Niles North Celebrates 50 Years

D219 Alumni news

published by the District 219 Education Foundation for alumni of Niles East • Niles West • Niles North Niles North Celebrates 50 Years

Niles North celebrated 50 years of education this year, and it started with a party. Students and staff took to the field on August 29 while the ABC-7 Friday Flyover helicopter beamed back snapshots of “50th,” “We R 1” and “NN Vikings.” It wouldn’t be a 50th year celebration without alumni, and past Vikings came back to school for Homecoming on September 19. Alumni marched in the parade down Lawler, they joined the King and Queen at the 50-yard line, and they visited the Aquatics Center and other new developments during the Alumni Tours. Marc Silverman (N’89) of ESPN Chicago’s “Waddle & Silvy” even sat in the pressbox to an- nounce the Homecoming Game. It wasn’t just one weekend of celebration, but a yearlong occasion-- alums participated in the spring musical “Hairspray” (over 30 alumni in cast/crew), they shared their knowledge with students during Ask the Expert career exploration days, and a Distinguished Alumna returned to share her story during the Awards of Distinction. Alumni demonstrated with pride that “Once a Viking, Always a Viking,” as they generously gave of Summer 2015 • Vol. 9 their1 time, District and 219 Educationmoney, to Foundation their high | www.219foundation.org school. Thank you to all the alumni Issue 1 who celebrated the 50th anniversary with Niles North. www.219foundation.org FOUNDATION UPDATE

Greetings, Alumni! for people who would like to contrib- D219 Education Foundation for ute to the rich tradition of D219, so Excellence Board of Directors It’s been another excit- that new generations of students can ing year for the D219 reap the benefits that helped us get to Jeff Burman, Chair, (E’74) Education Foundation. where we are today. Keith Baker, Vice Chair (E’74) Ken Clinkman, Treasurer David Putrus (W’97), Secretary We had another spooky If you would like to support our work by making a donation to help students Directors: time with our partnership with Fear Alyse Cohen Burman in need, please call 847-626-3958 or City in Morton Grove. They generously Mark Collins donated proceeds from D219 Founda- visit http://www.219foundation.org. Dr. Nanciann Gatta tion days at the haunted house, to the Matthew Robins (N’98) tune of $8,000. Thanks for your support! Michael Graham, Niles West teacher Ron Dornseif, Niles North teacher This year marked the fifth annual Samantha Weil, Niles North student Pizza Wars fundraiser. It was held in Anam Furrukh, Niles West student the Main Gym at Niles North High Jeff Burman Maryam Khalid, Niles West student School. The mayors of Niles Township Chair joined in a rematch of the pizza eating District 219 Education Foundation Jim Szczepaniak, Staff Liaison contest. Mayor Andrew Przybylo of Rosamin Bhanpuri, Staff Liaison Niles was victorious. Thanks to Mayor Dan DiMaria of Morton Grove, Mayor George Van Dusen of Skokie, and Mayor Jerry Turry of Lincolnwood for Niles East Memories Live on at Oakton their valiant efforts. This year’s fund- Thanks to Alumni Donations raiser brought in more than $8,500 to benefit D219 students in need. See page 3 for details.

During the past year, the Foundation provided the following assistance:

• Scholarships towards college tuition for recent graduates • Fees for a student to attend a prestigious Spoken Word competition • Students to attend career exploration classes at the local community colleges • Graphing calculators • Breakfast bars and local grocery gift cards to purchase needed food and supplies • Support towards study abroad programs • Sizzling Summer STEM tuition Thank you to the Niles East alumni who have donated precious mementos of • Various other grants to students their high school years for the display at Oakton Community College, Skokie in financial need Campus. Though Niles East no longer stands, it lives on in alums’ hearts, and now, in a display at Oakton (best accessed through Door 21). This display will You are cordially invited to attend our be continually updated -- please contact Alyse Cohen Burman at public meetings, which generally take [email protected] if you have items to contribute. place at 7 p.m. on the 2nd Tuesday of every month. We are always looking

2 District 219 Education Foundation | www.219foundation.org Thank you to all who supported Pizza Wars V. Mark your calendar for Wed., January 20, 2016 at Niles North for Pizza Wars VI.

