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District 64 eNews May 16, 2025

Simply...THE BEST

Not one. Not two. But make it three straight years of being honored with the Best Communities for Music Education Award from the NAMM Foundation. The prestigious designation is a national recognition highlighting D64’s dedication to providing comprehensive music learning opportunities for all students.


Read more about the amazing honor!

Introducing ParentSquare

We are thrilled to announce that we will transition away from SchoolMessenger to ParentSquare for our communications platform. This new district-approved system will enhance and streamline how we engage with families and staff. ParentSquare will help reduce information overload and improve clarity at all three levels (District, Schools, and Classrooms) while promoting inclusivity and strengthening trust within the community.


Here’s some of what makes ParentSquare so great:

  • Receive messages from District/School via email, text, or app notification
  • Choose to receive information as it comes or all at once with a daily digest in the evening
  • Communicate in your preferred language
  • See pictures and files
  • See calendar events


This will be a gradual transition to the new platform, and not all features will be immediately available. Here is more information about the feature rollout. The first big date is July 17, starting then all district-wide and school-wide mass communications will be sent from ParentSquare.


As we approach the mid-July launch and the start of the school year, we’ll provide information on registering your account. For families, even if you don’t register, you will still receive text, email, and phone notifications. 


All newsletters will also be sent through ParentSquare. We will share more information later on how the community (people without children currently in D64) can sign up to still receive this newsletter. Eventually, FAQs, training sessions, presentations, and other resources will be posted to our ParentSquare help page on our website.

D64 Shining Stars From Emerson

Emerson student Sophie Erickson and Head Custodian Deo Valentin are the D64 Shining Stars for May! We were honored to recognize these two awesome individuals at the May School Board Meeting. 


The Emerson Admin team of Tessa Shulman, Maria Soulias, and Pat Conlin was there to help showcase Sophie and Deo's positive impact on the school.


Read more about Sophie and Deo. Thank you for being awesome members of the Emerson and D64 Community!

News From The May 15 Regular BOE Meeting

The District 64 Board of Education held a regular meeting on Thursday, May 15. You can watch or listen to a replay of the meeting here on our YouTube page


Student/Staff Recognition



You can read the full board recap on our website.

Upcoming Board Meetings

The following are the next Board meetings:

  • May 22, 2025 - Special Meeting (Board Training)
  • June 26, 2025 - Regular Meeting - 7 pm

Looking to catch up on past meeting highlights? A summary of each meeting is available on our Current Board News webpage.


Please confirm meeting dates and times on the Board meetings webpage.

Join The Award-Winning

D64 Instrumental Music Program

We would like to invite your student to join the District 64 Instrumental Music program next year! Beginning in 4th grade, your child is eligible to join Orchestra and 5th grade students are eligible to join the band or orchestra! To learn more about the program and the string instruments offered, please see the links below:


Read: Important Information About Instrumental Music


Video Presentation: All About Band!


Video Presentation: All About Orchestra!


If you already registered your child for the 2025-2026 school year but did not select instrumental music, log back into your account to add band/orchestra: Click Here to Add Instrumental Music, click "Forms" on the left, then "Enrollment" at the top and scroll down to instrumental music.


Click here for a video tutorial on how to add band/orchestra to your child’s registration!


The instrumental music registration deadline is August 1. Band/Orchestra teachers will communicate more information via email with registered families the second week of school. Lessons will begin the week of September 8. 


If you have any questions, please email Erica Faulhaber (efaulhaber@d64.org), Curriculum Specialist for Instrumental Music. 

Be Our Guest" in 2026!

Lincoln's 8th Annual Musical will be Disney's Beauty and the Beast Jr.! Current and future Lions: audition workshops, crew applications, and auditions will be held next school year and more information will be coming then. For now, mark your calendars for our performances the weekend of March 13-15, 2026!

Info For Those Who Have

Not Completed Registration

Dear Families,


This is an end-of-the-year reminder for families who have not started or completed their child's registration for the 2025-2026 school year. Unfortunately, delays in registration numbers make our back-to-school planning efforts extremely difficult. 


Action Needed: If we do not have your registration completed and verified by 10:59 pm on Thursday, May 22, then 

  • A bus route (if needed) will not be available until after Labor Day, and your child will not be able to ride the bus on the first day of school. 
  • Your child’s Chromebook will be collected for the summer. 


This deadline is to allow our staff the proper amount of time to input information into our systems and create bus routes to start the year, which takes time to do correctly. Also, we now allow students in grades 2-7 who have completed registration to take their Chromebooks home for the summer. You can find more information about the Chromebooks here


Please register your child and have our staff verify the information before the May 22 deadline. All of the steps are online at d64.org/about/register. If you have any questions about the registration process, please contact the front office of your child’s school.


Thank you for your understanding and support as we plan for the upcoming school year.


Sincerely,


Dr. Adam Parisi

Chief School Business Official


In The Community

Step Into History This Saturday at Prospect Park!

  • Saturday, May 17 | 10:00am-4:00pm
  • Prospect Park, 721 N. Prospect Ave.


Join the Park Ridge Historical Society for an immersive Living History WWII Tour and explore a dynamic reenactment of life during World War II:


  • Experience a military encampment featuring uniformed Allied and Axis “troops” representing the European Theater
  • Visit the Park Ridge History Center for additional exhibits (ADA accessible)


In the event of inclement weather, the program will move indoors to the Paula Hassell O’Connor Community Building at Prospect Park.


This family-friendly experience is great for students, history buffs, and curious minds of all ages. Suggested Donation: $5 per child/student • $10 per adult • $20 per family.

Comments and questions may always be directed to the Superintendent or Board members through these links:


Email Dr. Ben Collins, Superintendent or contact members of the Board of Education via email links.

Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 | 847-318-4300 | news@d64.org


#engageD64

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