Dog Program to Sniff Out Drugs & Ammo in School, L-Way Schools Call it Proactive

The high schools in the Lincoln-Way communities are accustomed to canine sniffers for contraband, but it's heading into the elementary level too.

New Lenox School District 122 is bringing in a handler and his dog to sniff for drugs, firearms and ammunition as a precaution. Administrators are working out a schedule to introduce Interquest Detection Canines—Glenn VadeBoncoeur and his dog—to the schools. In the wake of the Sandy Hook School shooting in December 2012, school officials have been revamping and hyping up their security measures. The program is planned to get underway before the end of the school year.   Nick DiSandro, president of the NLSD122 Board, said, "With an increase in drug related deaths in Will County and the safety issues across the country, the board and the administration feel this is a proactive way to increase safety and security in our schools." While the …

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10:12 pm on Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Unless you have something to hide I don't see the big deal. You say our children are in "nonexistent" danger? Are these school shootings "nonexistent"? Are these drug overdoses "nonexistent"? Sorry but schools have a right to do this to keep the children safe. Kinda like the saying "my house, my rules". I want to know my children are save when I send them off to school. Back in the 70's and 80's …   more ›

Lincoln-Way Area Special Ed D843 Loses NLSD122

New Lenox School Dist. 122 agrees to become its own Special Education Cooperative, breaking away from LWASE D843. The process will take 18 months, beginning in January 2013.

NLSD122 Pulls Out of Lincoln-Way Area Special Ed. D843

New Lenox School Dist. 122 agrees to become its own Special Education Cooperative, breaking away from LWASE D843. The process will take 18 months, beginning in January 2013.

The New Lenox School District 122 Board of Education agreed, beginning in January to begin pulling away from Lincoln-Way Area Special Education District 843. The aim is to shape its own New Lenox Special Education Cooperative. Supt. Michael Sass the NLSD122 has been slowly bringing home special education services for youngsters in D122, since 2004. A financial review of the special education program indicates that D122 would realize as cost savings of $529,000 for the 2014-2015 school year. By forming its own cooperative, this "eliminates another layer of government. It provides quicker response, problem-solving and decisions for our students." NLSD122 Cooperative has been forming since 2004 After 10 years of integrating special education …

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LW Special Education District Gets its Own School for 1st-6th graders

New Lenox School District 122 converts a portion of Oster-Oakview School for 1st-6th graders enrolled in Lincoln Way Area Special Education District 843.

Administrators and board members from six schools converged Thursday for the formal ribbon cutting ceremony in the newly converted Lincoln Way Area Special Education District 843 space at Oster-Oakview Elementary School. Michael Sass, superintendent for New Lenox School District 122, took a moment to laud the cooperation on the part of all associated school districts from Mokena, Manhattan, Frankfort, Frankfort Square and Lincoln-Way High School District 210 as they came together in support of the New Lenox-based project.   A $1.6 million summer project turned the unused basement of Oster-Oakview Elementary School into an 8,000-square-foot space that's perfect for 1st-6th graders from LWASED. The new space currently accommodates 30 …

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Lincoln-Way Transportation Ready to Welcome Precious Cargo

The Route 30 construction project requires motorists to be even more aware of safety precautions around school buses this year.

At 160-strong, they spent the summer parked in the quiet lots of the Lincoln-Way School District 210 Transportation Department, located on a road that bears the name of their sole purpose on this earth. Those long yellow buses—the appearance of which has changed little in the past 20 or so years—have been inspected, repaired, retooled and cleaned-up all on Schoolhouse Road in unincorporated New Lenox. And now it's the end of August, and they have already taken to the streets that encompass the 105 square miles of the district. Elementary districts start this week: Aug. 21 for D122 and D157C, Aug. 22 for Summit Hill D161   The wheels of the bus will definitely go round-and-round, but LW Transportation Director Rich Wilkey along with his …

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Special Ed. District Could Rent Space at New Lenox Kindergarten

District 122 could make nearly $170,000 through rent and personnel billing.

As New Lenox School District 122 officials look to slash the district's $3.2 million budget deficit, some help could come from renting space to another area school district. The District 122 Board of Education met earlier this week to hear options for trimming the budget and finding new revenue, and one deal that was received well was renting space in Cherry Hill Kindergarten to the Lincoln-Way Area Special Education District 843. "I thought this was one of our most creative solution," District 122 Superintendent Mike Sass said, referencing the number of budget proposals presented Monday. District 843 would pay about $108,000 to rent a few classrooms in Cherry Hill, and could pay up to $60,000 for personnel billing. That would be for …

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