Dupage Policy Journal

Kay Gallo is seeking a return to a seat on the District 86 Board of Education.

Gallo has previously served two terms on the District 86 board from 2009 to 2017, in which she was the president for the last two years of her tenure. 

“I am a candidate for one of the three open positions on the District 86 Board of Education and would like to introduce myself," Gallo posted on Facebook "My husband and I have lived in Clarendon Hills for over 38 years. We moved here to start and raise our family. Our three children attended and graduated from Maercker District, Hinsdale Central, and state universities.”

Gallo said things have changed in the district. 

"In the last four years, significant curriculum and grading changes have rolled out un-piloted and at a rapid and irresponsible pace," Gallo said. "These include but are not limited to the elimination of general academic supports for students, an overhaul of core curriculum without a compelling justification for change or indicators of success, and the introduction of earned honors credit without sufficient detail or an executed pilot. 

“For decades, District 86 was a beacon of excellence in the areas of the Academics in the classroom, and the Behavior and Character of the board and district administration," Gallo said. "When my now-grown children graduated from Hinsdale Central High School, they, along with their peers, were exceptionally well prepared to meet the academic challenges they faced in college and beyond.” 

She also said that "the impact of the grading changes has not been accurately reported to all stakeholders to provide an understanding of the rationale or benefit to students and teachers." This, she said, resulted in "an increased emphasis on assessments and retake opportunities and a decreased emphasis on the importance of preparation." Gallo underscored how "academic expectations have been lowered" rather than "providing equitable opportunities for all students to realize their full potential." The district has seen a decline in standardized test scores and "rapid-fire changes have impacted teachers’ abilities to meet all students’ academic and social-emotional needs.” 

“The District 86 administration and outgoing board members have shown intolerance, disdain, and indifference towards individuals who have questioned these changes and requested data to support them," Gallo said. "Additionally, they have not proactively been transparent in sharing all assessment data including Advanced Placement scores or highlighting concerning SAT score trends.” 

She vowed to "lead with integrity and focus on the district's ABC's -- the Academics in the classroom, and the Behavior and Character of the board and district administration,” if elected to the District 86 Board of Education. 

Gallo has lobbied for the removal of Superintendent Tammy Prentiss. She started a petition on change.org. 

“Tammy Prentiss intentionally misled School District 86 stakeholders, the Board of Education and the media during the January 13, 2022, Board meeting when she read aloud a divisive and defamatory letter purportedly received from Valda Valbrun, an outside Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) consultant who had sent an email the previous day withdrawing her proposal to conduct DE&I training for the District,” the petition claims.

The petition also claims that Prentiss "failed to disclose that she added two highly inflammatory sentences to Valbrun’s original language the day after receipt, which revisions labeled Hinsdale as ‘shameful,’ 'a dangerous place' to work and stated that Valbrun feared for her ‘physical’ safety.” 

"Superintendent Prentiss’ claim that she merely added the inflammatory language a day later at Valbrun’s request is not credible," the petition stated. "Even if this dubious account were true, the Superintendent should have acknowledged her participation in embellishing Valbrun’s email before reading it publicly." 

The petition also alleged Prentiss "acted dishonestly and unethically in deliberately creating the impression that the doctored withdrawal letter had been submitted by Valbrun.” The creator of the petition added that the superintendent “took the unusual step of reading the embellished letter aloud at the Jan. 13, 2022 board meeting, without prior board approval, triggering highly negative media coverage in the Chicago Tribune, local weekly newspapers and television news stations, which portrayed Hinsdale and other District 86 communities as racist and openly hostile to persons of color.” 

Through her alleged "deliberate misrepresentations, Superintendent Prentiss attempted to advance her extreme DE&I agenda by 'equity shaming' District 86 and creating a false media narrative that damaged the reputation of Hinsdale and all other the communities comprising D86,” the petition further noted. She was also perceived to have "exhibited unsound and unprofessional judgment, as well as a callous disregard for the welfare of District 86 students, by distributing the misleading and divisive withdrawal letter in a communication emailed to all students and their parents.”