Send D95 a message by voting ‘no’
On April 5, Brookfield and LaGrange Park voters will be asked to approve a property tax increase to fund projected shortfalls in School District 95’s budget.
I urge every taxpayer to vote no, and in doing so send a message to the District 95 school board and its superintendent that they should buckle down and remedy much of the projected budget shortfall by eliminating areas of wasteful spending that have gone unchecked for too long.
If the referendum passes, a homeowner with property valued at $300,000 will pay an additional $450 in taxes next year and every year thereafter. Those with higher home values could see their annual tax bill rise by a thousand dollars or more.
This is an unfair and unnecessary burden on District 95’s taxpayers at a time when most of us find ourselves facing tighter budgets at home. Let the District 95 administration do what every family has been forced to do: reduce waste and limit frivolous spending.
In an effort to push the referendum’s passage, district board members led by Superintendent Rudig imply that the quality of our children’s education is at risk unless we approve this significant tax increase.
Dr. Rudig also implies that property values are at risk unless the referendum passes. This is a shameful tactic meant to scare Brookfield and LaGrange Park residents into voting yes without demanding school board accountability. My message to the board is simple: do more with less. This is the reality of today’s economy.
Over the past few years, Dr. Rudig and the District 95 board have spent substantial taxpayer funds on expensive consultants, architects and dubious capital improvements. The recently revamped consumer sciences room at S.E. Gross is a glaring example of wasted educational dollars.
Additionally, the board has spent exorbitant amounts for classroom telephones, televisions and even electrical upgrades so the rarely used TVs could be plugged in. And in my mind, Dr. Rudig’s total compensation package, which is roughly $200,000 a year, is wildly excessive for a person overseeing a district with just two schools, both of which are well-managed by competent, hands-on principals.
Yet another example of wasted school funds is the recently mailed District 95 newsletter, a four-page propaganda piece issued by Dr. Rudig, devoted solely to advocating passage of the April 5 referendum. Printing and postage cost the district several thousand dollars, money that could have gone to teaching our kids.
There is waste aplenty within District 95, and until such waste is reduced, voters should not entrust nor reward the district’s administration with ever more money to squander.
Speaking of that recent newsletter, those of you who had a chance to read it may have received the impression that the board is doing a great job. Dr. Rudig cites Illinois Standards Achievement Test results to claim that the district’s students are excelling, but a closer examination of district test data shows that compared to other moderately affluent areas, District 95’s performance isn’t particularly impressive.
In fact, of the top 100 grade schools in northeastern Illinois, District 95 schools didn’t even make the list, according to the Illinois State Board of Education.
Granted, compared to statewide test results, which by the way include some of the worst inner-city schools in the nation, District 95’s scores are above average, but I personally find no comfort that only 75 percent of District 95 students meet or exceed statewide performance in reading and writing. That means one out of four District 95 kids are at serious risk. They aren’t doing much better in math, either.
Increased funding won’t solve the district’s performance shortfall, but a more diligent administration with higher expectations will. In my view District 95’s administration is plagued with complacency and entrenched thinking. Taxpayers should not endorse mediocre performance by passing a referendum that essentially hands the district millions of dollars of additional funding without anything in return.
I have three children in District 95 schools, and, like any parent, I want them to have the very best, particularly when it comes to education. But throwing money at a dysfunctional school administration is not the answer.
Until the school board and its superintendent embark on meaningful steps to stop wasteful spending and improve the quality of education our children receive, we are cheating our kids and our community if we blindly vote yes to Dr. Rudig’s appeal for a substantial tax increase. Voting no is the right thing to do.
Ralph McDarmont
LaGrange Park
Support the District 95 tax referendum
On April 5, we will go to the polls to vote. Brookfield-LaGrange Park School District 95 has placed a referendum on the ballot seeking a tax rate increase of 38 cents. My family supports the referendum.
This district has not sought an increase for the education fund since 1985. There have been enough reports in the media to indicate that schools across the state are faced with the same funding issues. As members of this community, I believe we have an obligation to provide the appropriate funding to maintain the quality of public education.
We moved to Brookfield almost five years ago. When we made the decision to move closer to the city, we recognized that one of our most important considerations was the school district. We had to balance our goals and our children’s educational needs.
Our children were enrolled in an excellent school district. We wanted to identify a school that offered the same benefits that we had enjoyed. We reviewed the state report cards and determined that District 95 was the equivalent of the district we were leaving. It is important to note that the district we left behind had far greater resources than our smaller district 95.
