February 13, 2024 at 7:00 PM - Regular Meeting

Description: 

The proposed calendar takes into consideration the 2024-2025 calendar of Lockport Township High School and the local LTHS feeder schools. We have tried to loosely match the winter and spring breaks. Also taken into account is the proposed start date. There have been no changes to the proposed calendar since the January board meeting.

Calendar Summary:

• The first day for staff is August 12.

• The first day for students is August 14. 

• Election Day on November 5th is a mandatory school holiday for next year, so the district will then trade this holiday and be in school on March 3rd which is Casimir Pulaski Day.  The district will then revert back to Casimir Pulaski Day as a holiday for the 2025-2026 school year.

• Easter falls the third week in April, therefore we will have no school the Friday and Monday around the holiday as in the past.

• Graduation will most likely be scheduled for the week of May 19, 2025, prior to Memorial Day weekend.  

Staff and parents have been notified of tonight's hearing. A copy of the proposed calendar is included in the electronic packet to which the public has access. I will answer any questions the audience may have on Tuesday evening.

Description:  Per Policy 2:230 - Public Participation at School Board Meetings and Petitions to the Board
During each regular and special open meeting of the Board, any person may comment to or ask questions of the School Board (public participation), subject to the reasonable constraints established and recorded in this policy’s guidelines below. The Board listens to comments or questions during public participation; responses to comments to or questions of the Board are most often managed through policy 3:30, Chain of Command. 
To preserve sufficient time for the Board to conduct its business, any person appearing before the Board is expected to follow these guidelines:

1. Address the Board only at the appropriate time as indicated on the agenda and when recognized by the Board President. This includes following the directives of the Board President to maintain order and decorum for all.
2. Use a sign-in sheet, if requested.
3. Identify oneself and be brief. Ordinarily, the time for any one person to address the Board during public participation shall be limited to five minutes. In unusual circumstances, and when an individual has made a request to speak for a longer period of time, the Board President may allow a person to speak for more than five minutes. If multiple individuals wish to address the Board on the same subject, the group is encouraged to appoint a spokesperson.
4. Observe, when necessary and appropriate, the Board President’s authority to:
   • Shorten the time for each person to address the Board during public participation to conserve time and give the maximum number of people an opportunity to speak; and/or b.
   • Determine procedural matters regarding public participation not otherwise covered in Board policy.
5. Conduct oneself with respect and civility toward others and otherwise abide by Board policy 8:30, Visitors to and Conduct on School Property.

Petitions or written correspondence to the Board shall be presented to the Board in the next regular Board packet.

Description:  We will be recognizing the MG kindergarten student representatives, KG students of the month, and Nature Club.

Description:  We received two requests for information under the Freedom of Information Act since the January 2024 meeting of the Board of Education.  Both the request and response for each are attached for review.

Description:  Attached is the suspension report for Kelvin Grove for January 2024.  There were no suspensions at Milne Grove for January 2024.

Description:  This month, Mrs. Koziol and Mr. Jennings, along with their school improvement team members, will update the Board regarding their building improvement plans. The presentation will include progress towards goals included in the 2022-23 improvement plans and goals added by the leadership teams for the 2023-24 school year.

Description: 

Mr. Kincaid provided an overview of the upcoming technology projects and bids that will be presented to the school board in the coming months:
 

Copiers/Multifunction Printer Replacement

Our Copiers are coming to the end of their 5-year lease period and will need replacement. We are working with several local area vendors for bids on this project. This will be a mostly like-for-like replacement, each building getting a larger Color and Black & White copier with smaller ones located throughout the building for teacher printing.

Board approval should happen in early spring and replacement of the devices at the end of June 2024.
 

Security Cameras

Kelvin and Milne Grove currently have analog network DVRs that provide the majority of camera coverage, while functional these are an administrative challenge as the cameras are split between several systems with no central management or viewing. Additionally, Kelvin has an IP NVR (Network Video Recorder) with IP cameras for exterior recording. This NVR and cameras were installed back in 2011. It is simple to say that advances in the video surveillance industry and plain time have rendered our existing camera infrastructure obsolete.

