District 30 Board Brief

The Board held a public hearing this fall on the 2025-26 fiscal year annual budget, then formally approved a budget that aligns spending with our new District 30 Strategic Plan.

The operating budget includes $36.4 million in total receipts/revenues and $36.4 million in total disbursements/expenditures. In addition to these expenditures, the district will transfer funds between operating and non-operating accounts, most notably $1.5 million from operating funds to support capital improvements at Wescott School (parking lot expansion) and Willowbrook School (boiler replacements) scheduled for summer 2026.

The budget is available on the District 30 website at district30.org.

The Board honored four outstanding Maple students who traveled with Science Teacher Mrs. Tricia Kearns this summer to visit to NASA's Kennedy Space Center. They earned this trip after competing in the Central Washington University Northwest Earth and Space Sciences Pathways (NESSP) Artemis ROADS III NASA contest. Thanks to their outstanding performance, they were among only 13 teams out of 333 in the country selected for this trip.

Seventh-graders Marian Shidenko, Tyler Upchurch, Hanzhe Cheng, plus now-Glenbrook North freshman Kyrylo Miretskyi spent more than six months last school year completing eight “Mission Objectives” inspired by NASA’s Artemis Missions, whose goal is to send humans back to the moon. These included:

• Designing and launching high-flying water bottle rockets
• Investigating and comparing water on the earth and the moon
• Coding a Lego spike robot to navigate simulated terrain challenges on the moon
• Designing a unique team mission patch (rover challenge)
• Conducting experiments to investigate the challenges of growing plants on the moon

During their time at the Kennedy Space Center, the Maple School students received exclusive, behind-the-scenes tours of NASA’s launch complex and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, spent several days in the visitor center, witnessed both night and day rocket launches, and met with astronaut Guy Gardner.

“I was grateful we were chosen because it took a lot of work to do this project and get rewarded for it,” Marian said. “It was also really exciting to see all of the aerospace artifacts at the Kennedy Space Center and at Cape Canaveral.”

Principal teams from Willowbrook, Wescott and Maple Schools shared highlights of their first-day-of-school activities and ceremonies. Each school's day revolved around their 2025-26 school theme, which supports District 30 strategic mission to build inclusive communities. These are:

• Maple - "We are one herd," the school's ongoing motto
• Wescott - "We put the WE in Wescott"
• Willowbrook - "One school, many stories."

Click below to learn more details about opening day that were presented by Willowbrook Principal Mrs. Katie Compango and Assistant Principal Mr. Erik Brekke; Wescott Interim Co-Principal Helena Vena and Assistant Principal Katie Petersen; and Maple Principal Dr. Sam Kurtz and Assistant Principal Mrs. Angela Jaeger:

The Board heard a presentation on 2025-26 School Improvement Plans Principal teams at Maple, Wescott and Willowbrook schools, as well as Willowbrook staff champions for their school's plan goals. Each school has three improvement goals that align to District 30's strategic goals. Click the report below to explore details on each school's aims for this academic year:

This year, District 30 will focus on hiring two key administrator roles for the 2026-27 school year: Wescott School Principal and Assistant Superintendent for Teaching and Learning. Dr. Tammaru detailed the district's robust hiring process that will allow for early and expansive recruiting, in order to reach the highest quality candidates. She also emphasized that the process for both roles has involved significant feedback from relevant stakeholders, including students, parents and/or staff, depending on the role.

Board President Mr. Ammar Rizki and Superintendent Dr. Emily K. Tammaru shared details on a TrueNorth special meeting that occurred this week. The meeting included TrueNorth leadership and a committee of administrators from member districts, exploring the future of the cooperative.

After dedicating considerable time reviewing data, speaking with stakeholders, and planning, the committee is now focused on reorganizing and reimagining TrueNorth. At the meeting, representatives outlined plans to better align TrueNorth's programs and services with the changing needs of member districts, as well as students and families it serves.

Dr. Tammaru noted that the changes would "right-size" TrueNorth, while still operating therapeutic day schools that are essential to many member districts. Mr. Rizki added that the updated model is similar to other successful models in our region.

Mr. Rizki and Dr. Tammaru share that, while some member districts may still opt to withdraw, some support the current plan for reorganization over dissolution. Yet, until formal action is taken by the Leadership Council, no decisions have been made.

Click below to read a report that details TrueNorth's vision for a more focused and sustainable educational cooperative. The proposal includes:

• Continued delivery of many valued programs and services
• Renewed emphasis on classroom instruction and student outcomes
• Significant changes to leadership, governance, and funding models

The Board discussed and approved a proposal from District Management Group (DMGroup) for strategic scheduling consulting services at Maple School. This project is in direct response to feedback from our staff, who have expressed a desire to evaluate the current schedule to identify potential improvements for both students and staff.

The proposal outlines a multi-phased project that aims to help Maple create a "best-in-class" schedule that enhances student and staff experiences while using resources strategically. The consulting process includes two main phases:

• A scheduling opportunity review, which will analyze data of the current Maple School schedule, staffing, and course offerings for the 2025-26 school year.
• A secondary scheduling strategy workshop that will be facilitated with district and school leaders to establish clear, prioritized goals for a new schedule for the 2026-27 school year.

The Board approved the annual Maple 7th-grade field trip to Springfield, which will once again be under the logistics of WorldStrides.

Superintendent Dr. Tammaru noted this long-standing tradition provides a valuable and enriching experience for our middle school students, and she thanked staff for their ongoing commitment to its success. Board policy requires approval for all field trips beyond a 200-mile radius.

The trip was unanimously approved.

The Board of Education consists of seven members elected from the general public to serve the entire Northbrook/Glenview School District 30 Community. The Board provides governance for the district by hiring and evaluating the superintendent and approving a budget, policies, and goals that align with the district's strategic plan. Board members are:

• President - Ammar Rizki
  
• Vice President - Jeff Zuercher
• Zivit Blonder
  
• Adan Galvan
• Pamela Manicioto
  
• Patrick Wang
• Dr. Stephanie Yohannan

Northbrook/Glenview District 30 exists to create an inclusive community that inspires learning, fosters resiliency, and cares deeply for every child. We honor childhood and foster intellectual, physical and social-emotional growth. District 30 serves more than 1,200 students in pre-K through 8th grade across Willowbrook, Wescott and Maple Schools.

We prohibit harassment and discrimination of all forms within our district and follows all policies and procedures to ensure a safe environment for all.

Email: communications@district30.org
Website: district30.org
Location: 2374 Shermer Road, Northbrook, IL, USA
Phone: 847-498-4190