Berwyn News: Residents and city officials of Berwyn work together to keep rein on blight

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Katherine Henrici has lived in the same three-story yellow bungalow in Berwyn since 1948 and thought she had seen it all.

That was, until the rats came.

“They were everywhere,” Henrici said. “They lived in flowerbeds, garages, sheds, weeds, grass, wood and garbage cans. It was disgusting and something I had never dealt with here.”

Henrici suspected the rats that were overrunning her block were attracted by the garbage from a nearby McDonald’s restaurant, at the corner of Kenilworth and Ogden Ave. After failing to get action from McDonald’s about its garbage, Henrici turned to Mary DelMedico, Berwyn’s blight administrator. DelMedico put pressure on McDonald’s and solved the problem.

“Mary not only took care of McDonalds, but she called pest control who took care of the infestation. She listened to our needs and acted,” Henrici said. And the rats went away.

Blight can be anything from improperly disposed garbage, to dilapidated buildings. And in Berwyn officials and residents feel that they are getting control of the situation after a few years marked by problems. But neither DelMedico nor other officials could provide statistics on reports of blight.

“I don’t know who was in charge of blight years ago, but they pissed off a lot of people in the community,” DelMedico said. “From my understanding they were not in tune with the needs of the residents. When you make it about the people, everything goes a lot smoother.”

DelMedico has worked in the blight department for six years. “In the last two years, since (Buildings Director) Lazzara has been here, there have been a lot less calls for blight and a lot less reports,” she said. “I think the decrease in those calls have been because of the tight hold we have on the city.”

Some residents hope the blight department has in fact changed. One resident had a completely different experience than Henrici.

“I had a serious problem with the blight department a few years ago,” Berwyn resident Frank M said. “We were living in our building near Cermak and Oak Park, and the large courtyard building behind us was having a problem with their garbage and rats. I called the blight department and nothing happened. I called and called and called. I finally called the Berwyn Police who drove over to the offending building, checked it out and issued the owner a $500 ticket. The Problem was solved instantly.”


Berwyn Resident Frank M took pictures of dead rats as evidence to the blight department and got no response.
DelMedico said a reason for some mishaps is because the blight department is understaffed. There are only two blight officers on patrol, Ron Stricklin and Gino Blotto, and one illegal apartment inspector Rick Hinojoso. They break into zones, Roosevelt to 22nd St., 22nd St, to 39th St. and Lombard to Harlem.

The officers go out daily and inspect for public nuisance complaints, such as garbage, weeds, high grass, peeling paint, house and garage disrepair, debris, etc. These public nuisance complaints are followed up with form letters, final notices, violation citations and possible court action. The Department of Neighborhood Affairs also conducts team inspections of dangerous and unsanitary buildings with the Fire Department and Health Department.

“While garbage and exterior problems to a property are a big part of blight, it’s not the only thing we deal with,” DelMedico said. “One time we came across a hoarder who had old coffee cups covering every inch of his kitchen. We walk into a lot of different situations”

DelMedico goes to court every Thursday to handle blight cases. The inspectors present all evidence to the judicator, including photos and all previous notices. The fine depends on the history of the situation, but a court cost is always $50. The ticket price is situational with the highest fine being $2000, although it usually never exceeds $750.

“Most people aren’t in the best financial situation, they are elders or simply going through a rough time, so we try to be as understanding as possible,” DelMedico said.

Anthony Perri, Licensing Officer and Inspector for Berwyn, was a blight officer before landing his current position and said since the economic downturn, blight has actually been under control and foreclosures are more problematic.

“The north end of town has more problems than the south, but overall crime, drugs, foreclosures and illegal apartment renting are much more prominent than blight now a days,” Perri said. “Blight is obviously still a issue, but not anymore so than usual. The blight department has a good handle on it.”

In the case of the rat infestation DelMedico immediately went to McDonald’s, which Henrici said would leave garbage bags next to overflowing dumpsters in their garbage corral area.

DelMedico started fining the restaurant until the problem was fixed. She gave deadlines to find a better way to deal with their garbage situation. Several tickets later McDonald’s finally listened, and now has mandatory rattraps, a closed garbage corral and a strict policy against leaving garbage next the dumpster. Henrici was happy.

“I don’t know who was in charge of the blight department years ago, but they seem to have it figured out now,” she said.

Berwyn News:PCP is back on the Berwyn drug scene under a new alias

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Before it was “sherm,” “fly” or “wet.” And now it’s “wicki.”

But it’s all the same, toxic bad-guy phencyclidine – aka PCP – that residents are referring to, says the Berwyn Police Department.

Phencyclidine has reappeared on the drug scene in Berwyn and other west and northwest Chicago suburbs over the past few years as a cheap alternative to cocaine and marijuana and a drug that can easily be laced with heroin.

And the effects can be shocking. One Berwyn woman, a regular PCP user, had to be carried out of her house by eight police officer after smoking PCP, said Sgt. Sal Gamino.

“The drug is dangerous alone, but many people combine PCP with alcohol, heroine, marijuana, cocaine and other drugs that are lethal combinations,” Sgt. Gamino said.

