Wednesday, Oct. 18

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Monday, Oct. 23

Board of Education Curriculum Workshop

7 p.m. O'Neill Downers Grove Village Hall

Tuesday, Oct. 24

Fall Orchestra Festival

7 p.m. Downers Grove South

Wednesday, Oct. 25

Parent Presentation on Healthy Kids

(see information below)

7:30. p.m. Herrick

Wednesday, Oct. 25

Board of Education Legislative Committee

3:45. p.m. O'Neill PDC

Monday, Nov. 13

Board of Education Regular Meeting

7 p.m. Downers Grove Village Hall

Friday, Nov. 17

End of Trimester



Click here to view the 2023-24 calendar.

A message from Dr. Russell ••

Dear District 58 Families,



I hope you are doing well. It is very hard to believe that we are already halfway through October and that Thanksgiving is only a month away. The District and schools are well into the established routines of the school year! In November, the District will seek Board approval of our New Strategic Plan so be sure to check our Board of Education communications over the next month. We are very excited to continue the strong path the District is on for the next five years.

Parent-Teacher Conferences



A big District 58 thank you to our families and staff for a successful round of fall conferences. We are beyond grateful to our staff for their hard work preparing and conducting conferences. We are also very appreciative that year after year so many of our families attend conferences. A strong home and school connection is essential to helping our students grow and achieve. District 58 is a special place because of the commitment our families make to be a part of their child’s education. While conferences take place twice a school year, our staff is always there for our families if a question or concern arises. Please do not hesitate to reach out if we can be of assistance. 

New Athletic Conference



I am very excited to share that, pending Board approval, our two middle schools (Herrick and O’Neill) will be joining a new athletic conference next school year (2024-25). Currently, we compete in the DuPage Metro Valley Conference (DMVC). With the exception of our two middle schools, the other members of the conference feed into Glenbard High School District 87. Our new conference (pending Board approval in November) will be the Southeast DuPage Elementary Athletic Association (SDEAA). 

The new conference includes all of the District 99 feeder school districts as well as many other local districts. The SDEAA has more sports and activities that are available to its member districts (each district can select which sports and activities it will be a part of via an a la carte system). Additionally, the member districts are located closer to our middle schools which will help with travel for our students, staff, and families. There is a great deal of work that will take place between now and next school year regarding the new conference. We are excited about the opportunities that SDEAA offers and can’t wait to get started. In our new Strategic Plan that will be adopted in November, the community asked the District to find more opportunities for our students in Goal 5, Cultivating Talent. Officially joining SDEAA will help us meet that goal.

Principal Appreciation Month

October is Principal Appreciation Month and we are very proud to honor our building leaders in District 58. This month we will feature all of our principals on social media and in our buildings. Being a principal is a very rewarding and challenging calling. Running a school is one of the toughest jobs in education and our leaders rise to the challenge daily. The principals in District 58 are dedicated to assisting our students and staff so they can reach their full potential. We can’t thank them enough for their dedication, hard work, flexibility and perseverance. Please take a moment to thank your child’s principal for all they do.

Bullying Awareness Month

October is also Bullying Awareness Month. District 58 takes bullying very seriously as no student should ever have to endure being mistreated. The District continually updates its bullying policy in accordance with the law as well as guidance from the Illinois State Board of Education. Additionally, our schools educate students on bullying prevention. We have several resources to help students in addition to an anonymous reporting system called Safe2Help. If your child is struggling, please reach out to the building principal and/or social worker. We are committed to stomping out bullying via a strong partnership between the schools and families. Additionally, our partners at Glenbard Parent Series are holding a valuable workshop that would be useful for parents. The topic is Confronting Cyberbullying and Careless/Unwise Social Media Use in Tech Savvy Kids. It will be held virtually at 7 p.m. tonight. (Wednesday). The Zoom link can be found here. If you can’t attend the presentation, a recording will be posted in the video library of past speakers. 

As always, feel free to reach out if we can assist you in any manner.

Sincerely,



Dr. Kevin Russell

Superintendent’s Community Advisory Council Openings

Please consider serving; We value your involvement! 

Thank you to those who expressed interest in joining one of our many District Councils and Board Committees. Our largest group – the Superintendent’s Community Advisory Council (SCAC) – comprises two representatives from each school as well as a balance of other community representatives. Currently, we are in need of representatives from the following schools: 

• 2 Fairmount
• 2 Highland
• 1 Indian Trail
• 1 Kingsley
• 1 Lester
• 2 Whittier
• 1 O’Neill

The SCAC will work on a variety of Strategic Plan objectives that relate to community relations as well as other important topics that impact the District. The group will meet three times a year. If you are interested in serving on the SCAC, please fill out this interest form. We value and welcome your involvement!

Health guidance for sending your child to school •••

As we mentioned in the Oct. 4 issue of Communicate 58, we have seen a decrease in student attendance in the last few years, including the beginning of this year. Showing up to school every day is critical for children’s well-being, engagement and learning. We wanted to share the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) health guidance for attending school. Click here to see the flyer.

