Four individuals filed to fill the three District 54 School Board seats in the April 2011 election. Each seat is a four-year term.

Board Members Bill Harper and Barbara Hengels filed at 8 a.m. on Monday, Dec. 13, 2010, to retain the seats they currently hold. As the only two candidates to file at that time, their names were in a lottery on Dec. 21, 2010, to determine whose name appears on the top of the April ballot. Barbara Hengels name will appear on top.

Mary Kay Prusnick, a member of the PTA Council, and Thomas Manzardo, a member of the Schaumburg Township Elementary School Foundation, also filed petitions for the April School Board election.

Petitions were due by 5 p.m. Monday, Dec. 20. No objections were filed to these petitions.

The Schaumburg Township Council of PTAs is once again offering one-year $2,000 scholarships to eligible seniors graduating in 2011. There are three types of scholarships:

• Junior College/Trade School/Vocational School Scholarships for seniors graduating in the upper 50 percent of their class (up to two available);
• Four-Year College/University Scholarships for seniors graduating in the upper 30 percent of their class (up to nine available); and
• The Bonnie Greenberg Memorial Scholarship for a graduating special needs senior with a current Individualized Education Plan (IEP). The student need not be enrolled in special education classes, but must have a current IEP (one available).

All seniors who meet the following eligibility requirements are encouraged to apply:

• Attended a District 54 elementary school for a minimum of one year;
• Attended a District 54 junior high school for two years; and
• Will attend an accredited university, college, junior college, trade school or vocational school upon graduation.

The Schaumburg Township Council of PTAs is not looking for straight-A students, but rather well rounded, hard-working students involved in extracurricular activities at school and in the community.

Applications are available at the Schaumburg Township Council of PTAs website at http://pta.sd54.org/high-school-scholarship. Students can also pick up applications at all District 211 high schools, St. Viator High School, the Illinois Math & Science Academy and the District 54 Administration Office, 524 E. Schaumburg Road in Schaumburg, beginning Dec. 8, 2010.

Completed applications are due to the High School Student Services Offices or the District 54 Administration Office no later than 3 p.m. on Jan. 27, 2011. Recipients will be honored at the annual PTA Scholarship Recognition Dinner on May 4, 2011.

The District 54 Sensations, a special needs cheerleading/pom squad, has competed in two cheerleading competitions ever – and has placed first both times.

The cheerleading team formed last year to cheer on some of District 54’s Special Olympics teams. After only one year of cheering, the team was invited to participate in the Conant Spirit Challenger Cheer/Pom Competition.

“We were the only special needs group there and they were a huge hit, including a standing ovation,” said Lisa Liesz, assistant coordinator.

After that competition, the team qualified for the Illinois Recreational Cheerleading Association State Competition on Dec. 5 at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates. Once again the team brought home a first place trophy in the special needs division. 

The team’s next outing is a competition at Schaumburg High School on Dec. 11, followed by a performance at the Chicago Bulls game on Jan. 24.

“The extreme joy that our family has experienced during the last two months is simply overwhelming,” wrote parents Greg and Dawn Chmielewski. “Gillian is ecstatic to be a part of the District 54 Sensations. By providing a sign language interpreter, Gillian is able to flourish. After each practice and competition, we witness her filled with self pride and assurance.”

School District 54 in collaboration with the Village of Hoffman Estates is proud to announce the opening of the Early Childhood Community Resource Center.

Housed at the Hoffman Estates Police Department, the resource center will be home to a variety of programs such as:

• Weekly Parent/ Child Literacy Based Activity Groups
• Open play time for Parent/ Child Interactions
• Parent Workshops
• Computer Classes
• After School Homework Club
• Literacy based Drama Club

Please join us for an Open House from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 8 at  The Community Resource Center at the Hoffman Estates Police Station, 411 W. Higgins Road in Hoffman Estates.

For more information, contact Donica Luzwick, Child and Family Educator, at (847) 357-2093.