Delegate Assembly supports continued student service on boards of education
Members of the Illinois Association of School Boards want students to continue to have the opportunity to serve on a board of education governing the district where they attend school. More than 350 local school board representatives voted on a resolution aimed at prohibiting students from serving on school boards, and rejected the proposal by a vote of 138 to 205 in balloting at this year's largest statewide conference of school leaders on Nov. 17 in Chicago.
"If someone is duly elected, what gives us the right to say that, because he is a student, he does not know what confidentiality means?" asked Cyndi Dahl, a member of the Darien District 161 Board of Education.
She spoke in opposition to a resolution submitted by East Peoria District 309, which called upon IASB to actively support a revision in state law to keep students from serving on their own school's board of education. The question of whether to amend the law on the subject is up to state lawmakers to decide.
Delegates representing 374 local school boards unanimously adopted resolutions to pursue those aims at their annual meeting. The Delegate Assembly is part of the Joint Annual Conference, a statewide education conference that celebrated its 75th year in November.
The rationale behind the defeated resolution states that having a pupil serve on the very school board governing that student's district would create a significant conflict of interest. Sponsors said such a conflict would not be in the best interests of the elected body or the public, because many board decisions would impact co-workers or teachers, administrators, and support personnel serving the student at school.
But ultimately there was strong support for any person meeting the current requirements and receiving the majority of the votes for a seat on the local school board to serve on that board. There were many concerns voiced, however, about the conflict of interest such a student would encounter.
Some delegates said the student in such circumstances would now become, technically, his or her teacher's or principal's "boss." The student board member also might be asked to vote on all salary and contract decisions for all personnel in the district, and could be privy to all confidential discussions about student and teacher disciplinary matters that occur in closed school board sessions, some said.
But a majority of delegates disagreed. "I disagree with the concept that a [student] board member would be bossing school principals or teachers around; it is only as a group that school board members have any authority whatsoever," said Steve Phillips, school board president from Greenview CUSD 200.
The decision to reject a conflict-of-interest prohibition on students serving as board members was one of the key actions taken by school board representatives at the policy-setting delegate assembly of IASB. The 2007 delegate assembly was part of the 75th Joint Annual Conference of the Illinois Association of School Boards, Illinois Association of School Administrators, and Illinois Association of School Business Officials. The conference also provided training to school board members through 115 expert-panel presentations on school governance and education.
In other action, the school board delegates voted to push for legislation to allow legally enrolled students who have become non-residents of their own district to attend school as non-resident students, tuition free, until the end of the grading period. But the change would be allowed only until the end of the grading period in which the student was determined to be a non-resident. The aim of the proposed change in the law is to allow students who are seniors in high school, and legally enrolled on the first day of school, to continue in the district, tuition free, until the end of the school year.
Representatives of IASB member boards agreed, however, that non-resident students should be paying tuition in most cases. The plan was submitted by Freeburg CCSD 70.
School board delegates also adopted several other new IASB policies, including resolutions that would:
School board delegates refused to support a number of new ideas, however, including resolutions that would have pushed for legislation to:
Delegates also elected the following IASB officers for the coming year:
Mark C. Metzger was elected as president of IASB for a one-year term. He has been a member of the Indian Prairie CUSD 204 Board of Education, Naperville, since 1991. He has served as president, secretary and committee chair of every committee of his local board. Metzger previously served on the IASB nominating committee and as an alternate delegate to the 2004 NSBA Delegate Assembly. The Naperville attorney is frequently an invited adjunct presenter at IASB leadership offerings and holds both LeaderShop Academy membership and Master Board Member status with the association, which he has maintained since 1997.
Joseph Alesandrini was selected by the IASB board to serve as vice president of the association. He is president of the Pekin CHSD 303 Board of Education, and has been director of the Central Illinois Valley Division of IASB since 1997. He has served as treasurer of IASB since 2005, and he presently chairs the association's audit committee. He is employed by Modal Marketing, Inc. as chief financial officer.
For more information about this year's conference, visit the IASB Web site at: http://www.iasb.com/jac/
IMAGE tests are no more
Reportedly do not fit standards of federal education reviewers
Students for whom English is a second language certainly are at a major disadvantage, and some say their scores could unfairly jeopardize a school or district's standing under the No Child Left Behind act. In the past, special education students have been allowed under No Child Left Behind implementation rules to take a different standardized exam that uses simpler language. The Illinois Measure of Annual Growth in English, or IMAGE, has used simplified English to test ELLs in math and reading.
