Scholnick picked to serve on District 15 school board

An immigration attorney with a background in bilingual and dual language education has been picked to replace a longtime school board member in Palatine Township Elementary School District 15.

The school board voted to appoint Meghan Scholnick at Wednesday’s meeting. She replaces Lisa Beth Szczupaj, who stepped down in June after nine years, eight as board president.

“We received a number of incredible applications. We interviewed a handful of folks,” school board President Samantha Bray Ader said. “Megan was someone who certainly rose to the top because of her depth of community leadership, her understanding of our community and the students that we serve.”

Scholnick, a Palatine resident, said she had been planning to run for the school board next year when the vacancy opened up.

Scholnick is a staff attorney for the National Immigrant Justice Center in Chicago. She provides legal representation to detained and previously detained unaccompanied immigrant children and advocates for them.

She was also a children’s legal rights fellow with the Center for Human Rights of Children at Loyola University.

Her background includes a stint as the interim executive director of the Garden Quarter Neighborhood Resource Center in McHenry and director of strategy and develoment for the Youth and Family Center of McHenry County.

She brings experience in bilingual and dual language education to her new role .

She also was a bilingual second grade teacher in McHenry Elementary School District 15 and a dual language fifth grade teacher in Crystal Lake Elementary School District 47.

She said she is interested in equity for all students.

“I think this is a really strong community and a strong school district,” she said. “My particular background is with bilingual learners, dual language learners and immigrant families.”

szalusky@dailyherald.com