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Springfield – Who
knows better than students what other students are thinking, feeling,
and often, planning?
No
one. Including the adults who run the schools, according to the
State Board of Education’s Student Advisory Council (SAC.)
As
part of its annual report to the State Board, the SAC last week
presented an audit on school violence designed to help school
administrators garner student input on school violence, which
can then be used to help shape schools’ safety plans.
The
group of high school students from around Illinois was created
25 years ago to give the State Board advice on pertinent education
issues from a student’s perspective. About 30 juniors and seniors
comprised this year’s SAC.
The
State Board endorsed the audit and agreed to send it to every
public and private Illinois school. The SAC also asked the State
Board to provide training, funding and technical assistance to
help local districts implement the audit and any safety initiatives
that it may generate.
“I
strongly encourage schools to take advantage of this great opportunity
to see what their students think can and should be done about
school violence,” said State Superintendent Glenn W. McGee.
In
nearly all of the school shootings that have occurred in the
past 10 years, the shooter had told someone (usually other students)
about the plan to do the shootings.
Yet,
students often don’t share such information. “As much as we don’t
want to see our friends get hurt, we also don’t want to see them
go to jail,” said Josh Thackston, a senior at Eldorado High School.
“The
audit is a good way for schools to help students understand,
recognize and assume more responsibility for their own safety
at school,” McGee said.
“By
engaging them this way, we hope to change the school culture
and improve the school's learning environment,” he said.
The
audit contains five surveys. Each can be administered to students
individually or together with any or all of the others. Students
wrote each survey in in clear, uncomplicated language designed
to produce unambiguous answers.
Ideally,
students will administer the surveys to other students and school
administrators will use the information to foster and support
further dialogue and planning, Thackston said.
Not
every student is likely to be as interested or willing to share
his or her opinions as those on the SAC, who tend to be student
leaders, Thackston admitted. But the audit’s success doesn’t
require total involvement, he added.
“Everybody
and their brother doesn’t have to be behind this. There will
be five, 10, 15 people who will talk about this, be serious about
it and take it to the administration,” Thackston said.
Students
will take the audit seriously if they see adults taking it seriously,
added Eva Byerley, a junior at Lemont’s Mt. Assisi Academy.
“As
long as the administration is behind it and makes it clear that
it’s important and they want the information,” students will
participate, she said.
“I
mean, it’s our lives that we’re talking about,” Byerley said.
Student
Advisory Council to the State Board of Education
2000-01
Membership List Information (as of 11/01/00)
|
Member
Name, hometown
|
Class/Status
|
School
Name, Address and
Telephone
Number
|
Principal’s
Name
|
County
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jenny
M. AuBuchon
Vernon
Hills Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Libertyville
High School
708
W. Park Ave.
Libertyville
Illinois 60048
847/367-3100
|
Joseph
Wojtena
|
Lake
|
|
|
Katherine
A. Avery
Decatur
Illinois
|
Junior
Returning
|
MacArthur
High School
1155
N. Fairview Ave.
Decatur
Illinois 62522
217/424-3156
|
Edward
Boehm
|
Macon
|
|
|
Eva
M. Byerley
Lemont
Illinois
|
Junior
Returning
|
Mount
Assisi Academy
Lemont
Illinois 60439
630/257-7844
|
Sr.
Mary Francis OSF
|
Cook
|
|
|
Kelli
L. Barnard
Chenoa
Illinois
|
Sophomore
New
|
Chenoa High
School
700
South Division
Chenoa
Illinois 61726
815/945-2361
|
Tom
Bock
|
McLean
|
|
|
Gacob
Nate Carter
Fairfield
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Fairfield
Community High School
300
W. King St.
Fairfield
Illinois 62837
618/842-2649
|
Rena
Talbert
|
Wayne
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Krupal
K. Desai
Springfield
Illinois
|
Junior
Returning
|
Springfield
High School
101
S. Lewis
Springfield
Illinois 62704
217/525-3100
|
Charles
Flamini
|
Sangamon
|
|
|
Erin
Dooly
Mulberry
Grove Illinois
|
Junior
Returning
|
Mulberry
Grove High School
801
West Wall St.
Mulberry
Grove Illinois 62262
618/326-8221
|
John
Denton
|
Bond
|
|
|
Mark
R. Gleim
Mendota Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Mendota
High School
302
16th St.
