NT_020719

10 | February 7, 2019 | The Northbrook tower news
northbrooktower.com
Glenbrook D225 Board of Education
Officials trying to align GBS, GBN bus services
Maxx
Dianne Stransky, of Northbrook
Maxx is an 8-year-old Jack
Russel Terrier. He is the
same breed you often see
in TV commercials and
shows.
Maxx is highly energetic,
very feisty and full of spirit! But, he is also super affectionate,
cuddly and loving! Maxx’s favorite things
are long walks, barking at other dogs (you may have
heard him on our morning walks), chasing squirrels,
having his belly rubbed, eating liver sausage and
giving lots of kisses.
Please Help! The Northbrook Tower needs Pet of the Week
submissions. To see your pet featured in The Northbrook
Tower, send photos and stories to Martin at martin@northbrooktower.com
or at 60 Revere Drive, Suite 888, Northbrook.
Plan could push
back start time at
GBN 20 minutes
Neil Milbert
Freelance Reporter
Students at Glenbrook
North will get an extra 20
minutes of sleep every
school day if a plan to coordinate
their First Student
bus routes with those of
Glenbrook South comes to
fruition.
At its Monday, Jan. 28
meeting, the Glenbrook
District 225 Board of Education
received an update
on the plan from Dr. R.J.
Gravel, assistant superintendent
for business services.
Currently, the school
day at GBN begins at 7:40
a.m. and ends at 2:55 p.m.,
while GBS students’ day
starts at 8 a.m. and ends at
3:15 p.m.
“We’ve worked very
hard with First Student
on the high schools being
more independent from the
feeder districts,” Dr. Gravel
told the board. “Next year,
the high schools will have
buses independent of those
serving the elementary
feeder districts.”
District 225 has one year
remaining on its contract
with First Student and an
option to renew the contract
with the bus company
for two additional years at
the same price structure,
which is a 3 percent annual
increase.
According to Dr. Gravel,
exorbitant costs — estimated
to be up to $1 million
— had previously been
the barrier to coordinating
bus schedules in a way that
would enable the school
days at each of the high
schools to be aligned.
But he said the plan he
and officials from First
Student worked out entails
“increasing the budget a
small amount, $35,000 for
the high schools.”
“We want to align the
schedules and have a
timely pick up, a timely
drop-off and a safe transportation
experience for
the students, and we think
we’ve achieved that goal,”
Gravel said.
Superintendent Dr. Mike
Riggle said realignment
would entail three steps:
1. Increasing the budget
slightly
2. Establishing the same
start and end times for both
schools
3. Considering changing
the schools’ start and end
times in the future
Riggle said the main
takeaway is “it will help
kids get more sleep.”
Heartwarming Glenbrook
story
The board watched a
short film that told the
heartwarming tale of Terry
Harris, a 43-year-old special
education teacher and
baseball and football coach
at GBS, whose complete
loss of hearing in both ears
was restored through cochlear
implants at North-
Shore Hospital.
The implant stimulates
the cochlear nerve, which
controls hearing. One part
of the small electronic device
is placed behind the
ear; the second part is implanted
in the inner ear,
connecting the auditory
nerve that sends sound impulses
to the brain.
As a child in Michigan,
Harris was totally deaf in
his left ear and had only
partial hearing in his right
ear. A hearing aid enabled
him to lead a relatively normal
life.
He starred in football
and baseball at Watervliet
High School and then
at Elmhurst College before
achieving his goal of
becoming a high school
teacher and coach.
On Oct. 25, 2014, Harris
lost all hearing in his right
ear, leaving him totally deaf.
Harris went to North-
Shore Hospital, just hoping
to have hearing restored in
his right ear.
Dr. Michael Shimers,
a NorthShore otolaryngologist
who specializes in
hearing loss and the person
who introduced cochlear
implants there a decade
ago, recommended Harris
undergo the implant procedure
in both ears.
Harris continued teaching
for about a month, then
took a leave of absence to
await the installation of the
cochlear implants in January
2015. His left ear was
the first to undergo the procedure,
with the cochlear
implant activated two
weeks later.
The film showed Harris
breaking into tears when
the implant was activated
and he experienced hearing
in his left ear for the first
time in his life. Then, another
implant brought back
hearing in his right ear and
he now hears in a normal
range in both ears.
In the spring of of 2015,
Harris returned to teaching
and coaching at GBS.
“It’s a journey that continues,”
Dr. Riggle told
Harris, who came to the
meeting with his wife,
Karin, and their son, Brady,
the youngest of their two
children.
“Your story is a testimony
to your perseverance.
You’re a tremendous role
model.”
police reports
Female duo steals pairs of shoes from NB retailer
Lashaun Watson, 23,
of Chicago, and Meosha
Johnson, 22, of Chicago,
were charged with retail
theft at 4:55 p.m. Jan. 26
at the Saks off Fifth store
located in the 100 block
of Skokie Boulevard.
A worker reported that
the female subjects left
the store after failing to
pay for shores.
Both subjects were processed
and released after
posting bond, per police.
In other police news:
Jan. 27
• A complainant in the
1000 block of Western
reported at 6:25 p.m. that
unknown subject(s) used
their information to open
a cellular account without
their permission.
Please see police, 11