Warren Ali, Hinsdale D86 Candidate

HINSDALE, IL – Warren Ali is one of six candidates for four seats on the Hinsdale High School District 86 board.

Ali did not respond to Patch's questionnaire. He gave a position paper instead.

Candidate Position Paper

D86 Hinsdale Township High School Board of Education Election

SUMMARY

I’m Warren Ali and I’ve chosen to run for a seat on the D86 Hinsdale Township High School Board of Education (BOE). I started showing up at BOE committee meetings in July 2024 as an interested parent in answer to an invitation from the board. I have attended in person almost all of the five committees’ meetings (Academic, Facilities, Finance, Human Resources, and Policy) and almost all of the BOE meetings (Regular Action Meeting and Meeting of the Whole), along with Special Meetings and a Parent-Teacher Advisor Committee (P-TAC) meeting. I have tried to support and encourage the current board through constructive comments. I had no intention of running, but was encouraged by community members. So, I decided to run for a board seat for the benefit of the students, for the parents, and for the community. Also, service on the board would coincide with the duration of my children’s time at Hinsdale Central. Though if elected, I hope to serve two terms to help provide some stability to a board that has experienced a lot of turnover the past few years (six Board Presidents in five years and none of the current members have served more than a single term on the D86 BOE, for example).

I may be the first in my family to seek an office such as this, but I believe what makes me a viable candidate for this position are my more than 40 years of experience as a manufacturing leader and my service to multiple communities over many years. As a high quality leader, my leadership capability coupled with a high moral compass, makes me an ideal fit for what’s needed on the board at this time.

POSITION

Platform

My campaign emphasizes three areas:
1. Improve the ranking for Central from 11th in the state to 1st and for South from 32nd to 1st, while keeping our student, faculty, and staff safe
2. Better connect curriculum choices made by students and parents to their desired college/career outcomes
3. Sharpen focus on financial stewardship and critical decision-making

The board’s top responsibilities are to provide the highest quality education in a safe and collaborative classroom environment while being good shepherds of the finances provided by the community

I believe that a needs analysis should be conducted independently for both schools and the Transition Center. This will help identify and prioritize what the district works on. People are our most valuable asset and the district’s greatest strength. I believe we have the necessary talent within the district, and along with parent and community support, we can achieve great things together.

I believe a better understanding of how our curriculum impacts graduates should be obtained by canvasing our most recent graduates, along with those who have graduated up to 25 years ago. By understanding what has worked for our graduates, we’ll be better able to help students and parent make great curriculum choices while in D86 that will facilitate the best college/career outcomes.

These first two steps together will help determine what courses should be offered at which campus through the Program of Studies (PoS).

There are three main objectives that the PoS should deliver:

1. Each student is able to schedule a full-day of classes
2. Each student can meet graduation requirements through the course offerings 3. Each student can find enough courses to advance their college/career objectives

Providing 100% of first choice electives should not be a top priority of the district, unless the elective impacts any of the three objectives listed above.

I believe that the board needs to better understand all problem areas through a deeper penetration of the data to ensure that they are problem-solving at cause, and not only at effect. A thorough evaluation can lead to answers to questions about school boundaries and test score parity.

Board Effectiveness and Collaboration

I am running independently for a position on the board. I’m not run against anyone or with anyone. I expect to work collaboratively with whoever is elected and the three returning Board Members. I believe that the effectiveness of the Board is in need of the most attention. I am trained and experienced in organizational effectiveness and can lead our team through a process to improve collaboration and results.

From what I’ve seen in the Finance Committee meetings and the BOE meetings, the district is in good shape financially. More attention to detail, especially reviewing the data by building, needs to be paid so that gaps can be identified and addressed before things get out of control. There’s lots of data shared at the meetings, but very few questions. For example, a discussion regarding the $670,000 that the district had spent in legal fees in the most recently completed fiscal year there was very little penetration of why the spend was so high and out-of-line with other districts. Through my attendance at meetings, I learned that most districts our size spend around $100,000 or less in legal fees annually. D86 spent over $130,000 in legal fees associated with Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests in one year alone! However, very little was shared about the nature of the FOIA requests or any trends associated with the nearly $700k spend. I agreed with the board’s decision to switch law firms because the relationship with the previous firm had been contentious.

When the Board decided to deploy a Weapons Detection System (WDS) at Hinsdale South in response to a weapon being found there, I expressed my concern that with similar protocol at Central (kids walk around with their backpacks on throughout the day without an entry point check), why was the WDS only being deployed at South, when Central has the same risk. I was told that a new decision was imminent that would address my concern. Shortly thereafter, random WDS was implemented at Central.

