Villa Park families who need copies of special education files, attendance records or other temporary documents from Willowbrook High School may be running out of time. DuPage High School District 88 announced on its website it would begin destroying those records on Saturday, Aug. 1, for any student who graduated or permanently withdrew on or before July 1, 2020.
The Aug. 1 destruction date has passed. The district has not publicly confirmed whether shredding is complete or whether late requests will be honored. Families who missed the deadline should contact the school immediately.
What's being destroyed
Under Illinois law (105 ILCS 10/4(f)), schools must keep temporary student records for at least five years after a student transfers, graduates or withdraws. After that window closes, districts may shred them.
Temporary records include:
- Special education files (IEPs, evaluations, multi-disciplinary staffing reports)
- Attendance records
- Psychological and personality test results
- Aptitude and intelligence test scores
- Teacher evaluations
- Disciplinary records
Permanent records, including transcripts, grades and graduation dates, are not affected. Illinois law requires those be kept for 60 years.
Who can request records
Only the former student or a legal guardian may request copies. Third-party requests are not accepted.
How to reach the district
District 88 posted the legal notice on July 6 directing families to contact their school's Assistant Principal for Student Services. For Willowbrook special education records specifically, families can contact Learning Services administrative assistant Marianne Greco at 630-530-3431 or [email protected]. Assistant Superintendent for Student Programs and Services Erica Craig is also available at 630-458-4542 or [email protected].
Willowbrook's main office can be reached at 630-530-3400. The school is at 1250 S. Ardmore Ave., Villa Park.
The notice also applies to Addison Trail High School in Addison.
Why it matters now
A former Willowbrook student applying for disability accommodations at a college or employer, for example, might need documentation from an IEP or psychological evaluation that exists only in these temporary files. Once destroyed, the records cannot be recovered.
The district published the notice in both English and Spanish. Director of Community Relations Dani Brink can be reached at [email protected] for questions about the status of the destruction process.
