The Mooseheart Red Ramblers are scheduled to play in a high school boys basketball regional final at 7 p.m. Friday in Somonauk, but their exact roster will be determined by a judge a few hours earlier.
After hearing about an hour of arguments in his courtroom Thursday, Kane County Judge David Akemann said he would decide Friday whether Mooseheart junior Rodrigue Ceda Makindu can play basketball for the Batavia residential school.
The Illinois High School Association authorized a bylaw in January 2013 that made Makindu, an 18-year-old native of Congo, ineligible to participate in sports.
After Aurora lawyer Judd Lofchie read a local newspaper story in January about Makindu’s plight, the attorney filed a court complaint to allow Makindu to play for the Red Ramblers.
Makindu has been practicing with Mooseheart and would be an early substitution off the bench. The Red Ramblers are ranked ninth in the state in Class 1A.
At Thursday’s hearing, Lofchie said the bylaw discriminated against Makindu’s constitutional right to be treated the same as all Illinois high school students.
The bylaw limits international and foreign exchange students’ participation in sports to one year and only if an “approved student exchange program” coordinates the students’ placement in school. Those programs are too expensive for many international students, Lofchie said.
Plano High School athletic director Jim Schmidt placed Makindu at Mooseheart in October 2012.
IHSA attorney David Bressler said the bylaw is in place to protect the competitive balance for all high schools.
![Residents and taxpayers of Barrington School District 220 rated safety and security, and a new auditorium at Barrington High School, as priorities for the school district, officials learned as community input was collected in preparation for a potential multi-million-dollar referendum that would be placed on the ballot in the November election. The data was shared with school board members April 2 by EO Sullivan Consulting, which was hired by the district to collect community feedback through phone and online surveys, four public engagement sessions and referendum advisory committee meetings. Information had been collected in three phases and began earlier this […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/PPN-L-bcr-district-220-feferend-002.jpg?w=390 "Residents and taxpayers of Barrington School District 220 rated safety and security, and a new auditorium at Barrington High School, as priorities for the school district, officials learned as community input was collected in preparation for a potential multi-million-dollar referendum that would be placed on the ballot in the November election. The data was shared with school board members April 2 by EO Sullivan Consulting, which was hired by the district to collect community feedback through phone and online surveys, four public engagement sessions and referendum advisory committee meetings. Information had been collected in three phases and began earlier this […]")
![For nearly a decade, the “Black Teen Empowerment Summit” in Township High School District 214 has included students from across the six-school district who take part in what has become an annual tradition. This year, the summit was held April 19 at Rolling Meadows High School, and featured motivational speakers and inspirational activities with goals according to organizers, to promote belonging, personal appreciation, wellness and self awareness. Principal Megan Kelly said approximately 150 students attended from across the district. The Arlington Heights-based school district has nearly 12,000 students, with 49% of them of minority heritage – including 2% African-American. “I […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PPN-L-AHP-Black-Teen-Summit-12.jpg?w=526 "For nearly a decade, the “Black Teen Empowerment Summit” in Township High School District 214 has included students from across the six-school district who take part in what has become an annual tradition. This year, the summit was held April 19 at Rolling Meadows High School, and featured motivational speakers and inspirational activities with goals according to organizers, to promote belonging, personal appreciation, wellness and self awareness. Principal Megan Kelly said approximately 150 students attended from across the district. The Arlington Heights-based school district has nearly 12,000 students, with 49% of them of minority heritage – including 2% African-American. “I […]")
![Glencoe’s Earth Day Clean-Up event on Saturday, April 20 left Glencoe Beach and the Robert Everly Wildflower Sanctuary along Linden and Jackson Avenues was renewed this year thanks to volunteers. The community clean-up began at 10 a.m. in partnership with the Glencoe Sustainability Task Force and the Friends of the Green Bay Trail. The two-hour event took place on a bright, breezy day with temperatures reported at Glencoe Beach at 9:51 a.m. at 40 degrees. The rain or shine event was free. Volunteers were asked to bring boots, gloves and buckets to collect debris. Refuse and recycling cans were placed […]](https://www.chicagotribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/PPN-L-GLN-earthdaybeachcleanup-0425241-4.jpg?w=548 "Glencoe’s Earth Day Clean-Up event on Saturday, April 20 left Glencoe Beach and the Robert Everly Wildflower Sanctuary along Linden and Jackson Avenues was renewed this year thanks to volunteers. The community clean-up began at 10 a.m. in partnership with the Glencoe Sustainability Task Force and the Friends of the Green Bay Trail. The two-hour event took place on a bright, breezy day with temperatures reported at Glencoe Beach at 9:51 a.m. at 40 degrees. The rain or shine event was free. Volunteers were asked to bring boots, gloves and buckets to collect debris. Refuse and recycling cans were placed […]")