The Kirby School District 140 Board of Education recognized Keller Elementary fifth-grader Juliana N. for receiving the 2026 Outstanding Student Technology Award from the Infinitec Southwest Assistive Technology Coalition during its meeting on April 16.
The award highlights students who make significant progress and show skill in using assistive technology to enhance their learning and independence. Juliana was honored at a ceremony held at Chicago Gaelic Park in March. The district said her “growth, perseverance, and ability to use technology as a tool for success truly exemplify this award.” The board congratulated Juliana, her family, and the staff who support her daily on this achievement.
Kirby School District 140 serves Cook County and includes Christa McAuliffe School, Fernway Park Elementary School, Helen Keller Elementary School, John A. Bannes Elementary School, Millennium Elementary School, Prairie View Middle School, and Virgil I. Grissom Middle School according to the Illinois Report Card. The district enrolled 3,606 students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade during the 2019-2020 school year in Tinley Park and Cook County according to state data.
Data from the Illinois State Board of Education shows that Kirby District 140 employs a total of 258 teachers with an average salary of $68,179 before pension contributions; about nine out of ten teachers are women. There were no teachers with more than ten absences reported in a school year according to state records.
Demographically, Kirby District 140 is made up of approximately 79.5 percent White students, with Black (3.3 percent), Hispanic (8.2 percent), and Asian (4.4 percent) populations represented as well state data shows. In terms of spending per student in the district during the year 2020 it amounted to $20,628 per student for a total expenditure of $74 million according to financial reports.
Chronic truancy rates remain low within Kirby District 140: there were eighteen chronically truant students recorded in the district for the year—just half a percent compared to a statewide average near ten percent as reported by ISBE.
