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District 428 OKs technology plan $8.5M one-to-one computer project will give each student a device By KATIE DAHLSTROM kdahlstrom@shawmedia.com DeKALB – DeKalb School District 428 will spend nearly $8.5 million over the next five years to give every student a computer device. District 428 board members unanimously approved a districtwide one-to-one technology program during their meeting Tuesday that will be rolled out over the next three years Danielle Guerra file photo - dguerra@shawmedia.com by grade level. In the end, the Eighth-grade social studies students watch YouTube videos on the district will have thousands of importance of studying history in teacher Roger Christensen’s class- new devices and 16 new fulltime staff members. room in 2014 at Clinton-Rosette Middle School in DeKalb.
Board members debated whether to roll out the program over the course of three or four years, but ultimately settled on the three-year program because it came with a staff recommendation and provided parity throughout the district, board President Tracy Williams said. “There’s no use to not do it right,” Williams said. The vote was met with applause from the standing-room-only crowd who gathered at the meeting Tuesday. Some of them, including parents, students and staff
spoke in favor of the program before the board voted. “Please invest in our children by investing in this technology,” parent Mary Bauling said. It will be an investment from the district that could lead officials to have to make other cuts in the future, Assistant Superintendent of Business and Finance Andrea Gorla said. Overall, the program will cost $5.4 million between the 2015-16 and 2017-18 school years. Five year projections show the district spending $8.5
million by the end of the 201920 school year. While the district will make some cuts and see extra revenue, leaders still project the program will leave the district with an annual deficit between $1.8 million and $3 million through 2020. Administrators will start the program by hiring six instructional coaches and two technology employees and putting devices in third through ninth grades for the 2015-16 school year. Second-graders, as well as sophomores, juniors
See TECHNOLOGY, page A6
Schock resigning after facing scrutiny By ERICA WERNER The Associated Press WASHINGTON – Illinois Rep. Aaron Schock abruptly resigned Tuesday after a monthlong cascade of revelations about his business deals and lavish spending on everything from overseas travel to office decor in the style of “Downton Abbey.” “I do this with a heavy heart,” Schock said in a statement. He said he had given the people of his Peoria-area district Rep. Aaron his all since his Schock election in 2008, “but the constant questions over the last six weeks have proven a great distraction that has made it too difficult for me to serve the people of the 18th District with the high standards that they deserve and which I have set for myself.” Schock, 33, a young, media-savvy Republican, had drawn attention for his physical fitness and fundraising prowess. But more recently he has come under scrutiny for extravagant spending, payments to donors for flights on private jets and improperly categorized expenses. The questions raised have included Associated Press investigations of his real estate transactions, air travel and Instagram use. On Monday, the AP confirmed that the Office of Congressional Ethics had reached out to Schock’s associates as it apparently began an investigation. In a statement, House Speaker John Boehner said: “With this decision, Rep. Schock has put the best interests of his constituents and the House first. I appreciate Aaron’s years of service, and I wish him well in the future.” Schock did not inform any
House leaders before making his decision, and the announcement took Republicans by surprise. Although the questions around his spending had begun to attract attention and raise concerns, he was not yet facing concerted public pressure from party members to step down. He is the second House Republican to give up his seat this year under unfavorable circumstances. Michael Grimm, who pleaded guilty on tax evasion charges, resigned his New York seat in January. Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner will have five days from the March 31 effective date of Schock’s resignation to schedule a special election, which must be held within 120 days of the vacancy. GOP state Sen. Darin LaHood, considered the front-runner to replace Schock in the heavily Republican district, will announce his candidacy today, Republican officials in Washington said. LaHood is the son of Ray LaHood, who served in Congress and later as President Barack Obama’s transportation secretary. Schock, an energetic real estate investor who catapulted from the Illinois Legislature to win a congressional seat at the age of 26, touted his status as the House’s first millennial lawmaker. He posed shirtless for Men’s Health magazine to promote fitness, and used Instagram the way older politicians rely on press releases, photo bombing his growing fan base from London to the Florida beach scene. He was an in-demand fundraising force and visited more than 40 congressional districts in the lead-up to November’s elections. In June, he was brought into the House leadership and named a senior deputy whip. But Schock’s fall was even swifter. Only weeks ago, a
See SCHOCK, page A8
Photos by Monica Synett – msynett@shawmedia.com
Jouliana Baaker, 26, from Syria, and Jouan Miramontes, 24, of Mexico, practice their English together in a workbook during a free ESL class March 11 at the DeKalb Senior Center.
Learning English key to culture Free ESL courses prove popular with foreign-born residents By DARIA SOKOLOVA dsokolova@shawmedia.com DeKALB – Jouliana Baakar had been trying to learn English in her native Syria before she emigrated to the United States. Despite her efforts, she said that when she arrived in the U.S., she couldn’t understand what people were saying. On Wednesday, Baakar was one of the students who attended an English as a Second Language class offered by Love and Faith in Action. “I thought my English was good, but when I came here and started to listen to American people, I couldn’t under-
stand anything because they talk very, very quickly and they can’t separate the words and sentences and they melt everything together,” said Baakar, who also takes ESL courses at Kishwaukee Community College. According to the United States Census Bureau, foreign-born residents make up 6.9 percent of DeKalb County’s population, compared with 13.8 percent for the total population of the state of Illinois, data from 2009 to 2013 shows. The data also shows that 11.8 percent of DeKalb County residents speak languages other Richard Amesquita, a volunteer English as a second language teach-
See LANGUAGE, page A6
er, helps student Carlos Flores answer a question during a free ESL class March 11 at the DeKalb Senior Center.
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See 10 different spins you can put on oatmeal / B12
The unemployment rate in DeKalb County drops to 6.4 percent / A3
Hinckley looks to add 1 percent sales tax to purchases / A3
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