| | January 25, 2007 | | 
Glen Ellyn School District 41 Mission: It is the mission of District 41 to advocate for students enabling each one to optimize his/her potential within a culture of continuous improvement.
Board Members: John Vivoda President | John Marcheschi Vice President | Debbie Hoffman Secretary | Kevin Cosgrove | Terra Costa Howard | John Kenwood | Carol McElvain | Following is a summary of the Board of Education (BOE) January 8 and 22, 2007 meetings. Minutes are posted on www.d41.org once approved.
| BOARD (BOE) TO VOTE ON FACILITIES EXPANSION FEB. 5
Continuing its discussion of when to go to referendum, the BOE reiterated its unanimous support for a facilities expansion to accommodate overcrowding. Consistent with the recommendation of Superintendent Dr. Ann Riebock, it approved a community survey to identify knowledge gaps about the expansion proposal and called a special meeting for Monday, Feb. 5 at which it will decide whether to go to referendum on April 17 and if so, approve the ballot question.
The proposal would be for a bond sale to fund expansions at our schools, with the bulk of the work taking place at Hadley Junior High. Today, there is a school’s worth of children (588) in 26 portables, and projections show slow and steady growth through 2013, driven in part by new housing in the north part of the district. The BOE emphasized that the need for space is not going away and acknowledged that while there are advantages to going to referendum in April, there are also barriers to overcome. Members of the BOE explained that pursuit of a solution to crowding had previously slowed due to organizational work related to bringing a new superintendent on board. The Boundary Advisory Committee’s (BAC) recommendation to make facilities expansion a top priority has re-energized the discussion. (The complete recommendation is posted on www.d41.org.) The BAC presented its recommendation to the BOE on Dec. 18, and the BOE accepted it at its Jan. 8 meeting.
The question of what to do about overcrowding has been under review since October of 2003, when a public process to study options began. The facilities expansion now proposed by the administration is to take the fifth grades out of the elementary schools and create a 5-8 middle-level campus at Hadley. Grades 5-6 and 7-8 would be in their own “houses” with their own spaces, schedules and bus routes. The plan is also designed to manage bus, car and pedestrian traffic better than today. The K-4 elementary schools would also undergo facility changes to provide program space and relieve stress on core spaces like gyms, libraries, lunchrooms, bathrooms and hallways. Dr. Riebock explained that the only available site besides Hadley is too small for the size building needed, and that a stand-alone school is significantly more expensive to operate and staff than the proposed additions. The proposal is not only a good use of land, she said, but an opportunity to create academically and developmentally appropriate programs over the course of four years that will help students succeed and develop a sense of belonging and identity with their school. “This is a tremendous educational opportunity to create something really special on behalf of kids. We will house students for four years at an important time in their lives when they need a unique blend of nurturing and empowerment.”
Among the factors the BOE discussed as it talked about moving forward were whether there is sufficient time to educate the community about the proposal, whether or not a survey would provide new information, advantages and disadvantages of going in April rather than waiting, and whether the BOE should authorize any expenditures for architectural plans prior to receiving voter approval.
Next steps
The BOE will review and vote on the actual proposed ballot question at a special meeting Feb. 5. Unicom ARC has been approved as the organization to conduct a community survey at a cost of $13,500 to gain information about community knowledge of the need and attitudes regarding the proposed solution (the 2005 survey focused more on taxpayer cost). The BOE will also review financial projections to be able to give the community a complete picture of the financial implications over time. Should a referendum be decided upon, the role of district staff and BOE members would be to provide information, in contrast with the role of a citizens’ committee, which may provide information as well as encourage voters to approve the measure.
| NEXT MEETING
A special BOE meeting is set for Monday, Feb. 5, 7:30 p.m. at which the BOE intends to decide whether to go to referendum on April 17, and if so, to approve the ballot question. The next regular BOE meetings are set for Feb. 12 and 26. Meetings will be held in Central Services, 793 N. Main St., Glen Ellyn at 7:30 p.m. Other special meetings may be called and their agendas will be posted on www.d41.org at least 48 hours in advance of the meeting. |
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STAKEHOLDER SATISFACTION DATA NEEDS DISCUSSED
The BOE reviewed a proposal for collecting satisfaction data from students, staff, parents and the community. As part of the district’s focus on using data to drive decisions, the Continuous Improvement Team identified a need for collection of satisfaction data according to a long-range, systematic plan that would yield measurable, actionable results aligned to district goals. The administration is recommending a philosophical commitment to collecting stakeholder satisfaction data regularly over 10 years subject to the annual budgeting process and available funds. The recommendation calls for using Harris Interactive to survey parents, staff and students every two years and using Unicom ARC to survey the community at large every three years. Both companies are used by many area districts.
Next steps
The matter will be put before the BOE for action in February. If approved, the district will hire Harris Interactive to survey its parents, staff and students in spring of 2007 at a cost of $10,500, a cost that includes an analytical report of the results. Surveys in subsequent years will be conducted, budget permitting.
VISUALIZING OUR LEARNERS AT THEIR BEST
As part of planning for curricular and program improvements and strategies for helping students achieve academic goals, the BOE began discussing learner characteristics at its November meeting. Since then the Continuous Improvement Team has built on that conversation, defining habits, attitudes and skills that bring focus and dimension to the vision of D41 learners as students who are lifelong learners with the ability to tackle continually challenging work.
Next steps
The BOE will review the CIT’s draft document and return comments. The CIT will bring a final version for BOE adoption in February. The document will become one of the lenses through which the district views its actions and will be posted on www.d41.org
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
Members of the public are invited to speak at the beginning and end of each meeting. Several community members addressed the BOE on matters of school finance and referendum planning. Questions were asked about the operating costs of the facilities expansion project, if a rate increase would be required, why the BOE was considering a referendum when the 2005 survey indicated it did not have enough support, whether the district would run a sufficiently factual campaign to allow voters to make an informed decision, and how the district plans to address crowding should the referendum fail. Other residents spoke to the realities of the space crunch, the loss of instructional time for students for students going in and out of the building from the portables each day, and the inadequacy of conducting a survey before respondents have sufficient knowledge of the subject matter to have an informed opinion.
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Please direct your questions or comments to our Communications Director, Julie Worthen at jworthen@d41.org. We ask that you do not reply directly to this email. Thank you! | |
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