You may send children to school if they are generally healthy and well and participating in usual day-to-day activities.

Children can even go to school if they:

• Have a mild cold, which may include a runny nose and/or cough
• Have eye drainage without fever, eye pain or eyelid redness
• Have a mild stomachache
• Have a mild rash with no other symptoms
• Have head lice; though they are annoying and should be treated, lice are not a reason to exclude a child from school (as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the NASN
• Haven’t had a fever overnight and they have not taken fever-reducing medicine during that time.

District to pilot elementary lunch program ••

To meet the needs of our families, the District is piloting a boxed lunch program for elementary students. The District sent an email to elementary school families on Monday providing an update on those efforts. The pilot lunch program will be available beginning Oct. 30.

The District will send an email later this week outlining how families can log onto a new system from Quest Food Services to order lunches for their child. Please note that you will receive a separate email for each student in elementary school. The letter will note your child(s) student ID number, which is needed to log onto the system. Click here for more information. 

Registration for the Reading Games is now open until Nov. 15 ••



Registration for the 2024 Reading Games is open now through Wednesday, Nov. 15. You do not need to identify the students who will be on your team, so there is time to finalize the team members. 



The Reading Games is a fun reading competition for District 58 students in grades 3-8. Students read books from the book lists, then face other teams to answer questions about the books they've read. It is a great opportunity for kids to read new books and discuss them with friends.

Teams are made up of 5-8 students, and may include students from different grades and schools. However, due to space limitations, participation in the Reading Games is limited only to DG58 students. Teams will read books and be asked questions from Book List 1 (3rd-4th grades) or Book List 2 (5th-8th grades).



To read more or to register, click here.

Developing healthy kids: A parent night •••

Promoting and developing healthy kids and the value of healthy eating is the subject of a parent presentation sponsored by the District 58 Education Foundation. The presentation will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 25 from 7:30-8:15 p.m. at Herrick Middle School, 4435 Middaugh Ave. The presentation is open to all District 58 families.

It is presented by Mar Health & Fitness and will be held at Herrick Middle School. Click here for more information.

PHOTO GALLERY: Learning about differences ••

District 58 likes to stress that differences might be what make all of us unique and should be celebrated but at the same time in most ways we are all alike! Here are examples of ways students learned about those who are different from them.

White Cane Day at Grove Preschool

During White Cane Day, children in Grove Children’s Preschool learned about those who are visually impaired and then practiced how to use a white cane.

Neurodiversity Week at Indian Trail

At Indian Trail, Neurodiversity Week was held in the library this week. Students traveled from station to station and learned about autism, misconceptions, sensory tools and calming techniques. The goal is to create a more understanding culture that celebrates every individual. It also corresponds with the school's "One Book One School" initiative to read a story about a boy who is on the autism spectrum called A Boy Called Bat.

PTA Reflections: Calling student artists! ••

Calling on DG58 student artists! Express your artistic talent by participating in the National PTA Reflections program. You can submit art in one or more of the following categories: Dance Choreography, Film Production, Literature, Music Composition, Photography, Visual Art and Special Artist category. Entries are due by Oct. 27. For more information, go to the Downers Grove Area Council website or contact Council Chairs Johanna Lewandowski and Jacque Morgan at dgareflectionscouncil@gmail.com.

Please share! We are still hiring! •••

District 58 is hiring several full-time and part-time instructional assistant positions at various schools. Instructional assistants help supervise students and support classroom teachers through small-group or individual student instruction, under the teacher’s guidance. The starting salary is $16.80 an hour. Some instructional assistant positions that work in specialized programs also will receive a $2,000 stipend. Learn more and apply at www.dg58.org/employment.

Parent workshops by Glenbard Parent Series ••

• 7 p.m. Wednesday Oct. 18.

Confronting Cyberbullying and Careless, Unwise Social Media Use in Tech-Savvy Kids Zoom link

• Noon and 7 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 1

Can’t Do or Won’t Do? Executive Functioning Skill Building to Solve Behavior Challenges Noon Zoom link; 7 p.m. Zoom link

• Noon and 7 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 2

The Power of Mindfulness to Increase Calm and Joy in Young Children Noon Zoom link; 7 p.m. Zoom link



Programs are free and open to the public. No registration is required. Click here to see the 2023-24 schedule. 

Flu Vaccines, Health resources for uninsured or underinsured ••

• Free Flu Vaccines
• DuPage Health Coalition Resources

Thank you for supporting our students!

Thank you to First United Methodist Church which donated $200 to each District 58 school to help students in emergencies. This makes a big difference in our students' and families' lives. A big DG58 thank you!

Downers Grove Grade School District 58

2300 Warrenville Road, Suite 200NE, Downers Grove, IL 60515

Community Relations Office: 630-719-5805 I fbehr@dg58.org | www.dg58.org

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