I am impressed that, as a small school district, we are able to effectively use our resources and provide the same quality education that larger, richer districts provide. As with any change, you hope you have made the correct choice and the community will live up to your expectations. District 95 has consistently met the needs of our children and we believe it has succeeded in its mission to our community.
To maintain the quality of education our children receive and continue the positive growth of our community, I believe it is imperative that we pass the referendum on April 5.
In the five years we have been in this community, we have seen the value of our home increase at a significantly higher rate than in the eight years we spent in our previous home.
District 95 deserves some of the credit for the increased value of our homes. Let’s continue to make this a community that families choose to move to. Vote yes to Brookfield-LaGrange Park Education District 95 referendum on April 5.
Diane Landahl
Brookfield
Edwards qualified to be a trustee in the Village of Brookfield
I express my full support for Cathy Edwards for the position of Brookfield village trustee. I know first hand of her qualifications and sincere desire to serve all of the residents of Brookfield.
Cathy Edwards is most knowledgeable of all the issues and concerns present in the village. She is a lifelong, blue-blood resident and has the professional experience of actual municipal administration.
She was a former full-time employee of the Village of Brookfield in the capacity of recreation director. Cathy will bring to the village board the needed knowledge of how the administrative offices can serve residential needs to their full capacity. She also possesses all of the necessary intangibles required of this important position.
Cathy Edwards will serve the Village of Brookfield admirably. I believe she has been slated by the PEP Party as a valuable resource to continue the party’s long and deserved legacy for leadership, integrity and common sense in Brookfield government.
Len Gage
Westmont
? Len Gage is a former Brookfield village trustee.
Citizens for Truth don’t have facts straight on Ryan, Edwards
I received a Senior Citizen Alert in my mailbox today from the “Citizens for Truth.”
“Citizens for truth”? Who are you? No one I have talked to has a clue! Seems to me that unknown factor takes a lot of the credibility away from such a letter.
Since I have never heard of them, I assume they are the VIP Party.
My feeling is that the letter has all the amenities of the author of last election’s bashing on senior citizen Ben Beeson. At the time of that letter, Ben was incapacitated after having surgery. But did that stop the bad mouthing of a good man who wants what he thinks is best for his village? No!
If you had checked your information about both Kathy Ryan and Cathy Colgrass Edwards you would find that your information is way faulty. Or was that your agenda?
Next time get your information straight before trying to send a message of traitorship. You would most likely find that there are few, if any, senior citizens that are upset about the closing of the Brookfield Senior Center, as they know the truth.
Salli Carmichael
Brookfield
The taxing issue of replacing Brookfield’s streets
Four years ago, how many Brookfield taxpayers declared that they did not wish to pay for replacement streets by special service areas, because people with replacement streets might see their property taxes go up by $1,000?
Today, a favored few of us have replacement streets, the street replacement money has run out and everyone’s property taxes are up by $1,000. If this does not work for you, no worries, we can always blame it on the schools!
C.P. Hall
Brookfield
Brookfield is most dynamic town in the county
Brookfield has just emerged as the most dynamic village in our county. All you have to do is just look around our town and see the newly paved streets, the renovated library, the first-class schools and see all of the new upgrades of many of our homes.
The incredible rise in condos and the new businesses that have emerged since the VIP Party took over the management of our village. We have added … the CVS drug store for starters. Not bad for the VIP Party.
Our tax rates are low now, and will get much lower when the condos, new businesses and all the upgrades hit the tax rolls.
Now we have to consider the totally new idea of moving our village hall to make way for another complex that includes a hotel and other businesses to support the Brookfield Zoo visitors. That has been a long-overlooked resource that did not appear in our radar screen until our much-maligned president moved to Brookfield to a totally new dynamic level, to take Brookfield from a kind of dormant “stay the course vitality” to one of the most progressive villages in our county.
We have the best (and the most expensive) high school in the state, the very best grade schools. We are the annual winner of Tree Village awards. We have a wonderful park complex including many tot lots.
For once, we will be using all of our assets for the good of our famous zoo and our new visitors.
To put it mildly, we have a tiger by the tail, and we must not let it slip into the hands of our critics of the do-nothing PEP Party of losers and whiners.
I will vote and support the VIP Party and Bill Russ to preserve our progress.
Frank Drazan
Brookfield