Five years ago, the foundation brought together dueling pizzerias to determine the best pizza in Niles Township. Ever since, Pizza Wars has become one of the foundation’s most highly anticipated fundraisers. Father & Son Italian Kitchen was crowned the winner of Pizza Wars V. More than 800 people attended the event which raised over $8,500 to support D219 students. This year also brought a rematch of the pizza-eating showdown between the mayors of Skokie, Lincolnwood, Morton Grove and Niles. Mayor Andrew Przybylo of Niles was the champion. Thanks to our participating pizzerias: Blaze Pizza, Father & Son Italian Kitchen, Goode & Fresh Pizza Bakery, Jet’s Pizza, Kappy’s Restaurant, Lou Malnati’s, Organic Life, Tommy’s, Village Inn Pizzeria, and Wa-Pa-Getti’s. Water was provided by Costco, and desserts provided by Nothing Bundt Cakes, Skokie, and Sweet Time Cafe. Thank you to our generous sponsors: North Suburban Insurance, Skokie; The Tennes Family; Rep Lou Lang; First Bank & Trust; Niles Township Federation of Teachers and Support Staff; The Pramod Shah Family; SportClips, Skokie; Rich Reeder; Evanston Subaru, Skokie; Julia Shell Public Relations; The Burman Family; Father & Son Italian Kitchen; Lorene Michaelides; Northshore Community; Superdawg and Village Inn Pizzeria.

The Niles West Class of 2015, as a class gift, is erecting a wall in honor of West graduates who have gone on to serve in the United States Armed Forces. Our goal is to commemorate past, present, and future graduates for their service. We also hope it will serve as a reminder to current students to be appreciative of those who protect our country. We are seeking alumni who have served in any branch of the military, active or reserves. If you have or know of an alum who meets these qualifications, please follow this link to fill out the form: http://url.d219.org/nwalumni

Thank you, The Class of 2015

A new fellowship was created in honor of David Walton (N’94), MD, MPH, who has spent the past 15 years working to strengthen the Haitian healthcare system. The David Walton Global Healthcare Delivery Administration GHA Fellowship seeks to develop the managerial and leadership skills of healthcare administrators working in Haiti. Jointly sponsored by Partners in Health (PIH) and Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH), the Fellowship allows Haitian healthcare administrators the opportunity to broaden their general management skills through a combination of didactic classroom sessions, rotations with hospital leaders across various departments and on-the-job mentoring. Two fellows per year from PIH sites in Haiti will participate in the program. Fellows will spend two blocks of 6-8 weeks in Boston working with leaders at PIH and BWH, and participate in regular teleconferences with Boston-based mentors.

3 District 219 Education Foundation | www.219foundation.org Summer 2015 3 P 2015 DISTINGUISHED ALUMNI P Niles North Alumnus Tapped for CongratulationsD219 Board toof the Education recipients ofVacancy this year’s Distinguished Alumnus Awards:

