Health & Fitness
D-113 Referendum "Paying it Forward"
D-113's referendum is a community effort that addressing specific needs where we fix what we can and replace what we must.
Highland Park and Deerfield will vote on High School District 113’s sequel referendum in a couple of weeks. The original referendum failed to pass two years ago for a variety of reasons.
This time, things are very different with a focused and scaled back plan. A plan devised with extensive community involvement working with engineering, financial and administrative entities targeting and quantifying specific infrastructure needs. Voters need not be swayed by bias towards or against the referendum but rather a bias towards our children and community decision as to what we individually and collectively value.
The prime issue is the need to update aging facilities at both DFHS and HPHS as like humans, buildings and infrastructure wear out. Maintenance can keep things going well after their normal life expectancy but even with regular maintenance, capital structures wear out and cease to yield the safety, effectiveness and efficiency they did many decades ago.
Find out what's happening in Highland Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
We like many others, choose Highland Park for its outstanding schools, relative safety, affordability as well as vibrant and active community involvement. I remember my wife saying she wanted to live here because of the schools and the community’s natural expectation of kids going on to good colleges and becoming productive and creative members of society.
Our community has a culture of providing for our children, giving them the tools to leapfrog their parents while fulfilling dreams and ambitions. As important as teachers and curriculum are, the environment in which our children learn is also a very critical part of the education equation.
Find out what's happening in Highland Parkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
I am always amazed at the large percentage of people that grew up and decided to return and raise their families within this same community. Our community’s fabric includes providing for the future of our children, nurturing and educating them to go on to do wonderful things while becoming productive members of society. People before us have stood up and invested into the future and all community stakeholders today with or without children, have skin in the game. It is our collective turn to “pay it forward”.
Our community’s children, culture as well as home valuations today and into the future require a YES VOTE!
