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| Gifted in the News
May 22nd, 2006
Dear
GECO Members and Friends,
I am thrilled to report that the Board of Education voted to approve the proposal presented by Dr. Shillingburg and the Gifted Task Force. It was a unanimous vote of all Board members present at the meeting. There was a very good discussion preceding the vote, and thoughtful questions from the Board.
We owe many thanks to Dr. Shillingburg, Lori Gerke, and all of the
members of the Gifted Task Force. We would like to thank Susan
Portland, Marty Malecki, and Yvonne Mayer, who served on the Task Force
at our recommendation. Also thanks to everyone who offered public
comment tonight and last week in support of the proposal. Most
importantly, please take some time to thank the Board, by sending a
letter to the members or an email to them at
BOE@d181.org.
I know many of you have questions or suggestions about the
implementation of the proposal. Dr Shillingburg has agreed to try to
schedule a time to meet with interested parents and answer questions and
hear suggestions. We hope to set this up for sometime over the next
couple of weeks, before school ends. I will notify everyone as soon as
we are able to schedule this meeting.
We are very enthusiastic about the possibilities this plan offers for
improved services to gifted, bright and talented students in our
District, and are pleased to have the District start down this path.
Linda
Linda Rio Reichmann
President, Gifted Education Cooperative of District 181
April 18th, 2006Dear
GECO Members and Friends,
At the April 24th meeting, the Board will review the reading intervention model and will have a guest speaker discussing that issue. At that same meeting, they will hear about and discuss assessment, including how it relates to both the reading program and to gifted identification. Then, at the May 8th meeting, Dr. Shillingburg will present the recommendations of the three gifted task forces: gifted K-8, middle school language arts, and middle school math. At that meeting, Dr. Shillingburg will be asking for: - continuation of a GRC-like program - a full-time gifted specialist in every school - an upgrade to the middle school math program - other details that will allow all students to be challenged daily. You may still want to attend the April 24th meeting to hear about assessment, but in order to show our support for expanded gifted services and more gifted specialists, Please plan to attend the May 8th school board meeting Hinsdale Middle School 7:30 pm (I am told that the board could vote on the gifted recommendations on May 8, but that the vote itself could be May 22 instead) Please contact me if you have questions
October 25, 2005Dear
GECO Members and Friends,
Thanks to everyone who participated in the
middle school gifted pilot discussion at Monday's Board meeting, either
by attending, speaking, or contacting the Board in advance with your
comments and concerns. Your advocacy was very strong and
important.
After a very long discussion during the Board
meeting, a motion was made to approve or re-approve the gifted pilot
program, this motion was seconded, and by a Board vote of 4-3, the
motion passed. The pilot will go forth as presented and discussed at
the meeting. If you would like a copy of the Powerpoint the Dr.
Schillingburg presented, please email a request to GECO@Arvamont.com.
As we understand it, HMS parents whose children are to continue testing
are being notified today, CHMS parents will be notified very soon regarding
their children's completed testing, and HMS parents will be
notified of results as soon as HMS testing has been
completed. The administration will set up a meeting with the
involved parents before the students begin, to answer any questions.
Please join us in thanking all of the Board
members for their attention to this issue. Your continued advocacy and
contact with the Board and staff is very important as this pilot moves
forward and is evaluated at the end of the school year. In addition,
as you will see in Dr. Shillingburg's slides, other
issues at the middle school and K-5
gifted services will be evaluated as well this year, and your concerns
and suggestions on issues that come up in that regard will be
important. We ask, however, that everyone be appropriately respectful
to all of the Board and staff, whether or not you agree with their positions
and approach. They all work very hard and spend many hours working to
make this a high-quality school district, and we must be mindful of that
dedication and commitment as we express our views as parents.
Sincerely,
Linda
Linda Rio Reichmann
President, Gifted Education Cooperative of
District 181
October 18, 2005Dear
GECO Members and Friends,
Thanks
to all of you who were able to attend our coffee on Friday with Dr. Warren
Shillingburg, Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning.
We had over 30 people join us
and we heard about some major changes being contemplated by the District
concerning current gifted programming in our District.
The most immediate change is that the Board of Education has ordered a
stop to the testing of 7th and 8th grade students for the
Middle School pilot gifted program at least until after the October 24 Board
meeting. There will be a significant discussion regarding gifted education in District 181 at the Monday, October 24th Board Meeting at 7:30 p.m. at the HMS. The fate of the middle school pilot and the presence of a gifted specialist in the middle schools is likely to be decided at this meeting. The Board needs to hear from us NOW! As
a first priority, please contact the
Board members (contact information is provided at the end of this email).
Second, but equally important, we need you to attend
the October 24 Board Meeting. Please
let me know if you can volunteer to help us get out the word about the need for
parents to attend this meeting—there is power in numbers! Some
other highlights of the presentation by Dr. Shillingburg: *
Dr. Shillingburg has extensive credentials and experience in gifted education. *
Dr. Shillingburg is an advocate of acceleration, (grade-level and subject
matter). He is not in favor of
self-contained placements like the GRC program.
He prefers to have gifted students' needs met in their home schools, and
would like to design a program that will do so. *
The whole K-8 gifted program will be assessed this year, through the work
of a committee that will have some parent representation. *
The middle school gifted program is currently operating with the eleven 6th
graders having one pull-out period with Barbara McClarty each day.
The structure for 7th and 8th graders (as long as the pilot continues)
will be discussed Monday night. *
Asked
to compare how our top students fare when they enter high school in District 86,
Dr. Shillingburg indicated that he has met with District 86 officials.
While our students do well in District 86, they are not as advanced in math as
students coming from Oak Brook. He indicated that the middle school
curriculum committee is making changes that they hope will address this issue. Feel
free to contact me by phone or email if you would like more information about.
GECOweb@arvamont.com Thanks, Linda
Rio Reichmann
Midwest Talent Search registration deadline: October 31st, 2005. Click here to learn more.
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