But a recent decision by the U.S. Department of Education will take effect in the spring when pupils take another battery of tests intended to measure how well they have retained their lessons. This time, kids enrolled in transitional classes will take the exact same test as their more fluent peers. The result, experts say, could be that scores of Illinois school districts might now fall into non-compliance with NCLB because of the change.
As recently as in 2003-2004, 235 school districts, or 69 percent of Illinois school districts that were labeled as not meeting NCLB standards failed to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) solely because of how the federal law required states to measure outcomes for special education students with Individual Education Plans (IEP), and limited English proficiency (LEP).
A spokesperson for the federal education agency confirmed in mid-November that "several states" have been using an assessment for limited-English students that did not comply with the federal statute. The office did not say specifically how many states, but Arkansas, Indiana, New York, Texas, Wisconsin and Minnesota are on the list.
The department already has required Arkansas and Wisconsin to stop using their alternative tests for ELLs, but has approved such tests in North Carolina and Virginia.
"One of the main problems found across the states was that these tests did not measure grade-level reading (or math) content," according to federal spokesman Jim Bradshaw.
Parents have been outraged in those other states that have stopped allowing alternative tests after students were suddenly confronted with tests that don't make sense to them.
Meanwhile, an Illinois state board spokesman said the state isn't sure what accommodations will be made for students, or how these changes might impact test scores. Local educators, however, don't see how this could have a positive impact on what is already a pressure-packed exam.
Special education and bilingual student advocates have long encouraged federal lawmakers to consider measuring academic progress for special education and bilingual students, instead of looking solely at their performance on statewide tests. Experts such as former State Superintendent of Education Randy Dunn have argued that districts should be allowed broader latitude to offer accommodated tests as part of the IEP required for all special education students by the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA).
Tests administered under No Child Left Behind can influence federal funding, curriculum and staffing decisions.
Because there are a fairly limited number of ELL students in most of the state's elementary and middle schools, administrators say it's unlikely a sudden swing in those students' scores will impact a school's overall standing with respect to the federal guidelines. But for larger districts that would be an issue.
"Illinois is not alone in this," said Matt Vanover, ISBE spokesman. "This is a national issue."
Vanover said the state will eventually develop another alternative test for Illinois' 36,000 English-learners, but in the meantime, the students may be asked to take regular state tests with accommodations.
The next state testing dates for ELLs currently are scheduled as follows:
Report Cards show nearly 300 struggling schools made big improvement in 2007
The Illinois State Board of Education has found nearly 300 schools and nearly 140 districts across the state of Illinois made significant improvement in 2007. The 2007 report card made public a month ago also shows 184 schools made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for the second year in a row, allowing them to move off a state watch list.
The schools and districts met AYP goals for two consecutive years by meeting the standards of No Child Left Behind.
Analysis of the 2007 Report Card data shows that 184 schools and 36 districts have been removed from improvement status by making AYP for two consecutive years. In addition, the data also shows that 113 schools and 102 districts in improvement status will not advance to further sanctions because they have showed sufficient gains over the past two testing cycles.
The most recent tests were given in March and April of 2007. Students in third – eighth grades took the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) in reading and mathematics while students in fourth and seventh grades were tested in science and fifth and eighth grade students were tested in writing. Students in 11th grade take the Prairie State Achievement Exam (PSAE), which tests students in math, reading, science and writing.
Highlights of the 2007 Report Card include:
ISBE has produced the School Report Card since 1986 for every public school and district. State report cards have been produced since 2002.
A full list of the 184 schools and 36 districts that were removed from improvement status can be found online at: http://www.isbe.net/pdf/school_district_removed_2007.pdf.
A full list of the 113 schools and 102 districts that are in improvement status that will not advance to further sanctions because they have made sufficient gains over the past two testing cycles can be found online at: http://www.isbe.net/pdf/district_school_ayp_improvement.pdf.
School district wellness policies making the grade
Illinois schools participating in the federal child nutrition programs have made considerable progress in adopting local wellness policies and establishing wellness policy teams. So says a statewide needs assessment survey coordinated by the Illinois Nutrition and Education Program (NET) in collaboration with Action for Healthy Kids – Illinois. Three in four respondents report their district has developed and adopted a wellness policy; however, considerably fewer report development of administrative procedures to put their plan into action.
