Evanston’s chapter of the NAACP celebrated Black history and discussed local racial equity initiatives in education, policing and healthcare at their virtual Black History Month event Monday.
The event featured a brief video showcasing the importance of teaching Black history and honoring historic figures like Charles G. Woodson, who ensured Black history would not be left untold in the country’s chronicles. Virtual participants included representatives from Evanston/Skokie School District 65, Evanston Township High School District 202, Evanston Police Department and the Health and Human Services Department.
Additionally, Lucia Luckett-Kelly, creative educator at Phantasy Staircase Education, recited Langston Hughes’ poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers.”
Evanston Now
District seeks community views on an array of possible ways to raise revenue and cut expenses.
School bus graphic Sergii Tverdokhlibov/Shutterstock.com
Should Evanston/Skokie School District 65 sell ads on school buses to raise revenue? Should each teacher have more students per class, to save money? And in one of the most potentially controversial issues, should any of the District’s schools be closed or consolidated?
Those are among the questions in an 18-point online “Budget Reduction Survey” that District 65 wants parents, students, staff and other community members to fill out.
There’s little doubt that budget cuts are coming. The issue now is how they will be carried out. In a memo to the community explaining the survey, Superintendent Devon Horton says “A year ago, no one could have predicted there would be a pandemic, extended school closures, or the economic fallout that would ensue.”
Chinese international students create a video about the importance and heritage of their names, and Evanston/Skokie School District 65 will reopen soon amid discussions of vaccinations and equity. The Weekly: Week Four Recap breaks down our top headlines with the reporters and editors who covered them.
JACOB FULTON: From The Daily Northwestern, I’m Jacob Fulton.
HALEY FULLER: And I’m Haley Fuller. This is The Weekly, a podcast that breaks down our top headlines each week.
HALEY FULLER: Before we begin, a content warning: this episode has discussions of racist abuse and suicide and mentions of anti-Semitism, Islamaphobia and transphobia. If you would like to skip past that, start at two minutes.
Evanston Now
Storm brings extended free parking options
City officials have extended free parking in Evanston s three downtown garages though Sunday night at midnight as the second snow storm in a week arrives in town.
Lots of garage parking spaces were still available this afternoon ahead of the storm. (Jeff Hirsh photo)
City officials have extended free parking in Evanston’s three downtown garages though Sunday night at midnight as the second snow storm in a week arrives in town.
They say the garages are only about half full now and can accommodate many more cars.
The city is also asking for voluntary compliance with snow route parking restrictions overnight from 11 p.m. tonight through 6 a.m. Friday.
Almost a year into virtual learning, some Evanston/Skokie School District 65 parents have sought out tutors to keep their students from falling behind. Some leaders say disparities in access to tutoring during online learning could widen the academic achievement gap.
When District 65 closed in Mar. 2020, parent Christian Ruzich said the shift affected his two children differently. Ruzich said his oldest child, a junior in high school, was able to quickly adapt and is “thriving” in a virtual setting, but his younger child, an eighth grader, is struggling with the lack of structure.
“When they had trouble, they weren’t able to go to a teacher for help or use the school’s supports like they would have been able to if they were going in-person,” Ruzich said.