Maxine Winer (N’79) Rich Beckman (W’72) Maxine Winer is senior vice Rich Beckman is a Professor in the president, senior partner School of Communication at the and general manager of the University of Miami, director of Chicago office of FleishmanHil- the graduate program in Journal- lard, one of the world’s largest ism and Media Management and public relations firms. She is Chair of the University of Miami also a member of the firm’s Curriculum Committee. Senior Management Committee. His work focuses on producing documentary multimedia storytelling for social change, digital media tools and curriculum development for both Max brings more than 25 years’ experience to her journalism programs and general education. current role leading one of FleishmanHillard’s largest offices, with a client list that includes Gatorade, Tropi- He works with Special Olympics International as a docu- cana, Propel, Ulta Beauty, The Illinois Office of Tour- mentary producer and has trained professional journalism, Lands’ End, Willis Tower, The Chicago White Sox, ists in multimedia and the use of digital storytelling tools. and Get Covered Illinois: The Illinois Health Exchange, among others. The office’s areas of expertise include From January 1978 to June 2008 Beckman was the Direc- consumer brand marketing, reputation management, tor of Visual Communication at the University of North sports marketing, healthcare, food & nutrition, B-to-B Carolina. During that time, he won the Tanner and David marketing, financial communications and IR, and crisis Brinkley Awards; was a Fulbright Senior Scholar in South and issues management. Africa, Chile and Spain; a charter member of the UNC-CH Academy of Distinguished Teaching Scholars and Carolina Speakers and served as the Julian Sheer Term Profes- Max is on the board of Junior Achievement of Chicago. sor of Journalism and the James L. Knight Distinguished She is also a member of the Economic Club of Chicago Professor of Journalism. and the Executives Club of Chicago. As an online producer, he led teams that have won prestigious multimedia prizes including the Sigma Delta Correction: We stated that 2014 Distinguished Alumnus Chi Medal of Honor and the Pirelli INTERNETional Award Thomas Merkel was from the Niles West Class of 1987. for Educational Media, as well as multimedia storytelling He graduated in 1986. awards from the Online News Association, the National Press Photographers Association, and the Pictures of the Alumni on D219TV Year International competitions, to name a few. He has judged the photography and multimedia categories of View this year’s Distinguished Alumni accepting the White House Press Photographers Associations an- their awards at the following links: nual competition, as well as the photography categories of the Robert F. Kennedy Awards, which honor outstand- Niles North: www.d219tv.org/2015/05/28/niles- ing reporting of the lives and strife of disadvantaged north-50th-annual-awards-of-distinction/ people throughout the world.

Niles West: www.d219tv.org/2015/05/22/niles- He has spoken about and taught multimedia storytelling west-accolades-2015/ at national conferences, and consulted in newsrooms around the world. If you would like to be considered for a Distinguished Alumni award, or would like to nominate a worthy candidate, please download a form at www.219foundation.org.

4 District 219 Education Foundation | www.219foundation.org Donations & Tributes Thank you to the following individuals and groups for their generous contributions to the District 219 Education Foun- dation (Summer 2014 to present). Donations help financially needy students improve their academic performance.

Chris Barnett (E’65) Mohit Rajpal (W’07) in honor of GCA Education Services Karen Rydin Collins (E’54) Paul Wack Dr. Charmaine DeFrancesco (W’75) Unmi Song with matching Bill Gabriel (W’74) Trustees of Niles Township donation from Lori & Andrew Goldstein Government for purchase of Lloyd A. Fry Foundation Charles Graessle (W’66) breakfast bars for students Donna Hanrahan (E’68) Relief Medical Services, Inc. Dr. David Kalin (E’67) Julie Webber with matching donation Evelyn Karson (W’68) from Verizon Foundation D219 Spring & Fall Payroll Drives Marcy Schlocker Klayman (N’70) Dorothea Lattyak (N’65) Donations made in honor of Donations through Edward Malecki (E’57) Niles East Class of 1964: Dance Marathon fundraising Amelia Mechla (W’71) Marcia Becker Catherine Mechla (W’67) Steven Bernstein Donations through Niles North & Sheila Meyer (N’69) Rochelle Brostoff Niles West student registration Sharyn Reiff (N’71) Tom Dadigan Dr. Gail Rosenthal (W’76) Ruth Garte Niles North Courtesy Club in Dr. Roger Stein Judith Mayzel honor of retiring staff: Jeffrey Stolberg (W’72) Mark Newberger Karl Costello, Pam Frontzak, Dr. Barbara Ray Tyler Sherry Petlin Deborah Meyer, Marika Nissan Corrie Roesslein and Melinda Remaly Mary Pat Carr in memory of Fred Streicher Joe Monahan Thank you to all D219 staff who Niles West 1964 Reunion Committee donated generously through the Ted Johnson (N’76) in honor of Annual NTFT/NTSS/D219 Charity George Pryjma Niles East 1974 Reunion Committee Drive via employee payroll deduction. Thanks especially to: Cathy Mechla (W’67) in memory of Niles West 1994 Reunion in memory Rosamin Bhanpuri, Dana Des mother Jeanette Mechla of David Chereck, Whitney Shanahan, Jardins, Ronald Dornseif, Frank Silvio and Rob Goodrich Katherine France, Michele Mrs. Gayle Mueller-Slack (W’70) Hettinger, Heather Ingraham, in memory of loving husband American Heritage Protective Services Daniel Kleinschrodt, Timothy James R. Slack (E’61) Miller, Daniel Rusk, Fear City Carolyn Sanchez and Dru Scarbrough (E’79) in memory Jim Szczepaniak. of Barb Scarbrough Thank you for your support. All gifts are tax-deductible, as allowed by the law. The District 219 Education Foundation for Excellence is a 501(c)(3) organization. Visit www.219foundation.org to make a donation.