This survey of local wellness policy stakeholders in schools was conducted in the 2006-2007 school year, with funding provided by a USDA training grant awarded to the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
The survey of local wellness policy leaders, foodservice staff and nutrition educators is thought to be the largest and most comprehensive statewide survey to date, with 716 respondents representing 544 Illinois school districts.
"The goal of the survey is to provide Illinois and national agencies and organizations supporting student wellness with a clear snapshot of where Illinois schools are in the policy implementation process," said Illinois NET State Supervisor, Deborah Rees, R.D., L.D.N. "The survey also identifies training and resources needed by school staff to make further progress toward supporting and promoting student wellness."
Major findings include:
The survey also identified these areas of concern:
"Illinois schools have made significant progress in the past year," said Rees. "Still, it is going to take the combined commitment of school boards, administrators, staff and parents to move policy work forward and to make a difference for Illinois kids."
For more information about the survey, visit www.kidseatwell.org/LocalWellnessPolicy.html
Note: ISBE recently adopted a new statewide goal on wellness suggesting that all public school districts must have a locally-developed wellness policy addressing nutrition guidelines for all foods sold on the school campus during the school day, nutrition education, and physical activity. The full text of the state's wellness goal can be accessed online at http://www.isbe.net/nutrition/pdf/state_goal_wellness.pdf
Rally set for public education will feature NSBA's executive director
IASB school districts will present a rally for public education on Feb. 27 that will include an address by NSBA Executive Director Anne L. Bryant. All Illinois school board members and superintendents are being invited and encouraged to attend the dinner and subsequent rally, which are to be held at The Carlisle, Lombard.
The school leaders have been asked to join with colleagues from districts all over the Chicago metropolitan area, and beyond, to "gather strength as we go forward," according to event organizers. Organizers quote a credo from the Center for Public Education, a national not-for-profit group allied with NSBA, in promoting the event.
"America's noble experiment — universal education for all citizens — is a cornerstone of our democracy. Idealized, criticized and re-invented many times over, public education continues to play a crucial role in how we see our nation and our future," according to the Center for Public Education.
The site for the event is located just off I-88, between I-355 and I-294. Dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m., followed by the program. For more information, contact IASB's Holly Jack, ext. 1229.
IASB President Mark C. Metzger wins Burroughs Award for leadership as top school board president
The Illinois State Board of Education presented Mark C. Metzger, school board president for Indian Prairie Community Unit School District 204, with the 2007 Thomas Lay Burroughs Award.
ISBE Chairman Jesse H. Ruiz presented the annual award Nov. 18 at the Joint Annual Conference of the Illinois Association of School Boards, Illinois Association of School Administrators and Illinois Association of School Business Officials.
"On behalf of the state board, I congratulate Mark Metzger for his dedication and commitment to serving as the Indian Prairie school board president for five years of his 16-year service on the board," said Ruiz. "His leadership at both the local and state level is commendable. He exemplifies what it is to be an outstanding board president."
Metzger was first elected to the school board in 1991 when the district had 8,100 students in 10 different schools. Today, Indian Prairie is the fourth largest district in the state and serves more than 29,000 students in 31 schools. Metzger has been very active in IASB business, having completed two years as vice president and is now president of the Association.
"Indian Prairie is fortunate to have a leader like Mark Metzger," said Superintendent Stephen Daeschner. "Our entire community, especially our students, have benefited greatly from Mark's commitment to always doing what's best for children."
Last year, Metzger earned the National School Boards Association's Distinguished Service award. He has also been an IASB Master Board Member since 1997.
Accepting the award during Sunday's third general session, the Naperville attorney compared the Burroughs Award to a sports MVP trophy. "I've worked with 23 local board members over the past 16 years; this [award] reflects a winning team," he said.
ISBE created the award in 1991 to honor the late Thomas Lay Burroughs, who served as chairman of the State Board of Education and the board of education for the Collinsville school district. The award recognizes extraordinary educational leadership at the local level, including leadership:
Superintendent Blondean Davis, of Matteson ESD 162, chosen Superintendent of the Year for 2008
At the second general session of the 2007 Joint Annual Conference, Blondean Y. Davis, Superintendent of Matteson ESD 162, was named the 2008 Illinois Superintendent of the Year. The award, sponsored by the Illinois Association of School Administrators, was presented Nov. 17 in Chicago.
