Oak Park school bond under microscope

Sixty Oak Park residents on opposing sides of the H6 school bond issue defeated in November met Thurs., Jan. 11, to discuss why the measure failed and what steps the school district might want to take next.

Organized by concerned residents and community leaders, the forum was billed as a grassroots effort to support the school district in the wake of the failed bond. The stated goal is to form a committee of parents and those without children in school to determine common priorities and provide independent feedback to the board of education and school district.

During the two-hour discussion anger and disappointment were expressed over the outcome of H6, but also soulsearching, hope and satisfaction at what many considered a strong turnout for the meeting.

Jay Kapitz, a member of the Oak Park Municipal Advisory Council, served as facilitator during the meeting which included parents of students, residents with no children in school and a couple of students. Although leaders attended from various community groups, including the board of education, no one was there in an official capacity.

"A lot of parents were saying they were frustrated," said Susie Harris, who helped organize the meeting along with Kapitz, Cindi Gortner and Peter Kristensen, leader of the H6 campaign committee. "Let's all try to get in a room and talk and just figure this out."

Issues discussed included interdistrict permit students, feasibility of closing schools temporarily due to declining enrollment, encouraging others to participate, and the school board's relationship with the community.

"A lot of people were confused about what the true facts were, what the money was being spent on and about the outofdistrict students," said Mike Paule, a new member of the Oak Park MAC. "In the end, what it's really about is the kids. I think all of us are willing to spend the money if we think it's being well-spent."

Among those in attendance was Glen Wilcox, who led the "No on H6" campaign.

"The reason I'm here is that if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem," Wilcox said. "I feel like the school board heard things tonight they probably hadn't heard before."

Board members Jan Iceland and Cindy Vinson sat quietly. Iceland would like to reach more residents who do not have children in the school system. Iceland and others pointed out that the board had held informational meetings but attendance had been poor.

"The board has been thinking about and discussing H6 since the election," Iceland said. "We just need to know what people want."

Natalie Friedman, a parent of two Brookside students, campaigned for H6 by speaking to neighbors, some who were opposed to the bond. Friedman admitted to agreeing with some of the opposition's issues, and said it was not clear to her how the bond money would have been spent.

"I felt like the people in charge aren't in touch with us," Friedman said. "It scared me."

Another parent, Ann Waldman, said that although she supports the schools through volunteer work as well as monetary donations, she felt distrustful of the board.

"There's a disconnect between the board and the community," Waldman said.

Although some may dislike the board, the superintendent or the staff, the community must work with them for the overall good of the district, said parent Susan Kandelin, a yard patrol aide at Brookside.

"They need our guidance, our direction," Kandelin said.

Lisa Ortiz, whose parents worked for the district for many years, urged people to keep in mind that the administration, staff and board are "coming from a good place and want to do what is best for your children."

Those who voted against the bond are not against the schools, said Barry Myerson, chair of Friends of Oak Park Schools.

"These are people who voted with their conscience," Myerson said. "We need to be more inclusive, not exclusive."

Benjamin Hies, who lives in the Shadow Ridge condominium complex, said most residents in his neighborhood don't have schoolchildren and feel uncomfortable having no say about how bond money is spent.

"Let's see if we can come up with something amenable to a population like that," Hies said.

Kristensen, who is on the facilities committee, said hard bids for repair and improvement work need to be made available to the community.

"Evidently there is this distrust," Kristensen said. "I do firmly believe we need another bond but we need your input."

After several parents complained that Oak Park High "looks like a dump," student Ben Schwartz disagreed. Although the outside may not be visually pleasing, he said the facilities "are completely adequate for learning.

"I don't think beauty equates with a good education," Schwartz said.

But several people, including Kandelin and Barbara Wechter, said facilities are run-down and need repair.

Several people appealed to participants to come to future meetings and bring others with them.

"Don't leave tonight and say 'I'm done,'" said Doug Orens, a member of the facilities committee. "All of us who want to make a change can."

Gortner said she was encouraged by the discussion.

"Listening to people who were opponents in the H6 campaign laugh together and talk about moving forward gives me hope that we are now on our way to building back a sense of cohesiveness, communication and cooperation in our community," Gortner said.