Hungry kids cannot learn. That is why I am so proud and impressed that Students Feeding Students (SFS) have taken on this issue by providing snack cabinets at OPRF High School. They have handled the logistics and eliminated the need to fill out forms and prove that you are in need. Any hungry child can take food. The success of the snack cabinets shows that the need is likely bigger than the estimated 1,000 OPRF students experiencing food insecurity.
These kids have also done a lot of work to provide data and have asked the grown-ups in their community to help fund this essential service. They are asking for $157K to be included each year in the budget to fund the snack cabinets. When you consider the vast resources of the Oak Park and River Forest communities in taxes alone, this amount is beyond reasonable.
An $84.6 million budget was recently approved for a performing arts and student activities modernization project and, based on the initial costs of Project 2, that number is likely to go up. I am grateful for these projects because my two teens are OPRF students and benefit from these updates. I have also taught in Oak Park for 16 years, and I am happy to know my former students will have access to these facilities and opportunities.
However, my experiences as a mom and particularly as a teacher reinforce what the children who saw a need and worked so hard to fill it already know: hungry kids cannot learn, even in the newest and best of buildings.
One of my former students is part of SFS and I am so proud of him and the other students. These kids are asking the adults in their community for our support. Please join me in showing up for them and all our kids by asking the OPRF administration to support and submit the SFS proposal to the D200 Board of Education and recommend full funding.
Caroline Nikolakakis
Oak Park