Davis was selected from among more than 800 Illinois superintendents and will represent Illinois in the National Superintendent of the Year recognition during the 2008 AASA National Conference this spring. The National Superintendent of the Year Award is co-sponsored by the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) and ARAMARK.
Noting that the award was a great honor, Davis said she was privileged to work with magnificent staff members, supportive parents, and a board of education that consistently focuses on the best interests of children. "Our teachers work hard to produce excellence in the classroom," said Davis. "They are supported by our principals, school staff, and involved parents who insist on a good education for their children. I thank them all for making this award possible."
Davis was appointed superintendent of District 162 in 2002. "Since her appointment, Dr. Davis has provided the instructional leadership and vision that has made our district a place of pride and accomplishment where our children are demonstrating high levels of academic achievement," noted Alicia Rodman-McCray, school board president.
Local control of schools greatly intrigues IASB's Egyptian guests
Education leaders from Egypt learned about local control and the role of school boards Nov. 13 when they visited the IASB office in Springfield. The visit was one of just two stops on a day-long visit outside the Chicago area during their two-week stay in Illinois.
Through an interpreter, Michael D. Johnson, IASB executive director, spent nearly two hours explaining to the 15 delegates about school finance in Illinois, the responsibilities of serving on a local board and IASB's role in training school board members. The delegates also questioned Johnson about the main goal for their trip: to learn more about how to monitor schools.
When asked specifically about whether he believed centralized or decentralized control was best for schools, Johnson was quick to answer "decentralized," using examples from his own days as a school administrator to make points about how local control gives communities the opportunity to have a say in what their children are learning and how the school district will allocate the money it receives.
The delegates represented federal and district school systems from all across Egypt, according the Conner Purcell, a representative of Heartland International, the organization that sponsored the trip. Many of the delegates were former teachers.
The visitors spent their two-week trip visiting schools, as well as learning from accreditation associations and Designs for Change, a Chicago-based reform group that works with local school councils. Heartland International is a non-profit organization that "designs, implements and manages political, economic and social development projects, as well as international education exchange programs."
Attendance is highest ever at Joint Annual Conference in '07
Registration again exceeds 10,000
Representatives from 781 Illinois public school districts attended this year's Joint Annual Conference of the Illinois Association of School Boards, Illinois Association of School Administrators and the Illinois Association of School Business Officials, held Nov. 16-18, 2007, in Chicago.
Registration exceeded 10,000 for the third straight year, with 5,724 paid registrants and 4,871 guests. Including 1,467 exhibitors, total attendance exceeded 12,000 for the first time.
Paid registration figures included 3,830 board members and 1,656 administrators and staff.
As in most years, a wide variety of subjects and activities were abundant for those who attended the three general sessions, five Chicago school tours, eight pre-conference workshops, 118 panels, and 220 exhibit booths of school products, services and vendors.
Panel sessions included topics in governance/leadership, student achievement, finance and funding, community relations, facilities/transportation/ technology, current issues, school law, governmental relations, best practices, and special topics for newer board members. The three-day Conference drew 9,343 people to panel events, for an average attendance of 79 persons per panel.
Best practices were the hot topic this year, with an overall attendance of 1,636. There were 19 different panels showcasing a wide variety of subjects. Six of these panels drew more than 100 people each and one – The Ten Most Common Mistakes in Collective Bargaining – drew 332 board members and administrators.
School law is another staple of the Conference panel tracks, and this year 14 panels drew a combined 1,366 attendance. Three of the most popular legal panels were Employee Off-duty Misconduct (220); How to be Successful with Remediation Plans for Tenured Teachers (215) and Protecting Your District from TIF Districts (210).
Panels of special interest to newer board members were equally popular, with 14 panels drawing 1,370 visitors. Generating the most interest were Principles of School Finance: Revenues (185) and The School board's Role in Student Achievement (175).
Legislative Issues Impacting School Districts drew 475 for the single largest panel attendance of the entire Conference.
Even before the Conference officially opened, 635 people attended Friday's pre-conference workshops. Six 5-hour workshops focused on school board leadership (101 attended), school finance (120), effective meetings (44), school district vision (69), study circles (67), and board presidency (65). Two other half-day workshops featured parliamentary procedure (68) and working with difficult people (101).
