxes of jackets, among thousands of other items. All items were donated by community members or collected by various organizations to be sent to the O'Brien Maasai School in Tanzania, Africa. The school holds a special place in O'Brien's heart – he built it nine years after a volunteer trip to Africa with his daughter in 2006. Which shoe would you choose? And I tell them stories about how our (Maasai) kids walk two kilometers to school,” O'Brien said of collecting supplies. "I want the little kids to say, 'Mrs. O'Brien, can I give you this oatmeal to help our brothers and sisters in Africa?'

Hinsdale Humane Society fights for what is right

Over the past few weeks, the Hinsdale Humane Society (HHS) has asked the Hinsdale community for help to save the beloved shelter after an eventful year of stray cat and dog rescue, pet rehoming, orphaning and medical care. Local animal welfare organizations do not receive government funding. "Donations are dwindling and we're fighting the idea that because we're in an affluent postcode, we have a lot of money. We don't have one, and we need our community to continue to help us financially to save more pets," said HHS Executive Director Jackie Rossi. In early October, HHS took in 11 dogs and 12 cats. brought from the affected areas of Florida… for the night of the hurricane. A group of volunteers sheltered the animals he took and cared for them to continue on to Michigan. And a few weeks later, the workers lost 17 dogs, or "When you are in this industry, that's why you're in it. do it," says Rossi.

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