'Buffer zone' segregates school community

The current and immediate prior boards of education have created a "segregated" Hinsdale South High School community. Live in the South community and all attendance is restricted to South HS. Live anywhere else in District 86 and freedom of choice exists to attend Central or South. Choice favors Ivy League Central by a 9 to 1 preference.

On June 6, 2016, the board extended the D86 "buffer zone," an area formerly restricting attendance to South HS. However, a significant student under-population problem exists there. There is room for possibly 500 more students. The board's action further steered student population away from South HS to an overcrowded Central HS.

Past board President Kay Gallo acknowledged that in 1991, the board did the wrong thing in creating the "buffer zone," stating "It's a totally flawed system. But, to undo it at this point would take an extensive public vetting process." The June 6 board rejected that solution, adding more controversy, e.g. manipulation of property values, redlining and economic/racial gerrymandering.

D86 was recently informed that there is no more "student imbalance issue" between Central and South. Yet, last April's $76 million referendum, defeated 74 percent to 26 percent, contained a significant cost to add about 55,000 square feet of space at Central to handle student overcrowding, ignoring excess capacity available at South. Given referendum approval, that huge addition costing millions of dollars, would have been built, the need disappearing.

Last year, the board spent $192,000 in non-budgeted referendum costs. This year, the board rehired the same firm to survey public opinion, for $52,000, despite the firm's past gross miscalculation, proposal not provided to public. Since the board doesn't answer questions from the public at board meetings, rehiring was a foregone conclusion.

Roger Kempa

Darien