For more coverage of the 2007 Joint Annual Conference, visit the IASB Web site at: http://www.iasb.com/jac/.
Attorneys consider employee speech and electronic issues in ICSA seminar
School employee speech is only protected as free speech under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution when it is not expressed in connection with the employee's official duties. What is more, the school employee carries the burden of proof in such cases to show that the speech in question was protected. So said attorney Philip H. Gerner III, of Robbins, Schwartz, Nicholas, Lifton & Taylor, Ltd.
Gerner appeared at the 2007 Joint Annual Conference's school law seminar, held Friday, Nov. 16, in downtown Chicago, sponsored by the Illinois Council of School Attorneys (ICSA). Created in 1987, ICSA is affiliated with IASB and the National School Boards Association.
An annual conference event, the yearly seminar provides Illinois school attorneys with a chance to discuss key legal issues facing their school clients. Included this year were questions on student speech and employee speech, and electronic document discovery.
In regard to employee free speech cases, Gerner said the key is to determine whether the employee speech in question was on a matter of public concern.
On another seminar topic — the threat of "e-discovery" — attorney Steven M. Puiszis, a partner in the firm of Hinshaw & Culbertson, LLP, and President of the Illinois Association of Defense Counsel, urged school lawyers to familiarize themselves with new federal rules of civil procedure involving electronic discovery in connection with litigation. The new rules issued on Dec. 1, 2006 should prompt private companies, as well as entities such as school districts, to take a fresh look at their electronic document retention procedures, Puiszis said. Puiszis said attorneys need to be aware of today's e-discovery concerns.
Conference panel ideas sought to share success
Success stories of local school districts and related organizations have long been a strong drawing card at the annual IASB/IASA/IASBO conference. School board members from every division come to learn and benefit from the practical experiences these "Share the Success" panel presentations provide.
A select number of school districts and organizations will be chosen to make panel presentations at the 76th Joint Annual Conference, Nov. 21-23, 2008, in Chicago. These 90-minute panel sessions — presented by the board members, administrators and other school or community members who were involved in the particular programs showcased — are based on actual school system experiences.
A committee of Association staffers/members will evaluate all proposals received in the IASB Springfield office by Feb. 15, 2008. Invitations will be issued to the districts and organizations recommended by those evaluators. Preference will be given to registered conference attendees.
Each proposal submitted for the Share the Success panel presentation will be evaluated using the following points of consideration:
An application and explanation of the panel proposal process can be found at: https://www.iasb.com/jac/proposals08.cfm .
Applications must include title of the panel, the targeted audience and panel track or subject, program description, learning objectives, the process used and the resulting success, audio-visual needs, verification, availability of handouts, and meet other related requirements.
Districts and organizations that are not selected to make their presentations during a 90-minute panel session may be offered a different opportunity to present at the conference. IASB will once again be featuring its popular "Carousel of Panels" session on Saturday afternoon, Nov. 22.
IASB Past President Epstein passes away at age 85
Edward C. Epstein, 85, of Park Forest, and former president of the Illinois Association of School Boards, died Nov. 2. He served as a school board member in Crete-Monee CUSD 201-U from 1958 to 1976, including 10 years as board president. He was president of the IASB board of directors in 1972-73 and lived to become one of its oldest surviving members.
Epstein noted a few years ago that "the most important board action during my tenure was hiring Hal Seamon as executive director of IASB (1973-1989)." He also worked to develop more unit districts in the state, which he said, "operating under one organizational structure provides a continuum of education throughout the district. But getting boundaries of villages and other taxing bodies to align with school district boundaries is a hard thing to do, whether it's in Park Forest or anywhere in Illinois."
As a past president, Epstein was a founding member of IASB's "Old Goat's Club," which gathers annually at the Joint Annual Conference for past presidents of IASB to socialize "and to hear and talk about issues that we were (also) talking about years ago," he said.
During his school board tenure, Epstein also served as chairman of the central region of the National School Boards Association, a member of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, and the Governor's Commission on Educational Governance.
An engineer, Epstein was employed by the FMC Corporation for 46 years, and served an additional 15 years as a consultant. He served his country as a Marine during World War II and the Korean War.
A memorial service is being planned for April 2008.
