75 cents
Breaking news at Daily-Chronicle.com
Serving DeKalb County since 1879
* Thursday, October 31, 2013
MID-1800S PHOTOGRAPHY METHOD
HUNTLEY SECTIONAL SEMIFINAL
Moody collodion photos make a comeback A&E, C1
Barbs fall to McHenry on penalty kicks Sports, B1
Area schools get their grades New report cards reflect transition from No Child Left Behind By JILLIAN DUCHNOWSKI jduchnowski@shawmedia.com Hinckley-Big Rock School District 429 Superintendent Travis McGuire was proud that two of the 10 DeKalb County area schools to meet improvement benchmarks were in his district. Both Hinckley-Big Rock High
School and Middle School made Adequate Yearly Progress in a year when state officials toughened the elementary grading scale and rolled out a new school report card that ignores many of the factors No Child Left Behind legislation emphasized. McGuire complimented his teachers’ and students’ work as overall student test scores outpaced
Social Security going up
some of the larger local schools. “Even with the state changing cut scores, we still stayed above the state average,” McGuire said. “That shows well for the programs that we have in place.” The Illinois State Board of Education released the new School Report Cards today at illinoisreportcard. com.
Among grade schools, numbers look worse in almost every category across the board, but that’s not necessarily because schools have been backsliding. The state has imposed a tougher definition of what qualifies as meeting standards.
See SCHOOLS, page A6
Check the numbers To view the percentage of students who met or exceeded state standards for the 2012-13 school year in local elementary, middle and high schools, see PAGE A6.
Voice your opinion What’s your opinion of the job your local schools are doing? Vote online at Daily-Chronicle.com.
Ready to raise the curtain
By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER The Associated Press WASHINGTON – Social Security benefits will rise 1.5 percent in January, giving millions of retired and disabled workers an average raise of $19 a month to keep up with the cost of living. The increase is among the smallest since automatic adjustments were adopted in 1975, and reflects the fact that consumer prices haven’t gone up much in the past year. The annual cost-of-living adjustment is based on a government measure of inflation that was released Wednesday. “Yea. WhoopAt a glance de-do,” said Lance Colvin, a retired Social Security pays retired work- office worker in ers an average of Kirkland, Wash. “That’s my opin$1,272 a month. ion.” The 1.5 percent Automatic COraise in January LAs were adoptwill be about ed in 1975 so that $19 extra. benefits for people on fixed incomes would keep pace with rising prices. Some advocates for older Americans, however, complain that the COLA sometimes falls short, especially for people with high medical costs. Michael Hartzog of Charleston, S.C., said the small COLA will make it difficult to keep up with his wife’s medical bills. “We’ll probably need to reduce our spending even more,” Hartzog said. “I don’t know exactly how.” Hartzog, 63, is retired after working 38 years at the Social Security Administration in South Carolina. He said his federal pension and Social Security benefits are affected by the COLA. The COLA affects benefits for more than one-fifth of the country: nearly 58 million Social Security recipients, as well as benefits for millions of disabled veterans, federal retirees and people who get Supplemental Security Income, the disability program for the poor.
Photos by Monica Maschak – mmaschak@shawmedia.com
The “Alice in Wonderland” cast goes through a microphone check Wednesday night during rehearsal at DeKalb High School. The show starts Friday. Participating in theater can enhance reading, writing and critical thinking skills in the classroom, high school theater director Natalie Boone said.
Sycamore, DeKalb students to stage productions this weekend By FELIX SARVER fsarver@shawmedia.com
A Sycamore tech crew member Awad Rana (left) helps freshman Marc Thompson, who plays a wino, attach a microphone during Wednesday’s “Little Shop of Horrors” rehearsal at Sycamore High School. The musical will be performed Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the school.
nnie Malecki doesn’t let stereotypes about theater stop her from taking to the stage and singing. The Sycamore High School junior and former softball player said she loves to sing and will be belting out tunes as a doo-wop singer for the “Little Shop of Horrors” musical Friday. Malecki said she was inspired to participate because her brother was in a Penguin Project production for the school.
“It’s just fun being somebody you’re not and getting to dress up,” she said. “… It’s just a good time singing.” Students energetic about theater such as Malecki are not hard to come by in Sycamore and DeKalb high schools. Both schools are staging theatrical productions this weekend and have attracted all types of students ready to take their turn in the spotlight. Even though every student from athletes to dancers to musicians pack auditions, theater
See THEATER, page A4
Weather
Inside today’s Daily Chronicle Lottery Local news Obituaries
A2 A3-4 A4
National and world news Opinions Sports
A2, 5 A7 B1-8
Advice Comics Classified
C5 C6 C7-8
High:
64
How do I know if I have vein disease? Symptoms: • Bulging, rope like leg veins • Aching, burning, itching legs • Sore, tired or restless legs • Discoloration of ankles If you experience these symptoms, you need to call us today.
Low:
42