Articles filed under Palatine Township District 15

• Teachers need training to stay current May 20, 2013 12:00 AM
  Letter to the editor: Bonnie Bates of Palatine responds to last week's letter, explainng why teachers very much need training time, to stay informed on current practices.
  

   

• Teachers need to keep learning, too May 20, 2013 12:00 AM
  Letter to the editor: Retired teacher Joanne Bina responds to a recent letter that criticized teachers for demanding seminars and continuing education. "Schools are not static," she writes. "As specialists in our fields, we work together, learn new techniques, so our children can be taught using best practices."
  

   

• Teachers shouldn’t need seminar time May 13, 2013 12:00 AM
  Letter to the editor: Paul Gasiorowski of Palatine thinks it's crazy for teachers to get 3 hours of professional development time every week.
  

   

• Dist. 15 teachers file grievance about schedule changeMay 8, 2013 12:00 AM
  Teachers in Palatine Township Elementary District 15 have filed a labor grievance claiming the district and school board violated the terms of their contract by shifting the professional development time they're to be given during the school week.
  

   

• Dist. 15 holds off on buying 3,000 iPadsMay 8, 2013 12:00 AM
  Faced with budget uncertainties related to the state's financial crisis and concerns over buying outdated technology, Palatine Township Elementary District 15 will hold off on a major tablet purchase — for now. The board agreed it will wait a month before considering the administration's recommendation to buy nearly 3,000 iPad 2s for about $1.2 million.
  

   

• Dist. 15 board elects new board leadership May 7, 2013 12:00 AM
  The Palatine Township Elementary District 15 board held a special meeting Monday to elect new board leadership. After the new board was sworn in, members by a 4-3 vote elected Peggy Babcock as president, Rich Bokor as vice president and newly elected James Ekeberg as secretary.
  

   

• Divided Dist. 15 board opts for early Friday dismissalMay 3, 2013 12:00 AM
  After months of controversy, the Palatine Township Elementary District 15 board made a decision — albeit a divided one — that supports the wishes of the community over those of the teachers union. More than three dozen people who gathered for the special Friday night meeting cheered when the final vote was cast in favor of dismissing about 20 schools early every Friday beginning next fall.
  

   
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  Lake Louise Elementary to participate in annual technology demonstration May 3, 2013 12:00 AM
  Lake Louise Elementary in Palatine is among approximately 60 schools statewide that will participate in the annual TECH 2013: Students for the Information Age event on Tuesday, May 7, at the Illinois State Capitol Building in Springfield.
  

   

• No injuries after school bus hits parked car in Palatine Apr 30, 2013 12:00 AM
  A Palatine Township Elementary District 15 school bus driver was ticketed Tuesday morning after striking a parked and unoccupied car in front of Stuart R. Paddock School at 225 W. Washington St. in Palatine. None of the 19 students on the bus were injured, the bus itself sustained no damage and the car sustained only minor damage, District 15 Transportation Director Tom Bramley said.
  

   

• Dist. 15 to vote Friday on late start/early release issue Apr 30, 2013 12:00 AM
  The Palatine Township Elementary District 15 board will hold a special meeting at 7 p.m. Friday, May 3, to vote on the late start/early dismissal issue. It will take place at Sundling Junior High, 1100 N. Smith St., Palatine. Beginning this fall, every District 15 school will adjust schedules to provide teachers with time for professional development one day each week, a requirement in the union's new contract.
  

   

• Rolling Meadows schools rally to help 8-year-old burn victimApr 29, 2013 12:00 AM
  Students from two Rolling Meadows grade schools and their families will come together Tuesday night to help an 8-year-old classmate hospitalized since March 12 recovering from severe burns suffered a household accident. "You look at one child and you look at your child and you think, 'It could be mine,'" said Dawn McNaney, one of the fundraiser's organizers.
  

   

• Dist. 15 bus driver resigns after alcohol detectedApr 23, 2013 12:00 AM
  A Palatine Township Elementary District 15 bus driver resigned in February after officials discovered she had alcohol in her system while she was on the job. The 35-year-old Rolling Meadows woman's school bus permit was suspended for three years as a result, according to Dave Druker, Secretary of State Jesse White's press secretary.
  

   

• Facts show Dist. 15 drivers are safest Apr 15, 2013 12:00 AM
  Letter to the editor: Steve Bramer, the husband of a District 15 driver, argues that the school district drivers are far safer for children than hiring an outside transportation company.
  

   

• Dist. 15 union, bus company pitch very different busing plans Apr 11, 2013 12:00 AM
  Palatine Township Elementary District 15 board members are hearing two very different pitches related to outsourcing bus service — one from the transportation company out to win a contract and one from the union trying to protect its drivers' jobs.
  

   

• Dist. 15 board delays late start/early release vote until May Apr 11, 2013 12:00 AM
  The Palatine Township Elementary District 15 board won’t vote on the late start/early release proposal until its May 8 meeting. Board President Tim Millar said officials wanted to make a decision but still need clarification on an issue.
  

   

• Union criticizes District 15’s handling of driver firing Apr 9, 2013 12:00 AM
  The Palatine Township Elementary District 15 Transportation Union issued a statement Tuesday criticizing the school district’s handling of a school bus accident Monday. “The probationary driver’s failure to report the accident is without excuse,” union President Carin Ulrich said in the emailed statement. The district superintendent disputed the union's characterization and dedended its handling of the matter.
  

   
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  Experience prevails in Dist. 15 board raceApr 9, 2013 12:00 AM
  Experience prevailed in Palatine Township Elementary District 15, where voters re-elected all three incumbents and put a former board member back on the board. With all 76 precincts reporting, unofficial results show incumbents Peggy Babcock and David Seiffert led the crowded field with 3,605 votes and 3,545 votes, respectively. Close behind were former board member Dr. James Ekeberg with 3,307 votes and incumbent Rich Bokor with 3,169 votes.
  

   

• Dist. 15 says bus outsourcing will save $1.3 million Apr 8, 2013 12:00 AM
  Palatine Township Elementary District 15 and its transportation union are more than $4 million apart in calculating what it will cost to outsource busing. District officials will make a presentation at a school board meeting Wednesday estimating savings of $1.3 million over three years, while the transportation union maintains it will cost the district about $2.8 million more.
  

   
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  Records provide insight into Dist. 15 bus safety Apr 7, 2013 12:00 AM
  As the debate in Palatine Township Elementary District 15 over whether to privatize school bus service continues to heat up — and negotiations with the transportation union remain at a standstill — the issue of safety has emerged alongside finances as paramount. But exactly how safely the transportation department operates is a big point of contention. The Daily Herald obtained records that provide some insight into the safety record.
  

   

• Bokor has betrayed the public trust Apr 5, 2013 12:00 AM
  Letter to the editor: "By divulging the contents of a confidential communication from the president of the District 15 school board to a third party, board member Rich Bokor has betrayed the public's trust," writes Joe Heater of Palatine.