No action yet from governor on funds implementation bill
A budget implementation bill (BIMP) must be signed into law before the ISBE can increase the funding formula's foundation level by $400 per pupil, as approved in the state's fiscal year 2008 budget. While the signing of BIMP bills is traditionally a mere formality — they are, after all, adopted only after the legislature and governor have already agreed upon and enacted a state budget bill into law — this BIMP bill is still pending on Governor Rod Blagojevich's desk.
The General Assembly sent SB 783 (sponsored by Sen. Martin A. Sandoval, D-Chicago) to the governor on Nov. 5; the governor has 60 days in which to take action or the bill would become law automatically.
If the governor signs the bill into law it will become effective immediately. But if he issues a total veto or amendatory veto, it will have to go back to the legislature for consideration.
If the BIMP bill is not signed into law, the ISBE will soon begin using new calculation figures (for equalized assess value, average daily attendance, corporate personal property replacement taxes, and so on). This would result in many school districts receiving lesser amounts in their monthly state aid payments than last year.
According to the governor's office, all options are open as to the gubernatorial action on the BIMP bill.
"We hope the governor signs SB 783 into law, thus allowing the ISBE to tap into the $400 per pupil increase in the foundation level provided for in the new FY '08 state budget," said Ben Schwarm, IASB associate executive director for governmental relations.
"This would be the quickest way for the state to fulfill its obligation to provide the promised level of funding to school districts," Schwarm said.
More information on SB 783 can be found on the IASB Web site at: www.iasb.com/govrel/alr9543.cfm.
Palatine-Schaumburg district avoids strike
School board members in Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 approved a new two-year deal with teachers at a special meeting Nov. 8, averting what would have been the first strike in the district's history and the fifth in Illinois in 2007.
"It is clearly within the parameters established many months ago," said board president Robert LeFevre. He said terms are what the district promised the community two years ago when voters passed a tax rate increase.
The final contract approval followed months of negotiations. It came one night after the 1,400-member teachers union approved the same deal.
Under the new contract, teachers will get base-pay increases of 3.25 percent for 2007-08 and a raise that is tied into the Consumer Price Index, the rise of inflation, in 2008-09. The CPI for 2008 was recently increased to 2.8 percent. Teachers also will receive lump-sum payments of 0.75 percent this year and 1.2 percent next year.
To date, 22 school districts in Illinois have received notices of intent to strike. Just four teacher strikes have occurred, although eleven other intent-to-strike notices are pending.
New School Laws set for January mailing to alert school leaders about legislative changes
IASB's annual New School Laws summarizes bills adopted during the spring session of the Illinois General Assembly and signed into law by the governor. Compiled by the Illinois Statewide School Management Alliance, copies will be mailed in early 2008 to superintendents, business officials and principals, as well as to each school board's legislative liaison and president.
The purpose of the publication is to notify school leaders about any newly adopted law or change in existing law that is important to local districts. Laws are indexed by bill number, Public Act number and title. Laws are also separated by subjects, such as boards of education, personnel, regional office of education, school finance, school safety and health, state board of education, students, and taxation.
The list of laws covered is not exhaustive or detailed. And the publication is not intended as a substitute for either a current version of the Illinois Compiled Statutes or legal counsel.
The synopsis of each act is brief and may or may not encompass the full content or impact of the act. The synopsis is designed to call attention to statutory changes and additions that may merit further research.
Also included in the upcoming publication, where applicable, will be the IASB Policy Service (PRESS) information regarding new legislation. If a new law requires action by the school board, the corresponding PRESS policy number will follow the public act information.
Workshop will cover basics of law for board meetings and practices
IASB's upcoming workshop, Basics of Law on Board Meetings and Practices, focuses on the legal requirements related to board work. It is to be held at three different locations in January. Because a school board may take action only at a legally convened meeting, organizers say the workshop presents the meeting requirements contained in the Open Meetings Act, as well as in the School Code.
Discussion will cover meeting types, reasons for closed sessions, voting, email use, remote participation, committees, agenda and minutes. The workshop also will review the key legal duties of the school board, along with the legal considerations regarding records, conflict of interest, gift ban, district take-over, and more.
Participants will have the opportunity to get their questions answered on legal issues related to board work. The presentation will be led by IASB General Counsel, Melinda Selbee, and Assistant General Counsel, Kimberly Small.
The workshop's objective is to help school leaders understand the legalities that govern school boards in order to become more effective in policy-making and governance functions.
