What Western Springs D101 Likes To Eat

WESTERN SPRINGS, IL – A look at Western Springs School District 101's credit card bills shows which restaurants district officials apparently like.

Over three years – from July 2021 to June 2024 – the district spent $41,000 at area restaurants.

Topping the list (below) is La Grange's Lucca's Pizzeria, at nearly $8,000.

Following are La Grange's Blackberry Market at $4,747, Western Springs' Hillgrove Tap at $4,163, La Grange's Corner Bakery at $3,924 and Westmont's Citrus Diner at $3,162.

Among the top 10, Western Springs restaurants claimed two spots to La Grange's five.

Patch requested backup documentation for a dozen meal expenditures during the summer, when little occurs.

Most of the targeted expenditures were in late June or early July. Nine of them were at La Grange's The Grapevine.

The district labeled several as "working lunches." A couple of others involved interviews for positions such as principal and technology director.

As for overall spending, the district's is low compared to its counterparts statewide.

In 2024, the district's operating spending per student was $15,467, well below the state average of $20,129, according to the Illinois Report Card.

"We are very lean," Sarah Coffey, District 101's superintendent, said in a recent interview.

Coffey was assistant superintendent in the years before she took the helm in July 2024. She replaced the retiring Brian Barnhart.

Coffey said much of the meal spending was for such things as professional training.

The district also spends money on coffee when the superintendent holds one-on-one meetings with teachers in their classrooms to talk about their jobs, she said.

Such visits, Coffey said, are crucial to finding out what's happening at the school level.

Coffees are also hosted for parents and staff, she said.

"I think our spending has been very reasonable," said Coffey, who was hired as a teacher in the district in the late 1990s. "It's in service of our teachers, who are directly impacting our kids."

Another big credit card expenditure over the three years was with Oak Brook's Hyatt hotel, which received $36,533.

That money was spent on space and food at the hotel, allowing the district to hold major professional development functions.

However, the district has stopped using the Hyatt because it now has free access to a new facility in Maywood, Coffey said. The building belongs to West 40, an agency that supports member districts, including Western Springs

In a statement to Patch, Coffey said the district believes it must invest in the people who can make good outcomes for students possible. That is why the district continuously invests in professional development, she said.

Much of that development happens internally, with every expenditure following the school board's policy, she said.

"Ultimately, individual transactions tell only part of the story," Coffey said. "The more important question is whether those expenditures advanced the District's mission of serving students, and that is the standard by which we evaluate them."

The district serves 1,400 students.