Mary Drew Memories: Remember the School by Sharing Your Stories and Photos

Mary Drew Elementary School will close at the end of this month, but parents, teachers, staff and students can share their stories, photos and videos about what made the school so special.

In less than a week, Mary Drew Elementary School will close its doors after four years, a casualty of declining enrollment and district budget cuts. The decision to close Mary Drew was an emotional one for everyone involved—parents, teachers, staff, administrators. It's a testament to the kind of education students received at Mary Drew that so many people worked to try to keep it open. READ: Go to Our Section on Mary Drew's Closing for Details on the Decision After May 29, students and teachers will be going to different schools, but that doesn't mean they have to forget the good times they had at Mary Drew. This page is designed for members of the Summit Hill School District 161 community to share their memories of the school and what it…

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Board Honors D161 Students, Approves Amended Budget

The Summit Hill Junior High band performed outside before the meeting, then administrators and teachers praised select students for their hard work and accomplishments.

With the end of the school year around the corner for Summit Hill School District 161, it was only appropriate that much of Wednesday night's meeting—the last before school's out for summer—was about celebrating the efforts and achievements of district students. The evening began with an outdoor performance in front of the district's administrative offices by the Summit Hill Junior High School band before the start of the meeting. Once the meeting was under way, principals and teachers from each school recognized their exemplary students in an emotional ceremony. Finally, the Summit Hill track team, which placed third at the state meet, and winners at the various levels of the district, regional and state science fairs. READ: Amended D161 …

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Joe Vince

7:09 pm on Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Sorry, everyone. Having technical difficulties with the live blog.   more ›

Amended D161 Budget Shows $400K Decrease in Deficit

The budget shortfall for Summit Hill School District 161 went from $2.1 million to $1.7 million thanks in large part to some unexpected revenue.

Much of the discussion this year about the finances for Summit Hill School District 161 has not been positive. It's revolved around budget cuts that included school closings, staff dismissals and school fees. That's why it was welcome news last week that the amended D161 budget for the 2012 fiscal year was to have a $1.7 million deficit, down from an originally forecasted $2.1 million. That savings comes thanks to accurate projected spending and an almost 2-percent increase in projected revenue, said Dean Gerdes, the district's finance director. READ: D161 Board Hires New Finance and Special Ed. Directors Much of the district's added windfall came from a refund—about $350,000—by the Lincoln-Way Special Education District 843, Gerdes said. …

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D161 Board Hires New Finance, Special Ed. Directors

Plus: New Johnson Controls contract saves Summit Hill school district $40K. Read the blog from Wednesday night's meeting for more details.

Summit Hill School District 161 has new finance and special education directors as the board of education hired two veteran administrators from Plainfield's school district during Wednesday's meeting at Frankfort Square Elementary School. Susan Krautstrunk was hired as director of finance and transportation, taking over for Dean Gerdes, who is resigning from the post at the end of June. Bridget Nolan follows Julie Egan as the district's special education director. In March, Egan agreed to be the new supervisor for Lincoln-Way Area Special Education District 843. Krautstrunk and Nolan begin work July 1. Current position: Director of finance, Plainfield Community Consolidated School District 202, since 2010 Background: Krautstrunk has been …

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Joe Vince

8:45 pm on Wednesday, May 16, 2012

@caspert: Your comments were fine until you started with the swear words. Feel free to repost what you wrote, minus the language. Thanks, Joe Vince Local Editor, Frankfort   more ›

Editor's Notebook

How Can the D161 Board Regain the Trust of Parents?

Patch asks readers to share their solutions on what the Summit Hill school district's board of education can do to rebuild the confidence that has been lost among many community members.

Spend time with a group of parents from Summit Hill School District 161 parents, and you'll hear a familiar refrain if the topic of the district's board of education comes up. "I just can't trust the board anymore." Sometimes it's expressed with seething disdain. Other times it comes out as abject disappointment. But in every case, that sentiment is accompanied by an overwhelming concern for the future of the district and the students in it. READ: Board Runs Afoul of State's Open Meetings Act Again The roots of this distrust stem from the board's recent efforts to eliminate a more than $3 million deficit over the next three years. Although not necessarily agreeing with board members' decisions concerning full-day kindergarten and closing …

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Rose C

12:31 pm on Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Agreed. I think if they can keep their personal feelings towards one another outside of the board room that would be a step in the right direction. They all have the same goal as we all do - getting our children the best education possible. I would also like to see the community remain respectful at the same time as well. Throwing insults - whether you're a board member or a member of the …   more ›

The Mary Drew Closing: Catch Up on What You Missed Last Week

You know how the vote turned out concerning the elementary school, but do you know why certain board members support that? Or how district residents have responded? Find out with this wrap up of what went down.

