Parents, program staff urge Palatine Unit District 15 to address middle‑school sports equity and lunchroom policies; board approves personnel and construction,

Public commenters at a Palatine Unit District 15 Board of Education meeting raised equity and transparency concerns about how the district allocates middle‑school athletic teams and how Plum Grove Middle School has been handling lunch seating, while the board moved forward on multiple personnel, construction and transportation contracts.

Christine Zaremba, a Spanish teacher at Palatine High School and a longtime district resident, told the board she and Winston community parents were “grateful” for Superintendent Laurie Hines and district staff who met with them but remained concerned about team allocations. Zaremba said Plum Grove was allowed “4 sport teams for each cut sport with 48 spots” while Winston Middle School had “2 sport teams for each cut sport,” even though Winston “has around 240 more students than those schools.” She added that tryout counts can be misleading because some Winston students choose not to try out when they believe their chances are low. “We do not want students in our community to feel like they are getting less opportunities based on which feeder school they attend,” Zaremba said.

Rick Tchaikovsky, a parent from the Winston/Virginia Lake feeder area, pressed the board for greater transparency in athletic budgeting and team assignments. Reading district communications, he said the district’s own notices — “All sixth to eighth grade students are welcome to try out. 2 teams per school” — appear inconsistent with the roster allocations at Plum Grove. “These aren't just statistics. They represent real children and their dreams,” Tchaikovsky said, and urged the board to commit to a data‑led, accountable process for allocating teams and athletic resources.

Kelly Brown, a Palatine…