Thursday, August 18, 2011
State Rep. Kelly Burke addresses education funding before the board at the Aug. 17 meeting of the D229 school board.
As Oak Lawn Community High School gears up for a new school year, the Dist. 229 Board of Education held its monthly meeting on Wednesday. Though the agenda was light, special guest, 36th District Representative Kelly Burke, dropped in to talk about the state of education in Illinois. “I thought it would be a good idea to come out after the session ended and kind of touch base on some education related bills that have come up and just let you know that I'm always available,” she said. Burke opened by talking about the budget and specifically the Illinois House 's elementary and secondary education committee. She said that, unlike in years past, the committee received input from the legislature which resulted in a slight decrease in general…
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Despite the district's financial troubles, the D229 school board voted 4-2 to compensate the superintendent and assistant superintendent for unused vacation days.
The District 229 School Board voted 4-2 to pay the superintendent and assistant superintendent for 10 unused vacation days at last Wednesday’s board meeting for a combined payout of $13,280. After public announcing that his salary would remain frozen next year, D229 Superintendent Michael Riordan accepted a payout of $7,270 for unused vacation. Assistant Superintendent Rick Hendricks received a payout of $6,010. District administrators and non-union staff are all subject to a salary freeze in the 2010-2011 school year because of the district’s financial troubles. Earlier this year, the district had been placed on “early financial warning” for failure to maintain a reserve cash fund that is 50 percent or more of annual expenditures required…
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Saturday, May 21, 2011
New staff member to serve dual role as counselor and basketball coach.
D229 school board members approved the contract of Jason Rhodes as a new high school guidance counselor for the 2011-12 school year at an annual salary of $73,866. “Rhodes fills two needs that we have,” D229 Superintendent Michael Riordan said. “He will be an excellent counselor for our students in the student services department and his credentials as a basketball coach are outstanding and we look forward to really good things from him.” Rhodes comes to Oak Lawn Community High School after spending nine years at Kenwood Academy in Chicago where he taught English and journalism. He was the head coach of Kenwood’s basketball team for seven years and spent two years as the varsity head coach. Rhodes thanked the school board for their well …
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Oak Lawn Community High School
9400 Southwest Hwy, Oak Lawn, IL
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Sunday, December 19, 2010
OLCHS unveils modified leadership plan to streamline expenses and meet federal No Child Left Behind Act.
In the wake of a failure to meet No Child Left Behind standards, the principal and academic division chairs at Oak Lawn Community High School were told Friday afternoon that their one-year administrative contracts would not be renewed at the end of the 2010-11 school year. Effective July 1, Dr. Michael Riordan will add the position of building principal to his responsibilities as the District 229 superintendent. Riordan served as the OLCHS principal for four years prior to being named district superintendent, a position he has held since 2007. Riordan called the changes a restructuring of the school's leadership that will enable the district to realign its curriculum to the new Common Core Learning Standards, recently adopted by the …
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Oak Lawn Community High School
9400 Southwest Hwy, Oak Lawn, IL
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Monday, October 18, 2010
Despite a tight district budget, new programs are still implemented at OLCHS thanks to grants from a donor- and teacher-supported foundation.
With tough economic times bending school district budgets to the breaking point, many schools have had to make tough cuts. And unfortunately, newer and more innovative programs often are the first to get the ax. But thanks to the Spartan Education Foundation, students at Oak Lawn Community High School will still find themselves on the cutting edge of education in many classes. Each year since 2004 the foundation has awarded mini-grants to teachers with the most positive ideas for new classroom programs and tools. "The board members (of the foundation) set up a review process and select the most innovative projects with the greatest classroom benefit to the students. It's difficult because all of the submissions are very good," said …
41.721158
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Oak Lawn Community High School
9400 Southwest Hwy, Oak Lawn, IL
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327283
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Rock Bobster
7:56 am on Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Perhaps what's more interesting is what Rep Burke DIDN'T say! OLCHS is one of the most overpaid, underachieving districts in the state. In a recent news story, it was revealed that 229 has among the highest starting and top end salaries and benefits in the suburbs, yet their ACT scores are under 19 in a state where the average is 20.6 in a student pool that is 48% "Low Income". A few years ago … more ›