By working ‘on’ the system, instead of only working ‘in’ the system, better and sustainable outcomes will follow, along with more forward thinking. I’ve spent lots of hours in committee meetings at the District Administrative Center. I believe that it doesn’t suit the needs of the district very well. Perhaps as part of a 3, 5, or 10-year capital master plan, a more centrally located administrative building could be acquired or built, which could include amenities that might help to attract and retain top talent. As proposed by Dr. Lach, external benchmarking should be used more often to help in the development of future actions for the district.

BACKGROUND

Upbringing

I am a native Texan, who grew up in Ohio. My father served eight years in the Air Force and I was born on what was then Carswell Air Force Base (now Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth). My family was part of the last wave of the Great Migration, which saw six million African American leave the rural South for the West, Midwest, Northeast in order to escape poor economic and social circumstances from the 1910s through 1970. My paternal grandfather immigrated from India to the U.S. in the 1920s. Abdul Hasib Ali married my paternal grandmother, Mary Ann, who was the 23rd of 24 children sired by David King Allen of Huntington, West Virginia. Neither of my grandmothers finished high school and both worked as housekeepers, while my grandfather worked as a janitor. Both my parents were factory workers.

Education

A 1983 graduate of the University of Cincinnati’s College of Engineering with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering, I was the 11th African American to achieve this distinction since the founding of the College of Engineering in 1900. I was the first member of my immediate family to attend college. I borrowed money for my freshman year and along with a small scholarship, I was able to complete my first year before beginning co-op in my sophomore year. This allowed me to work a term and gain the experience of applying the theory I was learning in college while earning enough for tuition, room and board for the next term.

Professional Career

I spent more than 40 years as a manufacturing leader (including my time as a Co-Op), with six Fortune 500 companies (Dow, Corning, Procter & Gamble, Kroger, Campbell Soup, and ITW), as well as time with privately-held firms. I have worked with companies and in plants producing consumer goods, food, and packaging in locations from coast-to-coast across the United States.
I was a Director/Vice President of Manufacturing with responsibility for multi-plant operations with locations in the U.S., Canada, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and Spain; and supported operations in Thailand, China, Japan, Germany, Switzerland, Holland, and Argentina.

Currently, I serve as Chief Operating Officer (COO) for a leadership consulting firm, High Quality Leadership (HQL), based in San Antonio, Texas.

School Service

My wife and I belong to the Hinsdale Booster Club and the Wrestling Booster Club. I volunteered for several concessions shifts at Wrestling Events. In the fall, I volunteered for a total of 10 hours at the Hinsdale Central Spirit Wear tables, helping with set-up and learning to work the card reader for taking money. I continue to volunteer at Westview Hills Middle School: cleaning up after dances and, popping and passing out popcorn for milestone celebrations. Lastly, my wife and I spent many happy volunteer hours, sprucing up the yard or working in the classroom at our kids’ Montessori School.

Community Service

I am currently a Board Member for the Rotary Club of Hinsdale and its Vice President-elect. I served as volunteer coordinator for the 2024 Rotary Charity Classic Run. I’ve been a Rotarian for over 22 years and have been a member of and have held multiple leadership roles, including President-elect, in six different clubs after being inducted into Rotary in Clackamas, Oregon (SE suburb of Portland).

I served on the North Clackamas County (OR) Chamber of Commerce as a member of the Board of Directors and as Vice Chairperson. I am a Life Member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. I have held multiple leadership roles in college and alumni chapters, including president of both type of chapters.

I have mentored and tutored children through multiple organizations, including the Boys and Girls Clubs of America and Junior Achievement. I volunteered as a Front Desk Clerk at a homeless center and tutored adults seeking their GED.

In 2023, I was asked to serve on the District Leadership Team for Maercker D60 BOE. The team was comprised of 30 parents, who provided input on the district’s long range plan (3-year). I was recently ordained and installed as a Ruling Elder at Community Presbyterian Church in Clarendon Hills.

Personal
My wife, two sons, and I moved to Lemont in 2012 and spent 10 years there before moving into the district two and a half years ago. Both boys attended Montessori School from Pre-K through 6th Grade, finishing at Seton Montessori School in Clarendon Hills. My oldest finished 8th Grade at Westview Hills Middle School in Willowbrook and is now a freshman at Hinsdale Central. My youngest is an 8th Grader at WHMS and just completed registration at Central for 9th Grade beginning in August.

When not working, I enjoy spending time with my family, listening to and playing (violin) music, collecting art, playing golf, riding my bike or motorcycle, attending sporting events, traveling, and giving back to my community. I’m a former skydiver with 17 credited solo jumps, with 11 free fall jumps from as high as 8,500 feet.

My family and I currently reside in Hinsdale in the Golfview Hills sub-division.