The Hinsdale Township High School District 86 board on Aug. 7 gave direction to administrators to offer World History Honors at Hinsdale South, using the same course name, prerequisites, curriculum and the new textbook approved by the board in May at Hinsdale Central.

Why it matters: Board members framed the action as a "plug-and-play" add to give Hinsdale South students access to the established honors pathway and to evaluate demand before pursuing broader social-studies curriculum changes. Several board members said the district should not subtract any current course offerings when adding the honors section.

Board discussion and rationale: During an extended discussion, one board member said: "Take world history honors as it appears in the program of studies now as it is offered at Central, the same course name, the same program description, same book, the same curriculum, and offer it at South." (Board member)

Administrators and some board members cautioned that copying a course from one school to another requires teacher staffing, training and counseling guidance. A district staff member said that "copying and pasting an innovation from one school to another generally isn't very effective, because schools are places filled with people and traditions and processes and rules." (Administrator Mike)

The board asked administration to preserve the Central curriculum verbatim for the offering at South and to collect first-year data to inform any larger social-studies proposals. One board member recommended treating the addition as a pilot year and delaying any wholesale department proposals until the board reviews enrollment and outcome data from the pilot.

Background and history: Board members recounted that the question of a districtwide freshman honors pathway has been discussed since 2023 and that past program-of-studies votes and curriculum changes influenced how and when a new offering could be listed. The board said that the new World History Honors textbook approved in May prepares students for the AP Modern World History exam, and that offering the honors course at South would give students access to that preparation if they choose to pursue the AP exam.

Next steps: Administration was asked to implement the course at Hinsdale South without revising the Central curriculum, to assign or train a teacher at South, to provide guidance counselors with clear advising language about course differences and AP preparation, and to return data on interest and enrollment. The board signaled it will not take up broader social-studies curriculum proposals until at least a year of data on the honors pilot are available.

Ending: Board members described the action as limited and reversible: it adds access for Hinsdale South students while preserving Central's curriculum and giving the district data to decide on longer-term curriculum changes.