Hinsdale D-86 Official Defends Clergy Meeting

DARIEN, IL – For more than a month, residents opposed to Hinsdale High School District 86's superintendent have questioned why she met with local clergy.

She spoke with the clergy in a Feb. 8 Zoom session.

During public comments at school board meetings, residents have suggested that Prentiss organized the meeting to rally local faith leaders to fight against the effort to remove her.

Last week, Patch reported on emails that showed the clergy, not Prentiss, sought the session.

At Thursday's school board meeting, board President Terri Walker said she wanted to correct what she called "falsehoods" in the community.

One of Walker's topics was the clergy meeting. She said she accepted the invitation, but was unable to attend because of her full-time job.

But she said she saw no problem with Prentiss talking with faith leaders.

"I know my fellow board members have conversations related to school issues with members of the community," Walker said. "That's how it should be. When community members ask to meet with our superintendent, we should expect her to accept the invitation."

Prentiss has faced two major controversies since January – the sudden withdrawal of a prospective anti-racism consultant and the district's mask mandate.

More than a month ago, former school board President Kay Gallo started a Change.org petition against Prentiss. It skyrocketed to more than 1,000 signatures amid the fury over the mask mandate.

But since the mandate ended, the petition's momentum slipped, only gathering about a hundred new signatures in the last couple of weeks.

At every board meeting, though, residents still ask for Prentiss' ouster.

On Thursday, resident Dale Kleber said he has never seen so much opposition to a superintendent in his 30 years in Hinsdale.

"It's unprecedented in this town to see this lack of confidence in the superintendent," Kleber said. "This board needs to hear that and needs to take action."

Prentiss has been silent about the movement against her. She appears to have the support of a 4-3 board majority.

The next school board election is in April 2023.