PCP became nearly extinct in the 1990s after horror stories in the media about the side effects. One in particular was of a father cutting off his son’s head.

Michael Oschner, head of the Tactical Unit at the Berwyn Police Department has witnessed such outlandish behaviors himself over the years.

“People lose all sense of reality, hallucinate, have a severe personality change and can engage in pretty dangerous behavior,” he said. “In Berwyn many are chronic users and interact PCP with other depressants such as alcohol, which can be deadly.”

Oschner said PCP effects sometimes last for up to six weeks.

“People who use PCP for long periods of time tend to lose their motor skills and short-term memory,” he said.

To heighten the bad news, Oschner said PCP smells like urine mixed with turpentine.

The Illinois Department of Human Services says PCP first made its appearance in the 1950s as an anesthetic for medical procedures. Patients experienced such severe confusion and delirium that it was no longer used in the medical world, but people began selling it on the black market.

Today PCP has returned to Berwyn because of what Oschner says is the influence of the drug-dealing street gangs. He specifically pointed to the influence of the Ambrose Street Gang, which is based on 63rd Street in Chicago.

“It grows in influence,” Oschner said. “This specific gang comes and goes (in Chicago) in generations. That’s not to say PCP ever disappeared completely, but we deal with PCP cases about once a month. We are one of the unfortunate suburbs of Chicago that deal with PCP, even though it’s minimal. Other areas never see it.”

The urban legend still exists, but PCP is not embalming fluid

Although PCP is nothing new to our society, the urban legend that PCP is embalming fluid is.

“PCP can come in liquid form, so the term ‘fluid’ is fitting,” Oschner said. “Formaldehyde does not contain PCP; they are two completely different chemicals. Smoking formaldehyde even once could be deadly.”

Embalming fluid is composed of Formaldehyde, Methanol, Ethanol and solvents, so what worries authorities at the Berwyn Police Department is that drug dealers and users are ill informed and might actually be using embalming fluid as a drug.

“There are a lot of underground things happening in the drug market,” Oschner said. “Drug dealers sell PCP for about $20, but buyers should never trust a drug dealer. Who knows what concoction they made.”

Resident Katherine Henrici and her neighbor Loui said a few years ago people used to sell “wicki” a few blocks from MacNeal hospital, something Oschner couldn’t confirm, but said could have been possible. Both residents are under the impression that ‘wicki’ is in fact embalming fluid.

“My friend is a funeral director and told me formaldehyde is what users smoke, and I think that’s just the understanding with people,” Henrici said. “The term ‘wicki’ is associated with embalming fluid.”

National statistics show that PCP is a problem

A nationwide study by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration confirmed that in 2008, 99,000 Americans age 12 and older had abused PCP at least once in the year prior to being surveyed, a difference of 10,000 from the same survey taken in 2007.

For drug abuse facilities around Chicago, these statistics ring true. Anita Pindiur at Way Back Inn in Broadview works as a drug counselor to rehabilitate users. “We do see PCP more than we used to, however our clients’ abuse is dependent on alcohol, cocaine and heroin,” Pindiur said. “The PCP is almost never used alone, but in tandem with one of these other drugs.”

Of course, PCP is not the only drug police encounter it Berwyn. Since the beginning of 2010 the Berwyn police, other than patrol officers, seized 13,690 grams of marijuana, 7,540 grams of cocaine, 627 grams of heroin and 1,290 prescription pills.

The Berwyn Police Department has no current statistics of PCP seized.

“The problem with liquid PCP is that you can’t measure it at the police station,” Sgt. Oschner said. “What gets recovered is sent to the State Police Crime Lab for weight and analysis. Once we get a result, the lab reports are used in court as a supplement, but the findings are not made part of the original police report.”

Berwyn News: Project-Based Elementary School Steers Away From Standardized Testing

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Project-Based Elementary School Steers Away From Standardized Testing

The Children’s School in Berwyn was quiet this day except for children’s faint voices echoing throughout the hallways. In one classroom students sat quietly on couches reading books, while others strategically built a tower of blocks. Down the hall, first-graders stood around the piano in music class tapping out rhythms and moving their bodies to represent different beats. Several classrooms were empty of students. Many were at the Morton Arboretum doing hands-on activities with nature. But even these empty classrooms were teeming with life: wooden lofts, tree houses, couches, and a bathtub used as a reading area, to name a few.

Almost everywhere else, elementary education has gotten “serious” over the past 20 years, due to forces ranging from rising parental expectations to the No Child Left Behind Act. But the Children’s School takes a progressive route and steers away from standardized testing and data collecting and focuses on project-based learning.

These growing expectations on children are controversial, and Pamela Freese, director of administration at The Children’s School, understands that.

“I know it’s an ongoing issue, but forcing tests and stressing students with exceeding amounts of pressure does not work,” Freese said. “By forcing such pressures, the love of learning goes away. Children are still taught in an environment that supports the achievement of all local and state curriculum goals, but in a relaxed manner that focuses on each child.”

