Petition Seeks Hinsdale D-86 Leader's Ouster

HINSDALE, IL — As with most movements these days, the one opposing the superintendent of Hinsdale High School District 86 now has an online petition. It calls for her removal.

Three days ago, former school board President Kay Gallo created the Change.org petition against Superintendent Tammy Prentiss, who took the helm in 2019. As of Friday afternoon, 655 people had signed it.

In the petition, Gallo accuses of Prentiss of drafting the controversial parts of a letter from an anti-racism consultant that the district was considering hiring.

The consultant's letter stated Hinsdale was a "dangerous place." Prentiss was involved with drafting the letter to some degree, but it is unclear to what extent. The district's spokesman denied the superintendent added anything to the letter.

Gallo also took Prentiss to task for reading the consultant's letter at a board meeting. In the letter, North Carolina-based consultant Valda Valbrun announced she was withdrawing from consideration because of her concerns with the district.

"Through her deliberate misrepresentations, Superintendent Prentiss attempted to advance her extreme (diversity, equity and inclusion) agenda by 'equity shaming' District 86 and creating a false media narrative that damaged the reputation of Hinsdale and all the other communities comprising D86," Gallo wrote.

Gallo's petition hit another issue that has fueled opposition to Prentiss — the continuation of the district's mask mandate.

"Without the input from the full Board, the Superintendent (and the Board President) autocratically decided to continue the mandatory masking policy," Gallo said.

Gallo, who left the board in 2017, was president while Prentiss was an assistant superintendent.

Gallo is the third school board president to denounce Prentiss.

Former President Rick Skoda was among the public commenters last week criticizing Prentiss.

Shortly after the school board election last year, Nancy Pollak, who resigned suddenly as president in June 2020, called Prentiss "the problem" for the district.

"Perhaps now the entire D86 community will realize the problem is the Superintendent and her failure to understand who she works for and how to balance those needs," Pollak said on Facebook.

Pollak did not go into specifics.

In November 2020, the board unanimously voted to extend Prentiss' contract by three years, with a base salary of $250,000.

Prentiss has been publicly silent on the recent opposition to her.