The workshop will be offered Saturday, Jan. 19, at the IASB office in Springfield. Registration and breakfast will begin at 8 a.m. The workshop will last from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The same schedule will be followed on Saturday, Jan. 26, at Rend Lake Golf Course in Whittington. The third event will be held Tuesday, Jan. 22, at the IASB office in Lombard. Registration and light supper will begin at 5 p.m. The workshop will last from 6 to 9:30 p.m.
Tuition is $180 per person and includes materials and meals. For more information or to register online, go the IASB Events Calendar at: www.iasb.com/calendar/calendar.cfm.
Berwyn (Nov. 9, Chicago Tribune) Parents and students were joined by anti-war groups in seeking to persuade Berwyn school district officials from expelling students who took part in an Iraq war protest in a school cafeteria. A lunchtime protest on Nov. 1 at Morton West High School led school officials to charge more than 20 students with "gross disobedience and mob activity," a charge which calls for suspensions and possible expulsions. Board members at a District 201 meeting on Nov. 7 were asked to reconsider punishments.
Carpentersville (Oct. 24, Northwest Herald) The CUSD 300 school board recently adopted a policy opposing all tax increment financing districts (TIFs). District 300 has historically opposed TIFs, with district officials saying these community development tax arrangements take money away from schools.
Chicago (Nov. 7, Chicago Tribune) A recent survey of parents in Chicago District 299 found that as elementary pupils age, parents become less involved and less satisfied. At the high school level, both parental involvement and satisfaction were low, according to district officials. Not surprisingly, the data showed that parents of students at highest-performing schools were more satisfied than at schools that have not performed as well. The data found a correlation between parental involvement and satisfaction.
Chicago (Nov. 13, Chicago Tribune) Teachers are signing up in record numbers to get a $1,750 annual bonus from Chicago District 299 by obtaining national certification. More than 660 teachers this fall enrolled in programs leading to national board certification, according to school officials. In addition to the bonus, the Chicago Public Education Fund has given Chicago teachers $3,000 if they attain certification. Teachers also receive a financial incentive from Illinois education agencies if they get the certification.
Elgin (Nov. 9, The Daily Herald) Community Unit School District U-46 announced that a recent survey shows teachers who rejected a tentative three-year contract cited large class sizes and case loads as the primary factors influencing their vote.
Elgin (Nov. 7, The Daily Herald) Community Unit School District U-46 has been urged by consultants to increase funding for its specialized schools-within-a-school for gifted students. The review of gifted programs, presented to the school board on Nov. 5, was the latest in a series of external audits commissioned by the district.
Galesburg (Nov. 9, The Register-Mail) Area school districts have had no problem implementing a moment of silence at the beginning of each school day.
John Shelly, Silas Willard Elementary School principal, said the moment, which is implemented by teachers after the Pledge of Allegiance each morning, has gone "very unnoticed."
Glen Ellyn (Nov. 8, The Daily Herald) Glenbard Township High School District 87 is teaming up with DuPage High School District 88 and Downers Grove High School District 99 in the creation of a new alternative school, called Directions, to focus more attention on borderline students. "Our real goal is to hit them young with a comprehensive program with different strategies that helps them return to the home high school and be successful," said Lynne Matczak, director of special education for District 87.
Huntley (Oct. 25, The Daily Herald) Local village officials and school leaders from Huntley District 158 held a joint meeting on Oct. 24. Concerns were shared, such as when a school board member urged the village officials to increase local transition fees to better reflect how much it actually costs the school district to educate each child. But Huntley officials said they did not want to tie transition fees to the per-student cost unless other towns in the school district also did the same.
Naperville (Nov. 8, The Daily Herald) Indian Prairie CUSD 204 officials say they remain committed to building a proposed Metea Valley High School with the same amenities available at Neuqua Valley and Waubonsie Valley – and without asking taxpayers for any more money. But doing so likely will require finding a site other than the one where the district originally planned to build.
Palatine (Nov. 8, The Daily Herald) A 2-year deal with teachers was approved by the school board of Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 at a special meeting on Nov. 8. Board members approved the new contract within the parameters they set months ago, thus averting what would have been the first strike in the system's history.
