North Cook News

With Election Day here, candidate Mai Lin Noffke is surprised to see her Glenbrook School District 225 rivals are pulling out all the stops in hopes of walking away on top.

“It seems they (the Glenbrook Education Association) have gotten a student group involved, (they) created a student group that had access to communications via the union and are trying to imply we are anti-union and refused to meet with them, which is not the case,” she told the North Cook News. “We wanted to have a two-way conversation and they didn’t want to have a two-way conversation.”

Glenbrook South and Glenbrook North students had organized a rally against GCAN. The rally organizers alleged GCAN has sent over 30 emails berating teachers and school boards in Glenview and Northbrook for discussing Black Lives Matter and the U.S. Capitol riots, “or for simply promoting inclusion in our schools, as they consider it ‘leftist indoctrination.'"

The rally was to show support for the District 225 slate of Bruce Doughty, Michelle Seguin, Matt O’Hara and Peter Glowacki.

Noffke concedes it can all take a toll.

“It’s demoralizing; it’s exhausting,” Noffke said. “Why can’t candidates just focus on the issues? What I find interesting about the whole thing is (the teachers' union) only endorsed candidates that met with them. There was an incumbent that didn’t meet with them because there was a conflict and they’re not smearing her. But I think they know they still have to work with her.”

Noffke said she’s not surprised to see the connection between the union and the actions taken by the student group.

“You get the feeling Matt Whipple prompted them to do this,” Noffke said of the president of the Glenbrook Education Association.