Then & Now: Class of 1964 & 2014 Since 2007, the

Foundation has

granted almost

An interesting meeting of the minds took place last summer when members of the Class of 1964 sat down for a panel discussion with the Class of 2014. Moderated by Scott Dahlberg $250,000 to D219 of the Humanities Department, Niles West alumni shared their personal stories of high school in the 1960s while the Class of 2014 related their experiences. Representing the Class of 1964 were Janice Rosenberg, Stephen Lincoln Spitz and Scott Mermel. The Class students in need of 2014 was represented by Fatima-Tul Farha, Hafsa Wahid and Smita Jain.

5 District 219 Education Foundation | www.219foundation.org Summer 2015 5 Upcoming Reunions Reunion Roundup Niles East -West-North Class of 1965 The 50th reunion for the Class of 1965 is scheduled for October 3, 2015 at Viper’s Alley in Niles Township High School 60th Reunion Lincolnshire, IL. Cash bar and appetizers begin at 6:30 p.m. with a buffet dinner to follow. Join the Facebook group “65 turns 65, Niles East West and North” for more information and to sign up. Niles East Class of 1966 Don’t let the 50th reunion pass you by. Niles East is planning the reunion for September 23 through 25, 2016. Contact Karen Kass at (312) 968-9682. Niles West Class of 1966 A 50th reunion weekend is planned July 29 through 31, 2016 for the Class of 1966. On July 30, there will be a tour of Niles West. For all the details on the weekend, register at www. nileswest66.com. Class of 1974: Did you graduate from Lincoln What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas! Junior High in 1970? Join the reunion on Sep- tember 12, 2015. Find the group 1970 Lincoln The Niles Township High School Class of 1954 shared the details of their Junior High Reunion on Facebook for details. fabulous 60th reunion with us. In October 2014 they held their reunion at the Niles East Class of 1975 is holding a reunion South Point Hotel Casino and Spa in Las Vegas, NV. Classmates reconnected, on July 25, 2015 at Pinstripes. Contact Sheryl they went on excursions to the Strip, and they laughed about the good old (Isaacson) Rue-Borden at sherylrueborden@ days. They said, “Here we are 78 years young and wondering where all those gmail.com. years have gone.” Thanks to Bernice E. Conley for the photo. Niles West Class of 1975 Recently held reunions The 40th reunion will be held on August • The Niles East Class of 1964 held a 50th reunion in September 2014. 8, 2015. Contact Lisa Ann Schreier at [email protected] for details. Help They gathered at Pinstripes (Sept. 20) and Maggiano’s (Sept. 21). spread the word! • The Niles West Class of 1964 celebrated a Golden 50th reunion in June 2014 at the Hyatt Deerfield. Niles North Class of 1975 The 40th reunion will be held on August 1 at • The Class of 1966 Turns 66 (East/West/North) took place at the Howard Marcello’s. Find out the details at wwwn.nile- Street Inn on July 19, 2014. snorthclassof75.com. • The Niles East Class of 1974 held their 40th on October 25, 2014. Niles North Class of 1985 A 30-year reunion is being planned for Niles • The Niles North Class of 1974 reunion was held on August 2, 2014 at North. The reunion will be held in the fall. Con- Marcello’s. tact Andrea Novoselsky at andrea.novoselsky@ gmail.com or call (847) 975-8586. • The Niles North Class of 1984 reunion was held on November 29, 2014 at Saranello’s. Niles North Class of 1990 It’s been a quarter century since you walked out • The Niles West Class of 1984 celebrated a 30th reunon on September 13, the doors. The 25-year reunion is planned for 2014 at the Holiday Inn North Shore Skokie. The class awarded a $1,400 June 27, 2015 at Moretti’s Restaurant. Contact scholarship to Haley Melnick (W’15) [email protected]. • The Niles West Class of 1994 held their 20th reunion at Rocks on October Niles West Class of 1995 25, 2014. Are you ready for your 20-year reunion? A • The Niles North Class of 2004 reunion was held on May 31, 2014. reunion weekend is planned for October 2-4, 2015. Send email to [email protected]. • The Niles West Class of 2005 held their 10-year reunion on June 6, 2015. The main event will be held at Hubbard Inn on October 3. Looking for news about a recent reunion? Visit www.219foundation.org Send reunion news to Rosamin Bhanpuri at [email protected] Mrs. Sandra Karnatz has established two Former Vikings? Become a Viking Booster! $1,000 basketball scholarships in honor of North Alumni - Beginning this fall, support the Vikings with an Alumni her late husband, Al Karnatz (E’55) whose Booster Club membership. For more information, contact frannie@ #37 jersey was retired when he graduated. ebenbow.com or call (847) 329-9218. One scholarship was awarded to Hilma Mededovic of Niles West and one was 6 District 219 Education Foundation | www.219foundation.org awarded to Tajai Armstead of Niles North. Walter E. Goldstein, Ph.D., PE (E’57) published Pharmaceutical Accumulation in the Environment: Prevention, Control, Health Effects, and Economic Impact. He is president of Goldstein Consulting S e e n Company and is working with partners to produce universal blood from stem cells to replace donor blood. View more at www.ivrbc.info. He and his wife Paula live in Las Vegas, NV. a n d Stanley D. Banash (E ‘58) recently