Did City Misuse 'The Highlander' to Promote D-112's Agenda?

HIGHLAND PARK, IL - An article in the Nov. 15 issue of ‘The Highlander’ - the city of Highland Park’s official publication mailed to all Highland Park residents - contained an article promoting the North Shore School District 112 plan for reconfiguration. At least one opponent of the plan has called the article “clearly partisan” and noted that the city was using taxpayer money to mail the politically slanted ”news” to its constituents.

“I am shocked that a City funded publication that is mailed, at taxpayer expense, to the home of every citizen in Highland Park and labeled as ’published monthly by the City of Highland Park’ (including the names of all HP elected officials on its front page) would provide a forum for the blatant promotion of the political views of some, not all, District 112 employees and board members,” Highland Park resident Gary VanderPoel wrote in an email to Mayor Nancy Rotering and members of the Highland Park City Council.

The article in the publication’s “school” section - which includes information on both District 112 and Township High School District 113 - promoted a series of community conversations about the district’s proposal to merge three middle schools into one campus for fifth thru eighth graders and close certain elementary schools while renovating others.

“After gathering information on dozens of options, the Board of Education is focusing on developing one model,” the article read. “This model includes a single middle school with separate wings for grades 5-6 and 7-8 on the Sherwood/Red Oak site and renovating six schools to serve students in grades K-4. This model will allow the District to reinvigorate and rebuild its aging buildings, ensure financial viability and most of all, improve education for students.”

VanderPoel said in the e-mail he had communicated his concerns with Rotering, who noted the article was not representative of any position from her. He also said City Manager Ghida Neukirch indicated future editions of the publication will include a disclaimer making it clear any opinions addressed are not necessarily those of the city.

City councilman Tony Blumberg responded to VanderPoel’s concerns.

“I agree with the Mayor’s response,” he said. “I am taking no public position on the matter as it may be that District 112 presents an application to the Plan and Design Commission, to which I am the Council’s liaison, and it would then come before the Council. I am therefore officially neutral, and will make a decision based upon matters presented to me under those circumstances.”

While VanderPoel said the best course of action would have been for the pamphlet to not include opinions on the reconfiguration issue, he is hopeful the publication will print an alternative view in a future publication.

“The readers of the recent issue of the Highlander are now left to possibly think that the City of HP, its Mayor, its Council Members and its managers, by association, also endorse the district’s plan,” VanderPoel wrote. “Because this recent politically slanted ‘informational’ article on the mega-middle school has already been published, the ‘horse is out of the barn.’ Consequently, the only adequate remedy for the current situation is for the Highlander to permit publication of an alternative view in the next upcoming issue. I hereby request that a general rebuttal of equal length, drafted by the CARE organization, be published in the next issue of The Highlander.”

VanderPoel also urged the Mayor and all Council members to publicly state that the City has no official position regarding the matter.