Recent TPHS Alum Calls for Removal of D228 Board Member

TINLEY PARK, IL -- A recent alum of Tinley Park High School has called for either the resignation or removal of Bremen High School District 228 board member Larry Canning. Canning was at the center of a dispute that turned physical at a board meeting held at Oak Forest High School last month. The way the elected official reacted to another board member’s charges of unethical practices is cause for his removal, the student said in a statement made during the public comment section of the board meeting held this week.

Jack Cascone is a 2015 alum of TPHS, where he was involved with numerous sports and other school activities. During his senior year he received the INSPRA Distinguished Service Award of Excellence for increasing communications in schools and the community. He’s now entering his junior year at Eureka College.

“I try to see his point of view,” Cascone said of Canning, who referred to both board president Deborah Stearns and fellow board member Mark Johnson as idiots during the previous meeting after Johnson brought up alleged unethical practices from Canning during the campaign prior to the April 4 election.

“Getting called out in a public meeting for being unethical is hard. But even I, a mere junior in college that is barely through his communication and political science double major, can differentiate between what is good behavior and what is bad behavior... I am still learning how to be an adult, but I can say for certain that Adulting 101 states that losing your temper because someone brought your actions to light is not acceptable, especially for an elected official.

"To call the president of the board an idiot in a public forum “undermines the system set in place,” said Cascone.

Canning’s actions are “unbecoming of a representative of this district,” he added, using the term “bully” to describe the board member who just last month was elected to another term with the highest vote total in the District 228 election.

RELATED: Canning Top Vote Getter in District 228 Election as 3 Are Re-Elected

Canning - who has also been at the center of a campaign finance dispute, according to a South Cook News report - provided an email response to Patch following Cascone’s comments. He said the incident at the April 18 meeting was “very upsetting and disturbing.”

“I regret that students, parents and staff that were in attendance had to witness such unprofessional behavior by adults,” he said. "I am further bothered by the fact that a group of individuals that had no intention of being part of a constructive board meeting but were only in attendance to intimidate and cause trouble. I believe that the behavior that was displayed by these individuals was premeditated and encouraged by a few of my fellow board members.”

One of those individuals, 55-year-old Michael Szydelko of Tinley Park, was charged with battery for his role in the melee that erupted at the meeting. Canning claims he was assaulted with a “two-fisted shove” when Szydelko and others approached the board following the verbal dispute between Canning and Johnson.

RELATED: Battery Charge for Tinley Man Involved in School Board Meeting Melee

Cascone noted that although he sympathizes with the men who approached the board to defend Stearns, he did not agree with how they handled the situation either.

“To his credit, although I may agree with the group of gentleman that stood up for Stearns, I also believe that it wasn’t very appropriate for them to express their emotions in the way that they did,” Cascone said. “However, I find it even more inappropriate that an elected official would engage with these people.”

RELATED: Board Member Claims He Was Assaulted During Meeting Melee

Cascone’s full statement to the board can be found in its entirety below:

“As most of you know, my name is Jack Cascone and I graduated from Tinley Park High School in May 2015. I attended TPHS all four years and was wildly active in the school and the community. I participated in everything from Football and Track & Field, to Student Council, to Drama Club. I read announcements every morning for over two years, served as a Peer Mentor and Dean’s aid, and regularly reported to the Board of Education. I was lucky enough to be chosen to attend RYLA two years in a row and from that started my own organization to help teach 8th graders all across the district feeder schools on how to adjust to high school and be good people.
I am now entering my junior year at Eureka College. Over the last two years, I have become just as involved there as I was here. I am the President of my fraternity Delta Sigma Phi, I am a lead admissions ambassador, a student senator, the assistant editor of our school newspaper Pegasus, and a residential advisor. I also chair various committees, serve on one of the Board of Trustee committees, and was named the Freshman of the Year.
The reason for this letter is in response to the recent video of Larry Canning’s actions during last month’s Board meeting. I try to see his point of view. Getting called out in a public meeting for being unethical is hard. But even I, a mere junior in college that is barely through his communication and political science double major, can differentiate between what is good behavior and what is bad behavior. I am still learning how to be an adult, but I can say for certain that Adulting 101 states that losing your temper because someone brought your actions to light is not acceptable, especially for an elected official. It is not acceptable for a representative of this district to tell someone that they are an idiot in a public forum. To call the president of the board an idiot undermines the system set in place. Publicly saying that President Stearns is not a woman and therefore he does not need to respect her is disgraceful to my district. What does that say to the high schoolers in the district? He is advocating on behalf of the bullies within the district and damning the victims of said bullies.
The actions of Larry Canning are extremely concerning to me. While I attended TPHS, he at first presented himself as the most caring individual. However, it quickly became apparent of his “my way or the highway” attitude. It is beyond me how he was reelected. His strategies while campaigning and now serving is typical of a Cook County politician. His corrupt tactics are in line with the Blagojevich’s, Daley’s, Durbin’s, Madigan’s, and Crotty’s.
My district did its damnedest to teach respect. Canning is perpetuating a bullying society. He is a bully. To his credit, although I may agree with the group of gentleman that stood up for Stearns, I also believe that it wasn’t very appropriate for them to express their emotions in the way that they did. However, I find it even more inappropriate that an elected official would engage with these people. They could have said their peace and the meeting would have continued. But Canning, always having to be the baddest kid on the playground, decided to add fuel to the already growing fire. I do not believe that he is fit to serve. If I would have acted at Eureka College in the way that he did, I would have been either asked to step down from my positions or removed from them. If that would have been my punishment at a small, liberal arts school in central Illinois, why should that not at least be Canning’s fate in a district that serves tens of thousands of people?
Canning’s actions are conduct unbecoming of a representative of this district. I do not know the removal process for a member, but that will not stop me from expressing my opinion. I call for the immediate removal of Larry Canning from the Board of Education of District 228.
Jack Cascone, TPHS Class of 2015

Canning’s response to Patch can be found in its entirety below:

The incident that took place at our board meeting on Tuesday April 18th was very upsetting and disturbing. I regret that students, parents and staff that were in attendance had to witness such unprofessional behavior by adults. I am further bothered by the fact that a group of individuals that had no intention of being part of a constructive board meeting but were only in attendance to intimidate and cause trouble. I believe that the behavior that was displayed by these individuals was premeditated and encouraged by a few of my fellow board members. I have passed on evidence and information to support this to the proper authorities. I take full responsibility for my actions and apologize to anyone who might have been offended by my response to defend myself from the intimidation that was applied by the group of trouble makers. District 228 deserved better on Tuesday.
Board member, Larry Canning