learn about it. People need to get educated and that’s why we canvas,” said Kaleigh Excell, junior at Hinsdale Central and volunteer canvasser. The Vote Yes campaign is primarily composed of community volunteers for both the Central and South attendance areas. “We’re more grassroots [than Vote No]. We’re out there, and they’re not. They’ve talked about everything on social media… from behind the curtain. We’re accessible. You want to talk to me, give me a call,” Tantillo said
VOTE NO
Those in the community who were against the November referendum and current April referendum have come together to gather support for their cause. It is being spearheaded by spokesman Zach Mottl, who is currently running to be Burr Ridge Village President. Vote No advocates explain that it is an unfair referendum as it does not address curriculum inequity. They say that as opposed to South’s classes, with Central’s being both more numerous and rigorous. Mottl also explained that despite his own prior efforts to advocate for equity, the board has only recently begun work on it, releasing a three-year plan. “Why is it going to take three years why aren’t you going to do it now?... You don’t have the same class choices, you don’t even have the same textbooks being used for the same classes. You don’t have the same opportunities for both schools,” Mottl said. Principal William Walsh responded to these complaints clarifying that it would take two years not three. “It is going to take two years to do because it is probably the largest curriculum undertaking this district has ever taken, ensuring that staff have had time to collaborate and make sure there is fidelity within the system moving forward” Walsh said. Vote No explained that the district claims many of the items included in the referendum are due to overcrowding and an unequal distribution of students between the two facilities. Mottl has responded to this by saying that many schools outside of District 86 rearrange their boundaries to accommodate a fluctuating number of students in their district. In contrast, Central’s 1991
boundaries remained in place until 2016. They also claim that Central’s buffer zones have, until recently, been restricted to more wealthy areas leading to gaps in diversity between the communities. According to the Illinois State Board of Education, 69.2 percent of Central’s students are white, in contrast to 55.6 percent of students at South. Another tenet of the campaign is that this referendum is wasteful. They assert that the referendum could be covered with $42 million by cutting out unnecessary “B priority” items and implementing other changes. “I support the schools and I want them to be good...but I don’t want a wasteful
“ THE CUTS ARE
DISGUSTING. IT IS A TERRIBLE THREAT.
STUDENTS SHOULD NOT BE USED AS PAWNS IN THIS
”
POLITICAL GAME.
ZACH MOTTL referendum. There’s a right referendum and this is not the right one,” Mottl said. Additionally, they state that the district did not take the time to engage with community members and develop a more favorable plan, explaining how a lot of the projects included in the referendum were not desired by the population. “I think it’s going to fail again. This is the definition of insanity, you keep doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result,” Mottl said. While District 86 board had a task force which they consulted about revamping the April referendum, there have been mixed feelings on its effectiveness. “[My associates] were not asked, they were told this is what you’re going to do and vote for. There was no input given and that’s only 40 members,” Mottl said. Do Better D86 members said the pool
could have been fixed prior to this point, as it has been in the budget every year for the past several years. According to Mottl, the board also takes it out and vetoes it every year. “The board has made choices in the past that have made it difficult to pass a referendum; they have engaged in wasteful spending and not made the difficult choices that most other districts make,” Mottl said. Many no voters do not support the referendums put forth by the district because of unaffordability, claiming the $5,940 increase in property taxes over 21 years is too high. With this in mind, they come to the conclusion that property values are actually decreasing, with highly taxed homes being less appealing to potential buyers. “When is enough enough? There are so many solutions on the table that are not being evaluated,” Mottl said. Mottl explained how the district’s budget is one of the best funded in the state. The cuts to activities and athletics represent about 1 percent of the budget. He continued, describing his experience with superintendents in other districts. They have said to him that they could reduce the budget by a margin of 5 to 7 percent without removing staff or affecting any programs. “These are two separate issues and the board is wrong to mix them; if they need to reduce spending out of the operating budget there are ways to do that and I would not start with the kids’ programs,” Mottl said. He also said the board set a goal for $2.1 million in terms of cuts and have exceeded it by $1.2 million with $3.6 million, and more in cuts including those in activities and athletics. “The cuts are disgusting. It is a terrible threat. Students should not be used as pawns in this political game. This is an argument and the adults in the room are not behaving properly, it is wrong, it is deplorable, and it’s only going to make people vote no even harder,” Mottl said. Ultimately, the Vote No community has stated that their approach to the referendum is the same because in their eyes, the referendum has not changed. “If they keep listening to themselves in their own echo chamber we’re never going to get through this, we’re never going to heal, [and] we’re never going to pass a referendum,” Mottl said. Devils’ Advocate reached out to others on the Vote No campaign, but there were no other respondents apart from Mottl. Features | 13
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