Central Vs. South: Data Problem Unfixed, District Comes Up Short

HINSDALE, IL – Hinsdale High School District 86 has come up short in getting good comparison data between Central and South high schools, an official said Thursday.

Historically, South residents have said their students have been less likely than their Central counterparts to get the courses they want.

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A year ago, the school board's president, Catherine Greenspon, accused the administration of manipulating data. That was after officials presented numbers showing the gap between the schools was almost wiped away.

For the last year, a special committee headed by board member Bobby Fischer has looked into ways to get better numbers.

At Thursday's board meeting, he said the committee has made progress in how the district understands and communicates data.

But he said the panel failed to achieve its goal of getting good statistics on the schools' rates for fulfilling students' course requests.

He attributed that problem to the schools' different registration practices. Central uses a more automated process, while South's is more manual.

"There is no way to compare fulfillment rates across the two schools," he said. "Ultimately, it's going to take a lot of work to get there."

The decision on how to proceed will be up to the district's new leadership team, Fischer said. Soon, Chip Pettit is set to become the superintendent and Josh McMahon the assistant superintendent for academics.

"Whether this is something they want to prioritize and improve feels like a big decision for next year," Fischer said. "Course access and opportunities are important for our students."

He added, "I'm hoping that as part of the strategic plan we pursue, we make getting this data right important."

In June 2025, Patch pointed to the district's widely varying statistics over the previous year for course conflicts at Central and South.

Earlier that same month, the administration contended the district had largely wiped away course disparities between the schools. The smaller South has long gotten the short end of the stick.

After the story, the district largely backed away from its numbers. And Greenspon, the board's president, said bad data "completely erodes and degrades trust in our district."