610 E Benham St, Tolono, IL 61880

We have lived in and actively contributed to numerous communities and school districts, both professionally and through volunteer work. After nearly a decade in this small town, it has proven to be the most unwelcoming place we have ever experienced. Unlike other communities, this town has offered no opportunities for meaningful engagement or volunteer involvement.The school district is even more exclusionary. We have been deliberately kept out of essential communication channels, denied participation in the school board and PTO, and have found no opportunities to volunteer within our children’s schools. Despite their friendliness, our children have never been able to form friendships here, nor have they received the level of support from teachers that they once had. In their previous school, they were thriving—on track for scholarships and enrolled in a gifted program that fostered their growth through a multisensory and interactive learning environment. No comparable opportunities exist here to support their academic advancement.Beyond its insular nature, the district’s primary focus is teaching to the test rather than ensuring true academic growth. We learned far too late that our children were not being taught to read or comprehend material but were instead instructed on how to guess well enough to perform on standardized tests. The same was true for math—despite strong test scores, their actual understanding was alarmingly shallow. This failure of the education system had lasting consequences. Our children missed out on crucial learning experiences, extracurricular activities, and time with family and friends who lived outside the district. When it came time for college, they struggled immensely, requiring extensive remediation that left them overwhelmed and unable to keep up. Our youngest is now facing even greater difficulties, compounded by intense bullying that the school has failed to address.The town itself operates in an exclusionary manner, favoring long-established families while keeping outsiders at arm’s length. School staff actively block non-local families from meaningful participation, ensuring that only longtime residents are considered for employment and volunteer roles. The lack of awareness—or worse, the intentional disregard—for those outside these social circles creates unnecessary obstacles, particularly within the schools. The impact on our children has been profound and distressing.