Last week marked a major turning point for Summit Hill School District 161 parents and community as the board of education voted to close down Mary Drew Elementary School in order to dig out of a more than $3 million defecit over the next three years. NEWSLETTER: Get Your D161 and Other Local Stories Delivered to Your Inbox That decision has rippled through the district, upseting parents who feel the board didn't have enough concrete information to close a school. But how did things get to this point? And how have district residents responded? Go back and read Patch's comprehensive coverage of the financial tumult D161 faces. You can check out the individual stories linked here or go to the Patch Topic Pages for the Mary Drew closing and …

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D161 Parents Attend Fundraiser to Support Mary Drew School

In a symbolic gesture, community members from the Summit Hill school district came out Thursday to the Cooks Night Off event run by the elementary's school community organization.

The last time Summit Hill School District 161 parents came to show support for Mary Drew Elementary School--at Tuesday's special meeting where the board of education voted to close the school starting in 2012-13--the atmosphere was loud, heated and contentious. That was in stark contrast to the mood at Thursday's Cooks Night Off at Wendy's in Tinley Park where district parents and community members came together for the Mary Drew School Community Organization fundraiser. READ: Board Votes Again; Mary Drew to Close Next School Year The event, which is held the first Thursday of every month, raises money for the Mary Drew SCO, which uses it to fund student parties, assemblies and other activities. The wrinkle this Thursday was that many of …

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LIVE BLOG: D161 Board Votes Again; Mary Drew School to Close in 2012-13

It was standing-room only at the Summit Hill school district offices as the board re-voted to close the elementary, 4-3, during a special meeting Tuesday. Read the transcript of the live blog for the details.

In a 4-3 vote, the board of education for Summit Hill School District 161 approved Tuesday at a special meeting the closing of Mary Drew Elementary School this fall despite the public outcry from close to 250 parents and community members to keep it open and calls for board President Mary Kenny to resign. Kenny, along with board Vice President Joy Murphy, board Secretary Denise Lenz and board member Denise Wildeveld, voted to close Mary Drew. Board members George Perros, Sean William Doyle and Stacey Borgens voted to keep the school opening.  Throughout the meeting, members of the public voiced their displeasure, yelling and shouting at board members. On more than one occassion, Kenny used her gavel to try to bring order back to the …

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Rose C

10:26 pm on Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Metro, I agree this district has gone through many things - good and bad - over the past 30 years. But I have to agree with taxpayer, you need to check your facts before you attack Mrs. Kenny. She has spent years fighting for the entire district in situations that were not popular and when in the minority - she was completely ignored many times. I'm not setting her up for saint hood however, …   more ›

Editor's Notebook

POLL: Should Parents Try to Stop Mary Drew Closure in the 11th Hour?

Tuesday's re-vote over closing the elementary school has given some parents and residents cause to try to make a final attempt to save Mary Drew. But is that the right thing to do? Tell us what you think.

Tuesday's re-vote by the Summit Hill School District 161 board to close Mary Drew Elementary School for the 2012-13 school year might be a formality. But it hasn't stopped parents from trying to persuade the board to reverse course. The board scheduled a special meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the district offices to vote again on the closing after a community member filed a grievance Friday that the board didn't sufficiently notify the public that it would be taking action to close Mary Drew at its Feb. 22 meeting. The closing was included under the "Planning for the Future" agenda item at last week's meeting, where board members voted to shutter the school next school year. READ: Board Will Vote Again to Close Mary Drew Parents and other…

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Tracy

10:32 pm on Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Well, reality is it was never off the table, and neither is a second school, or programs or busing or activities... it's just begining. I'm on the blogfs and pod casts when not at meetings, feel free to sit by me at the next one. Still doesn't change that the board snuck it on the agenda, vote wise, and that guilt was acknowledged.   more ›

Community, Parents Respond to Mary Drew's Closing

Find out what Summit Hill D161 residents had to say about the board's decision to shutter the school.

The closing of Mary Drew Elementary School had parents and residents of Summit Hill School District 161 reacted Thursday to the news. Patch spoke with some of them and compiled comments from the story about the board's decision to shutter the school. Tony Pietrzak, two children attending Mary Drew Tony Pietrzak said Thursday he was organizing a group of parents that would petition the board to reconsider its decision on cutting full-day kindergarten, as well as hiring an outside consulting firm to develop the best financial plan for dealing with the district's $3 million projected deficit over three years. Pietrzak, who has two children that attend Mary Drew, also applied for the open board position recently filled by Denise Wildeveld. …

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