received a Superior Achievement Award from the Illinois State Historical Society for Roadside History of Illinois (Mountain Press, 2013). The judges’ said, “This is Heard the most indispensable history book, reference book, and travel guide I have cal Chemistry and Toxicology at the San initiatives to build relations with other come across in Illinois. I want to have this Francisco. These books are a collection of countries. She has been invited to the book with me whenever I explore the short stories based on real medical cases White House by President Obama and Prairie State.” where the clinical toxicology and chemistry recognized as a female leader. Ahmad’s labs played a role in diagnosing disease, story on social media finally prompted Miriam Pockross (E’61) published The solving the cause of death, or were even United Airlines to apologize and retrain Takeover: An Unexpected Caregiver’s responsible for medical mistakes made. the worker. Story. She said, “This book is intended to These books are for the general public and help us all get through old age either as are meant to convey why clinical laboratory Karim Lakhani (W’10) graduated from a caregiver or as an aging person. I wrote testing is important for our medical care. Cornell University’s School of Hotel it when I moved my parents to Denver at Proceeds from the sales of these books will Administration in 2014. He earned his the ages of 90 and 95. I hope it will be a be donated to the D219 Education Founda- Bachelor of Science degree with the resource for all ages as a learning tool on tion. Website: www.alanhbwu.com. highest possible distinction and also how to cope with the prospect of aging.” received the designation of First Degree The Illinois Theatre Association presented Marshall, an honor that allowed him to Pushcart Prize-nominated and best- the 2014 Anne Thurman Mentorship Award join the college dean during the proces- selling author Elynne Chaplik-Aleskow’s to Timothy Ortmann (N’81), Director of sion of students during commencement. (W’63) short memoirs have been Fine Arts at Niles North High School. The He is Assistant Director of Operations published in a collection titled My Gift award was named after Anne Thurman, an for Lakhani Hospitality, the family of Now. It is available in paperback and internationally-known drama educator and business that owns several properties through online distributors such as legendary figure in the field of children’s throughout the Chicagoland area includ- Amazon and Barnes & Noble and ordered theatre. Each year, the ITA recognizes ing Skokie’s Holiday Inn Chicago North through bookstores. Rick Kogan of Chi- individuals and organizations for their Shore. The family recently broke ground cago Tribune/WGN Radio calls Elynne “A significant contributions promoting quality on a new hotel to be located in Niles. writer of immense and distinctive talent. theatre in the state of Illinois. Read her and you will never forget her.” Jewell Loyd (W’12) was the number one She is Founding General Manager Adam Hecktman (W’84) is Microsoft’s pick in the WNBA Draft this spring. She of WYCC-TV/PBS and Distinguished Director of Technology & Civic Engagement. left Notre Dame in her junior year to Professor Emeritus of Wright College in He works with political and civic leaders pursue a professional basketball career Chicago. Her adult storyteller program to help use technology to solve Chicago’s and will play for the Seattle Storm. The In Her Own Voice is renowned and her toughest challenges, as well as to engage Storm comes to Chicago on September performances and discussions of her its citizens in the democratic process. He 6. She was named ESPN’s women’s col- stories have been broadcast on local and has been with Microsoft for 23 years. lege basketball player of the year as her national media. team advanced to the NCAA champion- Tahera Ahmad (W’02)’s experience of ship game for the second year in a row. The National American Indian Housing discrimination went viral after a flight- at Loyd was Notre Dame’s fifth-highest Council (NAIHC) named Joanne Foster tendant racially profiled her and refused to scorer, with 1,909 points during her col- (W’65) its 2013 Lawyer of the year. serve her a drink properly. Further, another lege career. NAIHC members represent 463 tribes passenger bullied, harassed, and humiliated and tribal housing organizations through her. Tahera Ahmad is a faculty member at the United States. Northwestern University where she serves as as Associate Chaplain and Director of Send your story ideas or submissions Alan H. Wu (W’71) has published two Interfaith Engagement. She has worked for Seen and Heard to Karyn Malench, books, Toxicology: Because What You with Hillary Clinton, John Kerry and the U.S. [email protected]. Don’t Know Can Kill You and The Hidden Department of Justice on counter-terrorism Assassin, Clinical Laboratory Tests Gone initiatives and traveled internationally on Awry. Dr. Wu is the Chief of Clini- behalf of the U.S. government on global 7 District 219 Education Foundation | www.219foundation.org Summer 2015 7 District 219 Education Foundation for Excellence c/o 7700 Gross Point Road Non-Profit Skokie, IL 60077 Organization US Postage www.219foundation.org PAID Permit No. 353 Skokie, Illinois

