Student-Teacher Collaboration Honored

Recognizing the accomplishments of a student and a teacher as well as releasing information about the tentative budget were on Monday's meeting agenda for the Township High School District 113. 

Highland Park High School student Jonny Cohen received a Prudential Spirit of Community Awards honor for a  product called Green Shield. Though he was not among the 2011 state honorees who won $1,000 prizes, Cohen joined eight others from Illinois as distinguished finalists who received bronze medallions for their efforts.

As the name suggest, the program is overseen by Prudential Financial Inc., which created the awards in 1995 with the National Association of Secondary School Principals as a partner.

Cohen's invention is listed under the category of "protecting the environment." The clear piece of material can be applied to school bus windshields to make the vehicle more aerodynamic and increase fuel mileage. 

“Because school buses have a more vertical windshield, air goes against it and the engine has to work harder to go [at] the same speed,” the 15-year-old explained. “The Green Shield allows it to travel at the same speed with less resistance and use less gas.”

The teenager worked on the project at Northwestern University in Evanston and did so under the guidance of his physics teacher, Kunal Pujara.

The school board, in turn, recognized Pujara for winning the district’s prestigious Golden Apple Award, which he received after an extensive nomination and selection process.

Pujara took a unique step as a teacher by taping his class lessons and making the videos available online for students and their parents. This innovation was a factor in the Highland Park Community Foundation’s decision to honor him.

Also at the meeting, the school board thanked volunteers who worked on the June 11-12 Relay for Life that raised more than $65,000 for cancer research and awareness. The event, typically held at Deerfield Park High School, was instead at Wolter's Field near Highland Park High School for this first time. 

David Greenberg, who lives close to the athletic field, told the board that he had a complaint about the event, whose 350 participants involved about 200 district students.

“Someone got the bright idea to turn on a PA [public address system] at 5:30 in the morning,” he said.

“The noise [at the field has] an impact on the neighborhood. There was not enough forethought going into this,” Greenberg said, adding that he  wished the event coordinators had been more considerate of those living nearby.

Event coordinators apologized for the inconvenience.

In other business, the district’s tentative budget for 2011-12 was posted July 19. Copies can be viewed at all school buildings as well as the public library.

A public hearing on the proposed fiscal spending plan will be held at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 22 at 1040 Park Avenue West in Highland Park.