A community remembers

You are invited to attend a memorial for Ursula Nailor, her sons, Darnell Holt and Dan Nailor, and her niece Dominique Robinson. The family perished tragically Jan. 17. Willowbrook High School will host a memorial to honor the family, as well as provide an opportunity for community members to express their condolences.

When: The event will begin with a Fellowship at 1 p.m., and the Memorial Program (which will feature various speakers, who will talk about the family) will begin at 2 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 29.

Where: Willowbrook High School, 1250 S. Ardmore Ave. in Villa Park (The formal program will take place in the auditorium. Please park in the north parking lot.)

Donations: A “Taken Too Soon Memorial Fund” for the benefit of the family has been established with BMO Harris Bank, 17W695 Roosevelt Road in Oakbrook Terrace. Donations are being accepted at any BMO Harris Bank. For more information, e-mail TakenTooSoon@yahoo.com.

Donations to benefit the family also are being accepted through the Partnership for Inspired Education (PIE) Foundation. Donations can be mailed to:
PIE Foundation
P.O. Box 5438
Villa Park

For more information, e-mail Donna Cain, PIE Foundation Chairperson, at dcain@dupage88.net.

Willowbrook High School comes together after tragic loss

Dear Willowbrook High School parents/guardians,

We regret to inform you of a tragic loss to Willowbrook High School. According to unofficial information provided to the school, one of our students tragically perished in a house fire on the morning of Tuesday, Jan. 17. DuPage High School District 88 and Willowbrook High School are deeply saddened by this loss. For more information, click here.

The health of our students and staff is a top priority at District 88 and Willowbrook High School, and we have crisis interventions (counseling services) in place at Willowbrook High School for students and staff. It’s important to come together during this time, and our hearts and thoughts go out to the student’s family.

88 ready for Common Core State Standards Initiative

Greetings from DuPage High School District 88.

We’re excited to introduce new state standards that will help us achieve our goal of providing the highest standards and rigorous curriculum to ensure all students are college and career ready. While District 88 has always provided high standards and rigorous curriculum, there’s a new initiative to better enable students to be college and career ready.

According to www.isbe.net, the Illinois State Board of Education has adopted new math and English language arts standards for K‐12 education, known as the New Illinois State Learning Standards Incorporating the Common Core. The goal is to better prepare Illinois students for success in college and the workforce in a competitive global economy.

Work has begun in District 88 related to the Common Core Standards for English language arts and math. While more in-depth work is under way in the reading, English and math departments, all departments have begun to align their curriculum to the English language arts standards. The Common Core Standards provide a framework for the implementation of reading and writing initiatives across the disciplines and will provide more consistency and rigor to our school-wide assessment practices and instructional strategies related to literacy.

While the full implementation is a four-year process, small changes in assessment practices, curriculum and classroom projects will be noted immediately. Larger changes will be forthcoming next year, as our Common Core implementation goes deeper. After full implementation, District 88 will have an online curriculum guide that includes the standards, sample assessment questions and activities/projects for every course in the district, which parents will be able to access.

Why new standards?
• Our expectations for what students must know and be able to demonstrate were different in 1997, when Illinois adopted the current standards.
• The new standards aim to provide clear and consistent academic benchmarks with “fewer, clearer and higher” academic standards for essential learning and skills. The standards were developed while considering the standards of top-performing countries and the strengths of current state standards.
• Students and parents will clearly understand the knowledge students are expected to gain each year.

How will the new state standards be implemented?
The process to fully implement new standards touches numerous systems, including assessment, curriculum, professional development, instruction and various support components. As the details for implementation are determined, the many reform efforts and initiatives under way will be considered to ensure the work is aligned and coordinated.
• PHASE I: Adoption, communication and coordination (completed)
• PHASE II: Communication, resource design and design of implementation system (ongoing)
• PHASE III: Transition, implementation and technical assistance (ongoing)
• The target date for implementation of the new assessment is the 2014‐15 school year

What are the new standards?
According to www.corestandards.org, the Common Core State Standards Initiative is a state-led effort, launched more than a year ago by state leaders, including governors and state commissioners of education from 48 states, two territories and the District of Columbia, through their membership in the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) and Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO).

The new standards define the knowledge and skills students should have within their K-12 education careers, so they will graduate high school able to succeed in entry-level, credit-bearing academic college courses and in workforce training programs. The standards:
• Are aligned with college and work expectations
• Include rigorous content and application of knowledge through high-order skills
• Build on strengths and lessons of current state standards
• Are evidence-based

English language arts
• Reading: Through reading a diverse array of classic and contemporary literature, as well as challenging informational texts in a range of subjects, students are expected to build knowledge, gain insights, explore possibilities and broaden their perspective. Because the standards are building blocks for successful classrooms, but recognize teachers, school districts and states need to decide on appropriate curriculum, they intentionally do not offer a reading list. Instead, they offer numerous sample texts to help teachers prepare for the school year and allow parents and students to know what to expect at the beginning of the year.
• Writing: The ability to research and write logical arguments based on substantive claims, sound reasoning and relevant evidence is a cornerstone of the writing standards, with opinion writing - a basic form of argument - extending down into the earliest grades.
• Speaking and listening: The standards require students gain, evaluate and present increasingly complex information, ideas and evidence through listening and speaking, as well as through media. An important focus of the speaking and listening standards is academic discussion in one-on-one, small-group and whole-class settings.
• Language: The standards expect students will grow their vocabularies through a mix of conversations, direct instruction and reading. The standards will help students determine word meanings, appreciate the nuances of words and steadily expand their repertoire of words and phrases.
• Media and technology: Just as media and technology are integrated in school and life in the 21st century, skills related to media use (both critical analysis and production of media) are integrated throughout the standards.