Front Row: Harold Conner (for Bart Conner), Robert Porter, Jim Hart, Bill Schnurr, Gene Earl and John Burkel. Back Row: Dale Senensky, Kent McGuire, Barry Mueller, Mike Erickson, Scott Zolke and Paul Klipowicz

Niles West Unveils Athletic Hall of Fame The Niles West Hall of Fame committee recently announced the Niles West Athletic Hall of Fame (2015 class): On September 12, Niles West celebrated its first inductees to the Niles West Athletic Hall of Fame, located in the Ath- Rashard Mendenhall - Class of 2005 (football/track); Bill Porter- letic Corridor at Niles West. The first class included several Class of 1978 (wrestling); Darrell Kerbel - Class of 1977 (gymnas- Niles West coaches who were instrumental in establishing tics); Ray Borucki- Class of 1975 (baseball); Barbara Pabst- Class the school’s proud history of athletic excellence, some of of 1980 (softball); Judi Sloan, Head Coach Varsity Girls Gymnas- the school’s most accomplished athletes, and members of tics, Cross Country, Tennis (1966-1999); Ron Campbell, Head one of its best-performing teams. Coach Boys Track & Cross Country (1964-1997); Bill Richardson, Head Coach Varsity Football (1970-1999); Mike Basrak, Head The 2014 Athletic Hall of Fame inductees: Coach Varsity Football (1954 - 1973) and The 1975 State The 1972 Niles West State Champion Baseball Team; Champion Baseball Team. Coach John Burkel (gymnastics); Bart Conner (gymnastics); Coach Gene Earl (girls basketball); Jim Hart (foot- The inductees will be honored during Niles West’s Homecoming ball); Coach Leanne Hillier (softball); Coach Jim Phipps Week as well as during half-time at the October 10 Homecom- (baseball);8 District Coach 219 Robert Education Porter Foundation (wrestling); | www.219foundation.org and Coach Bill ing game. Watch your email for more details. Schnurr (basketball).