Chris Sweda/Chicago Tribune/TNS
Center Cass School District 66 Superintendent Andrew Wise, right,
offers up water to runners during a 5K race for fifth through eighth
graders on Sept. 23, 2022.
Nestled in a leafy and prosperous swath of suburban
DuPage County, Center Cass School District 66 in
Downers Grove at first glance appears to exemplify
the best of public education.
The district boasts three tidy and modern school
buildings, enthusiastic teachers a reputation for
academic rigor and plenty of personal attention for its
1,100 students in kindergarten through eighth grade.
But the district's dire financial woes have resulted this
fall in steep budget cuts, including reducing the
number of teachers and building custodians,
eliminating all extracurricular programs and athletics,
cutting bus routes and shortening the school day.
"We are performing education triage," said teacher
Jake Little, who has taught social studies at District 66
for 18 years. "The needs of the students are so much
greater than they were years ago. ... We have some
students reading five grades below, and we don't have
the resources for the interventions and attention they
need."