Kane County Reporter

Central Community Unit School District 301, which serves parts of Kane and DeKalb counties in Illinois, highlighted on social media the international volunteer work of two of its nurses and the upcoming school year.

On August 12, 2025, the district posted about two staff members who traveled abroad to offer healthcare services. In a tweet, the district wrote: "This summer, Nurse Melissa Baumgartner (CHS) and Nurse Joyce Turnipseed (HBT) took their care and compassion to Rio Dulce, Guatemala — providing medical, dental, and optical care to 800+ underserved residents. #WeAreCentral https://t.co/y3KuYTcmqy". A similar message was shared moments later in another post: "This summer, Nurse Melissa Baumgartner (CHS) and Nurse Joyce Turnipseed (HBT) took their care and compassion to Rio Dulce, Guatemala — providing medical, dental, and optical care to 800+ underserved residents. #WeAreCentral https://t.co/agE6d7t7Eh".

The following day on August 13, the district posted a reminder about the return to school: "One more week. #WeAreCentral https://t.co/aEofwqqvPR".

Central Community Unit School District 301 includes several schools such as Central High School and Howard B. Thomas Grade School. The district is composed of approximately 280 teachers with an average salary of $58,199 before pension contributions; women make up nearly four-fifths of the teaching staff. According to state education data for 2020-2021, students in the district are predominantly White at just over sixty-five percent; Hispanic students comprise sixteen percent while Asian students account for twelve percent. Annual spending per student reached $19,244 in recent years.

Sources:

- Demographics & school listings: Illinois Report Card

- Teacher statistics: Illinois Report Card

- Expenditure figures: Illinois Report Card