Peoria (Nov. 9, GateHouse News Service) A 12-year-old girl barred from school after officials deemed her maroon hair extensions inappropriate will be allowed to return, according to Allen Johnson, the superintendent of Pleasant Valley School District 62. Citing the school's ban on any type of inappropriate or distracting clothes or grooming, the girl was initially sent home and told she could not return until the hair extensions were removed.
Plainfield (Nov. 7, Chicago Tribune) Twenty-eight public school buildings in Plainfield School District 202 were cleaned and disinfected on Nov. 6 after school administrators learned someone in the district was diagnosed with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA.
State waiver application deadline to avoid mandates is Jan. 11
Waiver requests from schools must be submitted to the state board postmarked no later than Jan. 11, 2008, in order to be included in the Spring 2008 Waiver Report, which is to be submitted to the General Assembly by March 1, 2008.
Applicants wishing to implement requests at the start of the 2008-09 school year should meet the January deadline since waivers cannot be implemented until approval is received. But any application postmarked after Jan. 11 will be included in the Fall 2008 Waiver Report, which is to be submitted to the General Assembly by Oct. 1, 2008.
A brief overview of all waivers granted to school districts to date is available online at: http://www.isbe.net/isbewaivers/pdf/waivermod.pdf.
New Web-based health/life-safety processing system on IWAS
The Illinois State Board of Education has developed a new web-based Health/Life Safety (H/L S) Processing System. Through ISBE's web portal, known as IWAS, the new H/L S Processing System is designed to allow users to create and submit ten-year survey and amendment data, annual inspection reports, and annual ROE reports for school district buildings maintained in a facility inventory listing.
ISBE says the key benefits the system offers include:
The implementation for this new system is slated for January 2008. For more information, contact Mary Baksys at ISBE at 217/785-8779.
IASB to mail Constitution and Position Statements
Upcoming IASB mailings will include the 2007 Illinois Association of School Boards' Constitution and Position Statements booklet. But what is it, and what does it mean?
Both the IASB Constitution and the Association's official position statements are products of the IASB Delegate Assembly (for details on action at this year's Delegate Assembly, see story on p. 1).
IASB operates within the framework of its Constitution, and lobbies on behalf of its position statements, which reflect the beliefs, aspirations and aims of the Association as established by its member school boards.
Position statements are those resolutions adopted by the IASB Delegate Assembly, which provide major policies for the Association and establish an official stance on legislation and related matters of public policy.
Help keep IASB member information up to date
Has your local board of education recently experienced board turnover, or has a school board member changed address?
The Illinois Association of School Boards is appealing to member school districts to update Association membership records in order to ensure that new members or addresses will be added to the database.
In order to update the records for your school district, send current information to the records manager at IASB. For further information, please call IASB's Janice Kidd at ext. 1142, or e-mail her at jkidd@iasb.com.
January 3 - Kaskaskia Division Winter Governing Committee Meeting, Mabry's Restaurant, Greenville, 6 p.m.
January 3 - Shawnee Division Winter Governing Meeting, Bennie's Italian Foods, Marion, 6 p.m.
January 9 - Professional Advancement Seminar: This seminar is open to Current Superintendents and those seeking the Superintendency. Location Change: IASB Springfield Office, Registration - 9 a.m.; Seminar - 9:30 a.m. - 3 p.m.
January 19 - Basics of Law on Board Meetings and Practices, IASB Springfield, 8 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
January 22 - Basics of Law on Board Meetings and Practices, IASB Lombard, 5 p.m. - 9:30 p.m.
January 26 - Basics of Law on Board Meetings and Practices, Rend Lake-Whittington, 8 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
January 29 - Three Rivers Winter Dinner Meeting, Renaissance Center, Joliet, 6 p.m.
February 2 - South Cook Legislative Breakfast
February 26 - Two Rivers Division Spring Dinner Meeting, Beardstown CUSD 15, 6 p.m.
February 26 - Shawnee Division Spring Dinner Meeting, Century SD 100, Ullin, TBA
February 27 - Rally for Public Education with NSBA Executive Director Dr. Anne L. Bryant, The Carlisle, Lombard, 6 p.m. Registration; 6:30 p.m. Dinner
This newsletter is published monthly by the Illinois Association of School Boards for member boards of education and their superintendents. The Illinois Association of School Boards, an Illinois not-for-profit corporation, is a voluntary association of local boards of education and is not affiliated with any branch of government.
James Russell, Director of Publications
Gary Adkins, Editor
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