Minutes from the October 7, 2010 Meeting

Please click on this link to view the Minutes of the Regular Board Meeting on October 7, 2010

Board Brief for October 21, 2010

Call to Order: The Board of Education meeting was called to order at 7 p.m.

Student/Staff/Citizen Recognition:

The District 54 Special Olympics nominated two groups for Above and Beyond recognition. In July, the SAA Travel Baseball Flyers Team hosted the second annual softball game with District 54 Special Olympics. Coaches and players, some of whom are District 54 students, hosted a workout and game. Dr. Tim Albion and Cathy Donahue (a retired District 54 nurse) have volunteered their time annually for a free medical application day for our Special Olympians.

In the Ambassador for Excellence category, the School Board honored many individuals. The Hale community was honored for winning Schaumburg’s first Water Conservation Challenge.

The Board honored 25 students and former students who were named All American Scholars in the Pop Warner Program. Each year, the most academically accomplished children who participate in Pop Warner football and cheerleading compete for Academic All-American status. Addams student Mike Jones was named the top seventh-grade scholar in the country.

District 54 also honored the seven recipients of the 2010 Illinois State Board of Education’s Those Who Excel Awards:  Dilshad Patel, a sixth-grade teacher at Stevenson; Bob Frankel, a volunteer at MacArthur; Brad Carter, the principal of Muir; Arlene Donatelli, an instructional assistant at Fox; Blanca Leal, a kindergarten dual language teacher at MacArthur; Karen Buzek, the library media teacher at Blackwell; and the Transportation Department, which includes Kathy Guild, Lori Hilliard, MaryLou Moore and Taryn Ross.

Public Comment: No one asked to speak.

Freedom of Information Act Requests: There has been one request since the last board meeting for copies of certain legal opinions issued by the Illinois State Board of Education. A reply was sent indicating our district does not have such records.

Consent Agenda:

• Minutes of the Regular Board Meeting on October 7, 2010
• Minutes of the closed-session meeting on Oct. 7, 2010
• Checks dated Oct. 8, 2010
• Monthly update of revenues and expenditures
• Treasurer’s report on cash and investments
• Re-employment of two special educational assistants who received dismissal notices
• Submittal of the application for the Illinois State Library Grant for 2010-11
• The acceptance and release of the 2010 Illinois School Report Cards

Reports:

• Superintendent’s Report: Superintendent Ed Rafferty reported how proud he was to be a part of District 54 both because of the Those Who Excel Awards and the goals schools are setting for themselves as part of the School Improvement Process.
• Report of President of Board of Education: President Karen Strykowski echoed that pride.
• District Citizens’ Advisory Committee Report: Board Member Barbara Hengels reported that DCAC reviewed the Essential Outcomes Parent Guides and announced that 198 teachers now have 1,000 books in their classroom libraries.
• Foundation Report:  Board Member Bill Harper thanked everyone for supporting the WineStyles and Lou Malnati’s fundraisers.
• PTA Report: Council President Kathy Pritscher thanked everyone for attending the fall dinner on Monday and the Internet safety presentation earlier this month. She invited everyone to give blood at the District Office on Oct. 28.

New Business:

• The Board approved the 2011-12 School Calendar and the 2012-13 School Calendar.
• The Board had the first reading of revisions to the following board policies: Equal Opportunity Employment (GBA), Employment of Administrator’s/Supervisor’s/Employee’s Relatives (GBCA), Employees with Chronic Infectious Disease (GBE), Entrance Age (JEB) and Administering Medicine to Students (JHCD).

Announcements:

• Board members praised the PTA dinner on Monday night, saying it’s an honor to be in a district with so many involved parents.
• The Board also praised Mead Junior High for raising $10,000 at its annual Cancer Walk on Oct. 20.

Adjournment: The Board adjourned at 8:45 p.m. to closed session to discuss the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance or dismissal of specific employees of the public body.

Minutes from the September 16, 2010 Meeting

Please click on this link to view the Minutes of the Regular Board Meeting on September 16, 2010

Board Brief for October 7, 2010

Call to Order:  The Board of Education meeting was called to order at 7 p.m.

Discussion of 2010 Assessment Results:

A majority of District 54 students met or exceeded state standards based on the state assessments in reading and math given in March 2010: 94.3 percent in math and 89.6 percent in reading.

In 2010, 16 schools met the board-adopted goal of at least 90 percent of students at the school meeting or exceeding standards in reading and math. This is an increase from 11 schools in 2009, 10 schools in 2008, four schools in 2007 and no schools in 2006.  An additional eight schools scored 90 percent or higher on the ISAT math test only.

Students in third through eighth grades in Illinois take one of two assessments:  the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) or the Illinois Alternate Assessment (IAA). The state uses these assessments to determine which schools in Illinois are making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) under the federal No Child Left Behind law.

The goal of the law is that all children in the United States will meet or exceed state standards by the 2013-14 school year. This year at least 77.5 percent of students in each subgroup must meet or exceed standards. Subgroups include racial background, low income, limited English proficient and students with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs).

District 54, Aldrin, Eisenhower and Mead all made AYP this year after not making AYP in 2009.

However, Addams, Lakeview and Keller did not make AYP in reading this year:  Addams in the subgroup for students with disabilities; Lakeview in the subgroup of economically disadvantaged students; and Keller in the subgroup of students with Limited English Proficiency.

District 54 will continue to face challenges as the AYP percent increases significantly each year. For 2011, 85 percent of students must meet or exceed state standards in reading and math (an increase from 77.5 percent this year).

To meet these challenges, several action plans are underway, including:

• Implement the kindergarten through second grade Literacy Plan and Assessment Package;
• Implement the new District 54 Writing Framework;
• Implement the revised English Language Learning Instructional Model;
• Implement the revised essential outcomes; and
• Implement the revised School Improvement Plan.

Public Comment: No one asked to speak.

Freedom of Information Act Requests: There were two requests since the last meeting. The first requested copies of lobbying contracts. District 54 has no such contracts. The second requested copies of payroll records for pavement resurfacing by A Lamp Concrete.

Consent Agenda: The School Board approved the following items on the Consent Agenda:

• Minutes of the Regular Board Meeting on September 16, 2010
• Minutes of the Closed-session meeting on Sept. 16, 2010
• Checks dated Sept. 24, 2010
• Resignations and employment of personnel

New Business:

• The School Board approved revisions to the following board policies:
  • Board Officers – BCB
  • Meetings of the Board – BD

Announcements:

• Board President Karen Strykowski praised the artwork by Eisenhower students on display in the board room.

Adjournment:  The Board adjourned at 7:32 p.m. to closed session to discuss the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance or dismissal of specific employees of the public body; to discuss litigation that is pending, probable or imminent; and to discuss minutes of closed-session meetings for the purpose of semi-annual review, as mandated.