One member called it a "conundrum." Several pushed lower South class sizes.
Patch Staff
|Updated Fri, Jan 10, 2025 at 10:43 am CT
HINSDALE, IL – A few Hinsdale High School District 86 board members on Thursday called for dealing with the disparity in courses that hurts Hinsdale South students.
"There is a fundamental problem that needs to be addressed," said member Asma Akhras, who lives in the South zone. "(No parent) would allow this for their own child, let alone for a whole community."
For years, Hinsdale Central, with a larger and wealthier student body, has offered a greater course selection than South. At South, students encounter class scheduling conflicts far more often.
Abed Rahman, another member from the South zone, said Thursday was eighth-grade night at South.
"Students are coming in and seeing this amazing program of studies and not realizing they'll pick A, B and C and end up with D," he said.
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He questioned why the district would delay action in addressing the disparity.
Some South residents – and a board member occasionally – have suggested a boundary change between the two schools, equalizing enrollment. But Central residents near the current boundary fear their home values would plunge if the line shifted.
Board member Terri Walker, a Central zone resident, said she opposed changing the boundary.
"That's ultimately what this conversation is getting at," she said. "I also recognize we are in a conundrum that we need to find some sort of creative solution for."
Akhras said she was not pushing for shifting the line. But she said she was for "putting our heads together" to find possible solutions.
The problem, she said, would not go away without action. She cited demographer John Kasarda's 2023 enrollment study, which she said indicated enrollment would continue falling at South.
Board President Catherine Greenspon broke in to say that Akhras was incorrect.
"That's not what the Kasarda report says at all," Greenspon said. "The Kasarda report says that Hinsdale South is going up and Hinsdale Central is going down."
"I apologize," Akhras said.
Actually, the report says enrollment is projected to rise at both schools over 15 years – by 9 percent at South and 3 percent at Central.
By the end of the period, the enrollments at Central and South would stand at 2,530 and 1,485, respectively, the report projects. That is a gap of 1,045 students between the schools, slightly less than the 1,105 now.
During the meeting, board members questioned the district's rule of thumb of 25 students per class, give or take two, with the possibility of going as low as 15. Some suggested a minimum of seven at South. (State records show that the average class size as of last school year was 23 at both schools.)
Setting a lower minimum at South would cost the district more money. Smaller class sizes require more teachers. And if the board raised class sizes at Central to offset the expense, parents there may object.
Board member Heather Kartsounes, a Central zone resident, touched on the financial issue.
"What is the budget impact?" asked board member Heather Kartsounes, who lives in the Central zone. "I'm not saying we shouldn't address it because of the budget, but that's something we should be mindful of."
Member Jeff Waters, another Central zone resident, said staffing has been flat while District 86's overall enrollment has dropped over the last decade. That means the district has available staffing to allow low-enrollment courses at South, he said.
Waters also suggested running buses between Central and South, particularly during the 50-minute lunch period. That period is too long and could be used to expand students' course selection, he said.
Board members agreed to create a special committee to study the disparity.
The discussion came as part of the district's annual presentation of the "staffing framework." This is where the district decides on the number of teachers to assign to each school for the following year.
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