Mendota
Illinois 61342
815/539-7446
|
Robert
Atherton
|
LaSalle
|
|
|
Ozie
L. Goodwin
Harvey
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Thornton
Township High School
15001
Broadway
Harvey
Illinois 60426
708/225-4101
|
William
O’Neal
|
Cook
|
|
|
Matthew
G. Halvorson
Crete
Illinois
|
Junior
New
|
Crete
Monee High School
760
W. Exchange
Crete
Illinois 60417
708/672-2800
|
Kevin
Carey
|
Will
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Tiffany
Heffner
Chicago
Illinois
|
Junior
Returning
|
Chicago
Vocational High School
2100
East 87th St.
Chicago
Illinois 60617
773/535-6100
|
Phillip
O’Bannon
|
Cook
|
|
|
Corrie
Heck
Galesburg
Illinois
|
Junior
Returning
|
Galesburg
High School
1135
W. Fremont St
Galesburg
Illinois 61401
309/343-4146
|
Bill
Scheffler
|
Knox
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Danielle
Johnson
East
St. Louis Illinois
|
Junior
Returning
|
East
St. Louis Senior High School
4901
State St.
East
St. Louis Illinois 62205
618/583-8200
|
Fonzy
Coleman
|
St.
Clair
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Robin
S. Kerr
Troy
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Triad
High School
9539
US Highway 40
St.
Jacob Illinois 62281
618/667-8851
|
Michael
Scroggins
|
Madison
|
|
|
Kyle
M. Krejci
Villa
Grove Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Villa
Grove High School
400
N. Sycamore
Villa
Grove Illinois 61956
217/832-2321
|
Bob
Doan
|
Douglas
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
David
Manriquez
Dolton
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Thornton
Township High School
15001
Broadway
Harvey
Illinois 60426
708/225-4101
|
William
O’Neal
|
Cook
|
|
|
Muhammed
Mekki
Riverwoods
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Deerfield
High School
1959
Waukegan
Deerfield
Illinois 60016
847/405-8470
|
Jon
Crawford
|
Lake
|
|
|
Emily
C. Melick
Danvers
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Olympia
High School
RR
1, Box 149
Stanford
Illinois 61774
309/379-5911
|
James
Dunnan
|
McLean
|
|
|
Pete
H. Mockaitis
Danville
Illinois
|
Junior
New
|
Danville
High School
202
East Fairchild
Danville
Illinois 61832
217/431-5461
|
Nanette
Mellon
|
Vermilion
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Juan
A. Miranda
Chicago
Illinois
Crystal
M. Myers
Macomb
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
Junior
New
|
Holy
Trinity High School
1443
West Division St.
Chicago
Illinois 60622
Macomb
High School
1525
South Johnson
Macomb
IL 61455
309/837-2331
|
Charlene
Szumilas
Michael
L. Sartore
|
Cook
McDonough
|
|
|
Imran
Naeemullah
Barrington
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Barrington
High School
616
W. Main St.
Barrington
Illinois 60010
847/381-1400
|
Edward
DeYoung
|
Lake
|
|
|
Erin
L. Noble
Belleville
Illinois
Emily
K. Pell
Rockford
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
Senior
Returning
|
Belleville
Twp. High School West
2600
W. Main St.
Belleville
Illinois 62222
618/222-7500
Stillman
Valley High School
425
S. Pine St.
Stillman
Valley Illinois 61084
815/645-2291
|
Phillip
Silsby
Robert
Prusator
|
St.
Clair
Ogle
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Ana
D. Petrovic
Geneva
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Geneva
High School
415
Logan Ave.
Geneva
Illinois 60134
630/262-2770
|
Gregory
Fantozzi
|
Kane
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Hilary
L. Ross
Glen
Ellyn Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Glenbard
West High School
670
Crescent Ave.
Glen
Ellyn Illinois 60137
630/469-8600
|
Pamela
Zimmerman
|
DuPage
|
|
Meredith
D. Seckman
Manito
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Midwest
Central High School
910
S. Washington St.
Manito
Illinois 61546
309/968-6766
|
Kathryn
Cihlar
|
Mason
|
|
Joshua
B. Thackston
Eldorado
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Eldorado
High School
2200
Illinois Ave.
Eldorado
Illinois 62930
618/273-2881
|
Gary
Siebert
|
Saline
|
|
Benjamin
E. Thonar
Lockport
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
Lockport
Township High School
1333
E. Seventh St.
Lockport
Illinois 60441
815/588-8300
|
Robert
Meader
|
Will
|
Gail
E. Wolfmeyer
McHenry
Illinois
|
Senior
Returning
|
McHenry
High School East
1012
N. Green St.
McHenry
Illinois 60050
815/385-1145
|
Thomas
Carl
|
McHenry
|
|
|
|
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