Week in Review: D41 Parents Take Up Think Tank Petition; Food Pantry in Great Need

A look back at some of the top stories and stories of local interest from the week.

District 41 Board Begins Think Tank Discussion, Seeks Clarifications The Glen Ellyn District 41 Board of Education began to discuss the Think Tank initiative and has asked for some clarifications. District 41 Parents Petition Against Think Tank Initiative Parents have started a petition asking Glen Ellyn District 41 to hold off on implementing Think Tank initiative changes in the 2013-14 school year. Police Blotter: DUI, Controlled Substance Possession, iPad Grabbed Glen Ellyn Police Department reports, Dec. 2-8 Court Sentences Fourth Man in Cocaine Drug Ring to 16 Years in Prison Alfredo Garcia, 36, of Bolingbrook, was one of seven people arrested in July 2011 in a drug bust at La Playa Cantina. Glen Ellyn Food Pantry in Desperate Need of…

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District 41 Parents Petition Against Think Tank Initiative

Parents have started a petition asking Glen Ellyn District 41 to hold off on implementing Think Tank initiative changes in the 2013-14 school year.

District 41 Board Begins Think Tank Discussion, Seeks Clarifications

The Glen Ellyn District 41 Board of Education began to discuss the Think Tank initiative and has asked for some clarifications.

For the first time, the Glen Ellyn District 41 Board of Education discussed the Think Tank initiative, which as proposed, would bring classroom changes to students in second- through fifth-grade in the 2013-14 school year. The initiative was discussed at a board meeting held earlier this week. Plans to implement the District 41 Think Tank initiative have come under fire from a large number of parents concerned that the district is moving too rapidly and not taking into account training time needed for teachers. Parents also have raised concerns about how students might be grouped for math and literacy. A number of parents and teachers have spoken in favor of the initiative, but the parents who have raised concerns have been the most vocal…

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District 41 Parents Petition Against Think Tank Initiative

Parents have started a petition asking Glen Ellyn District 41 to hold off on implementing Think Tank initiative changes in the 2013-14 school year.

During a recent public meeting, one parent called Glen Ellyn District 41’s plans to implement a "Think Tank" initiative a communication nightmare since many parents knew little about the process and were opposed to the district’s plans to move quickly to implement plans. While a growing number of parents have come out in favor of educational changes, the opposition against plans to implement changes in the 2013-14 school year does not appear to be subsiding, and now parents have started an online petition seeking to stop the D41 Think Tank initiative. As of Dec. 9, the group appeared to have gathered 50 online signatures to its petition. (The number of signatures has increased since this story's publication) The online petition …

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D41 Think Tank Discussions Continue; More Meetings Expected

Officials from District 41 have said additional public meetings will be held to discuss and gather feedback regarding the Think Tank proposals for educational reforms.

Parents gathered Tuesday night to learn more about Glen Ellyn District 41’s plans to implement changes in the 2013-14 school year. The meeting is one of several the district is planning to help educate parents and gather feedback. The district said it will hold more meetings in January. The meeting, originally scheduled as one session to be held at the district’s office, was instead moved to Forest Glen Elementary School and split into two groups; one group for parents who had already attended a meeting held Nov. 26 and one for parents who had not attended any public meetings on the matter. More than 100 parents attended the last school board meeting where the Think Tank presentation was made public for the first time. A large group of …

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Parents Take Issue with 'When' Not 'If' Plans for District 41 Classroom Changes

District 41 officials made a presentation Monday night sharing proposed classroom changes that would be implemented in the 2013-14 school year.