Dr. Luis Buscoria, superintendent of Gurney-area District 56, told the Village of Gurney board on Sept. 29 that the district has completed major facility upgrades and adopted a standardized emergency response protocol while beginning classroom-level implementation of its Portrait of a Graduate competencies.

Buscoria said District 56 serves about 1,921 students across four schools and that 55% of students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch; about 23–24% use English-language (EL) services. He outlined recent capital work — new roofs, upgraded HVAC, new floors and parking changes to ease morning traffic — and said the district installed three-point entry systems and upgraded security cameras.

On safety, Buscoria said the district this year implemented the Standard Response Protocol (SRP), based on the I Love You Guys Foundation materials, to establish a common emergency-response language with local law enforcement and first responders.

Buscoria described the Portrait of a Graduate as a set of competencies (academic champion, determined learner, contributing citizen, critical and creative thinker, thoughtful problem solver, effective communicator, engaged collaborator) developed with community stakeholders. He said the district’s next step is a learning framework to connect those competencies with daily classroom instruction.

He also noted recurring community events — Hispanic Heritage celebration Oct. 9, Black History Month programming, Maker Faire and an Asian Pacific Islander Desi American celebration in May — and said the district continues to celebrate its demographic diversity.

The presentation was informational; no village action or funding request was made.