A plan to dig a detention basin behind Heather Hill School met concern and some stormy opposition at a District 161 Special Board of Education meeting on Feb. 19. The Monday board meeting began with comments from the audience. Some community members spoke in favor of the plan, while others[Read More…]
Author: Chris Weber
Healing-Centered Illinois Task Force celebrates launch at Governors State
On Jan. 30, Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton officially launched the Healing-Centered Illinois Task Force (HCITF), marking a significant step towards addressing trauma and promoting healing within communities across Illinois. The launch event at Governors State University preceded the task force’s first official meeting. Initiated through a 2020 bill in the[Read More…]
Flossmoor bridge replacement scheduled to begin in March
The Village of Flossmoor invited residents to a conversation about the upcoming Brookwood Bridge and Butterfield Road Culvert reconstruction project at an open house on Jan. 24. The project is scheduled to begin the first week of March. The village expects construction work to finish by the end of June.[Read More…]
D161 board debates closing schools for elections
After a lengthy discussion at the Jan. 22 meeting, District 161 school board members voted to close schools during the March 19 primary election and decided that students would learn online instead. The meeting started with an audience comment from Rob Calhoon, the district’s orchestra director. “I believe shifting from[Read More…]
HF Robotics celebrates a decade of building
Ten years ago, something extraordinary began in the garage of Flossmoor Mayor Michelle Nelson. Along with her husband Cameron and neighbor Mark Matthews, Nelson founded a small Lego league team that taught kids how to make robots move. The group has transformed into the HF Robotics Team, a STEM learning[Read More…]
MLK Day 2024: Community members prepare seeds for planting despite subzero cold
On a brisk winter Monday morning, community members joined the Irons Oaks Environmental Learning Center staff to prepare seed balls for spring planting. The event was a chance to give back to nature, although nature could have been more hospitable. The biting cold hindered the original plan to prepare planting[Read More…]
Spotlight brings epitaphs and fairy tales to life at two performances
The Spotlight Performance Academy plans to enchant audiences with two captivating productions in late January: “Spoon River Anthology — A Folk Musical” and “The Big Bad Musical.” First on the calendar is “Spoon River Anthology — A Folk Musical,” directed by retired Simeon High School drama teacher, Richard Piniewski. This[Read More…]
Free concert celebrates MLK Jr. Day and supports a good cause
The Flossmoor Community Church will host a classical music concert on Sunday, Jan. 14. This event, part of the Village of Flossmoor’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, is a blend of cultural enrichment and community support aiming to aid a charity called Open Access. Open Access works[Read More…]
SD161 awards faculty and celebrates administrator’s achievements
District 161 recognized the exemplary service of Ronald Wright with the #AboveAndBeyond award during a Dec. 18 school board meeting. Wright, a sixth-grade math teacher at Parker Junior High, was nominated by one of his fellow teachers, Patricia Green. Director of Human Resources Haley Marti shared part of the nomination[Read More…]
District 233 approves 2023 levy and abatement
The District 233 school board voted unanimously to approve the 2023 tax levy at a meeting on Dec. 19. The levy is expected to raise $45.84 million in property taxes for Homewood-Flossmoor High School. The board also gave their full approval for a resolution to abate $1,995,000 in property taxes.[Read More…]