The cap for each classroom is 15 students, and that will never increase. There are no letter or number grades. Teachers don’t assign textbooks but can use them to enhance learning if they fit in a lesson.

“We believe in qualitative learning,” Freese said. “Each teacher does write a four- to five-page evaluation about each student and then has an hour-long conference with each parent several times a year. The whole idea of introducing a skill and mastering it is not what we are about.”

The Children's School was established in the fall of 2004 in Oak Park with 13 children. The school follows the principles of John Dewey, who established the University of Chicago Laboratory School in 1896. Dewey focused on learning through doing.
In 2006 the school rented out space from St. Mary of Celle, 1428 Wesley Avenue, in Berwyn to allow space for more students. Today, the school is almost to its capacity at 74 students.

A typical daily schedule does not stray far from a public school, but leaves more room for spontaneity. The faculty enforces discipline the same way public schools do.

Second grade teacher Cynthia Robenson left teaching years ago to stay home and take care of her kids. Once hearing about The Children’s School and its uniqueness, Robenson applied and has been teaching second grade there for three years.

“A big misconception about progressive learning is that there is no structure and kids are out of control,” Robenson said. “That is not at all the case. Students here are able to learn what they want to learn, but under guidance from the faculty. We as teachers are able to guide their learning and foster the social and emotional aspects at the same time.”

Educational progressivism is the belief that education must be based on the fact that humans are social animals who learn best in real-life activities with other people. Progressive educators, such as the ones at The Children’s School, believe that children learn as if they are little scientists.

Each classroom contains a unique element that students have created. The first grade room has a wooden loft, which is a prominent part of the classroom. Students got to work with professional contractors and architects to learn how the process of designing and building works.

“Each student drew a design and presented it to the class,” Freese said. “Then 14 first-graders collaborated amongst themselves and picked one design they liked the best. This allowed the kids to brainstorm, compromise, and come up with a decision together. Through that process they learned real-life skills and used sophisticated learning that adults have to deal with every day.”

Second and third grades are meshed together into one classroom for social and academic reasons. “It’s a small community, so combining the two grades mixes up the kids, so they have an opportunity to get to know more peers,” Freese said. “ Some students are advanced socially, but not academically in these two grades and vice versa. We like to allow the kids who are accelerated to feel they are being challenged, but we also want the kids who need more help to not feel discouraged.”

One section of second/third grade completed a unit at the end of last year on Egyptians. Instead of reading textbooks, writing research papers, or watching history movies, the students turned their classroom into a replica of ancient Egypt, complete with secret passageways. The coatroom was emptied out and made it into King Cluck's tomb were students painted hieroglyphics on the wall to tell the story of King Cluck's life. Students mummified the chicken and reenacted all the various funerary rites. At the end of the unit each student dressed as Ancient Egyptians as each child took on a certain role in the proceedings.

“This kind of experiential learning is very powerful and memorable for children,” said the teacher, Christy Martin. “Remember, these are seven and eight year olds, and research skills are new to them and hard work. But they collected a huge amount of information and had a great time doing it.”

Parents are often the first to put undue pressure on their child to succeed, but parents at The Children School say that behavior is harmful to their child.

“Our goal was to find a school that focused on our children rather than on bubble tests and worksheets,” parent Leslie Levi said. “I have nothing against public schools, but for us it just depended more on the style of learning and the smaller community. Here, our children don’t slip through the cracks.”

Freese’s son Jared attended The Children’s School but moved to a public middle school in Oak Park. After he took his first standardized test, he came home and asked his mother if they could go to the library because one of the questions mentioned a book, Where The Red Fern Grows, and he wanted to read it.

“Jared was able to take what he learned and engage in his learning,” Freese said. “He didn’t care that this standardized test was ranking him with thousands of other kids in the state and therefore, the pressure was gone.”

The Children School is selective, however, and does come at a high price. Parents must apply and have an interview with the director of curriculum. Tuition is about $7,200 a year, but parents say it’s worth it.

Every parent here is willing to pay the price to give their child the best learning experience for their child,” Robenson said. “You simply can’t put a price on good education.”



COMMENTS:
Karl
October 3, 2010 at 4:39 pm
I like the way this school is focused on what students want to learn. It is therefore always student based and student oriented. It’s important for students to want to come to school and there is no better way to do this then by allowing them a role in the curriculum planning.


Chanda
October 4, 2010 at 1:12 pm
This is my dream school! I am still trying to find a way to be able to afford to send my children here.

Kathryn
November 11, 2010 at 10:00 pm
The school offers partial financial aid if that helps at all.

Kbee
November 5, 2010 at 8:29 am
My son goes to school here and I can say, without a doubt, that we could not have chosen a better environment. Every day he comes home full of stories about their adventures and every day (as is the intention of the teachers) he comes home chock-full of new vocabulary, math, social and emotional skills that he demonstrates and shows off to his parents.

Matt Baron
insideedgepr.com
matt@insideedgepr.com
76.204.160.117
Submitted on 2010/11/11 at 10:38 am
Well done piece by Angela Romano in today’s print edition of Triblocal—on The Children’s School. Thorough reporting—a rarity these days in journalism.