Math
• The high school math standards call on students to practice applying mathematical ways of thinking to real-world issues and challenges. They prepare students to think and reason mathematically.
• The high school standards set a rigorous definition of college and career readiness, by helping students develop a depth of understanding and ability to apply mathematics to novel situations, as college students and employees regularly do.
• The high school standards emphasize mathematical modeling, the use of mathematics and statistics to analyze empirical situations, understand them better and improve decisions.

We look forward to implementing these new standards to better prepare our students for a successful future. For more information about the Common Core State Standards Initiative, go to www.corestandards.org.

District 88 Is On Course With New Courses For 2012-13 School Year

District 88 is dedicated to improving student performance, enhancing learning opportunities and providing courses that prepare students for the future.

Several new courses that achieve those goals were approved during the Nov. 21 Board of Education meeting. We are excited to offer these courses starting in the 2012-13 school year. The courses are development based and will allow students to enter college-level classes right after high school, instead of having to first take remedial classes.

Courses offered at Addison Trail and Willowbrook include:

• Algebra 2: This course is for students who are looking for a different path than the traditional path of math classes. This course will prepare those students for college-level math directly after graduation.
• College Mathematics: This course also is for students who are looking for a different path than the traditional path of math classes. This course will prepare those students for college-level math directly after graduation.
• Transitional Skills: This course will be offered to juniors and seniors in the school’s special education program. It teaches those students life skills to prepare them for the future after high school.

Courses at Addison Trail include:

• Learning Readiness Physical Education (PE): This course is based on the research-based philosophy that PE, math and reading are tied together. Research has shown a student’s performance in PE impacts his or her performance in math and reading. This course pairs a PE teacher with a math teacher and a reading teacher to help students perform better in the classroom. Students in this course will take a PE class before a math or reading class to help them perform at a higher level.
• Music Production: This course is for students who enjoy nontraditional forms of music such as music for videos and games.

Courses at Willowbrook include:

• Game Design: This course is a continuation of the school’s animation course and will allow students to pursue other areas of design such as designing for video games and cell phone applications.
• Individualized Training and Fitness (replacement of Competitive Team Sports) Physical Education (PE): This course is for students who are looking for an alternative form of fitness from the traditional competitive sports. The course will involve individual portfolios to measure each student’s success and evaluate how each student is reaching specific targets.
• Culinary and Catering: This course is for students who are looking to pursue a career in the culinary arts. It will provide students with foundational skills for the industry and allow them to work with culinary professionals.
• Arabic 2: This course is a continuation of Willowbrook’s Arabic 1, which was introduced for the 2011-12 school year. The response to Arabic 1 has been tremendous, and the Arabic 2 course will allow students to advance and continue learning the language.

District 88 Names Principal of Addison Trail School for 2012-13 School Year

During the DuPage High School District 88 Board of Education meeting on August 15, board members voted unanimously to approve Mr. Adam Cibulka as the Principal of Addison Trail High School, effective with the 2012-13 school year.

He will officially begin his duties on July 1, 2012 and replace Principal Dr. Scott Helton following his transition to the Superintendent of Schools. Helton replaces current District 88 Superintendent Dr. Steve Humphrey who will retire on June 30, 2012, concluding 12 years of service in District 88 and 42 years in education.

Cibulka has been a member of the District 88 school community since August 2004 when he began teaching Economics, Honors Economics and Political Science at Addison Trail. He became the Social Studies Department Chair during the 2007-08 school year and was then promoted to Assistant Principal for Curriculum and Instruction in July 2008. His professional experiences have also included serving as a teacher mentor, sponsoring YMCA Youth and Government and coaching a variety of sports including football as well as boys’ and girls’ basketball.

He will concurrently serve as Assistant Principal for the new school year and begin transitional duties related to the Principal’s position. The purpose of this long-term transition model is to create opportunities for involvement in school activities at no additional cost to the district. Because this announcement creates a vacancy for Assistant Principal during the 2012-13 school year, the posting and the screening process for that position will occur later this fall.

“I believe Adam is an outstanding choice as Principal for Addison Trail High School and that he will work hard with the staff and community to continue delivering outstanding programs and services. I look forward to the new leadership and collaborative work that will evolve.” commented Principal Dr. Scott Helton on the recommendation for his replacement.

A resident of Batavia with his wife and child, Cibulka is currently pursuing a doctorate degree from Northern Illinois University. He holds a master’s degree in Educational Administration from NIU and an undergraduate degree in Secondary Education History/Social Science from Wheaton College.

Accepting his appointment at the Board meeting, Cibulka commented, “It is an honor to serve the students, staff and community of District 88. I am so thankful for the opportunity to work with such a talented staff and supportive community. Addison Trail High School has established a great tradition of Blazer Pride and I am truly blessed to be a part of such an amazing learning community that keeps the success of students at the heart of its mission and vision.”