Northbrook/Glenview School District 30 officials notified student households about handwritten swastikas being found in yearbooks after an eighth-grade graduation practice in Maple School’s gym on May 29.
During an informal yearbook signing at the Northbrook school, some students reported swastika imagery written into their yearbooks by a classmate or classmates during an incident about 30 minutes before the end of the Wednesday school day, officials said
Maple staff temporarily confiscated all eighth-grade yearbooks. Students had been permitted to sign yearbooks while supervised by eighth-grade staff.
An evening eighth-grade graduation was held Thursday, May 30 at Glenbrook North High School, across the street from Maple School. Northbrook/Glenview School District 30 has three schools. The District includes two elementary schools (kindergarten to fifth grade), Wescott School in Northbrook and Willowbrook School in Glenview. Maple School has students in grades sixth through eighth.
A District 30 spokesperson confirmed the District sent an initial email to eighth-grade parents and Maple staff immediately after the incident. Later on Wednesday evening, the same details were emailed to parents of sixth and seventh-grade children attending Maple. A district-wide letter was distributed on the morning of eighth-grade graduation (May 30).
“District 30 chose to reach out to families and staff at all three schools to ensure they learned the facts of important events directly from our district, as well as to support our value of clear communication that helps ensure the well-being of all students and staff in our schools and the broader community,” said Elisabeth Mistretta, District 30 communications coordinator.
“We do not discuss disciplinary measures for individual students in alignment with our board policies,” Mistretta also said via email to Pioneer Press.
District 30 provided a copy of the letter to Pioneer Press sent to District 30 families and staff, signed by Superintendent of Schools Emily K. Tammaru.
Tammaru wrote and confirmed, “Some (students) reported to teachers that a swastika, recognized as an anti-semitic symbol, had been hand-drawn in their yearbooks by a peer or peers.
“Maple and District 30 officials acted immediately, collecting all yearbooks to ensure the hateful imagery ceased.”
Tammaru said Maple School Principal Sam J. Kurtz, “immediately addressed the students to admonish this unacceptable and reprehensible behavior.”
Tammaru indicated District 30 launched an investigation Wednesday afternoon to determine responsibility and ensure appropriate consequences.
“While District 30 does not discuss individual student discipline, we take this matter extremely seriously, as it violates our school rules, human respect, and the culture of safety that we work to uphold each day,” Tammaru said. “Maple students have been directly informed of how unaffected yearbooks will be returned and we are working to replace or remediate defaced yearbooks.”
“We encourage District 30 parents to use this as an opportunity to talk with their children about the importance of words and how they can deeply affect others.
“You are our partners in education, and we trust that you support our district in emphasizing and modeling kindness and respect for others at all times,” Tammaru wrote.
“It is also valuable to recognize the hundreds and hundreds of students we witness demonstrating compassion and excellent character each day in our schools.
“We are proud of them and believe this was an outlying incident,” Tammaru said. “But we also remain vigilant in working with our community toward safety for students and staff.”
Karie Angell Luc is a freelancer for Pioneer Press.