We plan to replace all cameras with a mix of HD Analog and IP Cameras and consolidate the network recording down to one NVR at each building. The new cameras will provide several times clearer video and the one NVR will make it much easier to access and view recordings.
 

Chromebooks

The majority of our Chromebooks which are in use in 2nd-8th grade were purchased 4 years ago and are showing their age. Very few districts keep devices in circulation beyond 3-4 years as the day-to-day wear and tear adds up. With this in mind, we will be soliciting vendors for replacement of the Chromebooks used by grades 4-8. Grades 2-3 will continue to use the existing models for another couple of years as we will have an abundance of spares from the higher grades.

Board approval would be this spring for a summer 2024 delivery.

Description:  On Tuesday evening, Dr. Wilkey will provide a verbal update on the school lunch RFP process thus far.  Attached you will find documentation to support the information that will be shared.  

Description: 

The Committee of the Whole will meet on Tuesday, February 13, 2024, at 5:45 pm in the Milne Grove Gymnasium.  The agenda discussion items are listed below.  All members are invited to attend the meeting.

Committee Discussion Items

• Strategic Plan Subcommittee Report

• Finish Reviewing Policies from Press Issue 113

Information discussed at the meeting will be reviewed by the full board during the Board reports/discussion items portion of the meeting on Tuesday.  I look forward to seeing all board members who can attend on Tuesday at 5:45 pm in the MG Gym.

Description: 

RECOMMENDATION

Approve the 2024-2025 school calendar as presented.
 

BACKGROUND

Information has been shared with the Board and staff. Staff and parents have been notified of the hearing held at the beginning of the meeting this evening.

It is recommended the Board of Education approve the 2024-2025 school calendar as presented.

Description: 

RECOMMENDATION

It is recommended that the District 91 Board of Education increase the current student registration fees, technology fee, activity/athletic fees, and band fees by 5% (CPI) per student.

 

BACKGROUND

Each year the Board of Education needs to establish school fees for the following school year. Below are the dates we are tentatively planning for registration:

• Returning and New Student Early Bird Registration (March 18 - May 30)

• In-person opportunity to finalize registration; families can walk in at KG door 4 between 3:30-6pm

• Returning & New Student Regular Registration (May 31 - July 18)  

• In person service and registration assistance are invited to attend one of the two drop in dates at Kelvin Grove Door 4, June 13th from 3 - 6pm & July 18th between 8am-10am or 4pm-6pm

Currently the district does not charge an "activity fee" for clubs. Art, Science, Nature, Debate clubs, etc. may charge students a fee, but it goes into the club’s activity account for supplies. These fees do not go into the general account to pay the sponsors.

The athletic fees (fee paid for each athletic activity in which a student participates) offset the cost of supplies, tournaments, supervision, and coaching fees. The band fee helps to offset the cost of the school instruments and director fee.

Additionally, the textbook fee includes the prorated annual cost of the Chromebooks and cases that were purchased in order to implement a 1:1 technology model for all students in the district starting the 2021-2022 school year.
 

RECOMMENDATION

It is recommended that the District 91 Board of Education increase the current student registration fees, technology fees, activity/athletic, and band fees by 5% (CPI) per student.  We also recommend removing the late payment fee and keeping all fees the same after June 1st regular registration like we did this past school year.

 

Resulting 2024-2025 Fees:

Description: 

Recommendation: 

To adopt the updated/revised/new policies below as discussed during the first reading at the December 2023 regular meeting and discussed at the Board Committee of the Whole meeting at 5:45 pm on January 9th and February 13th before the regular board meeting.


  

Description: 

RECOMMENDATION

Closed session minutes noted in the table provided as "open" are no longer considered to be confidential and can be opened. Closed session minutes as noted with "closed" should remain closed as they contain information still considered to be confidential.

To destroy existing taped closed session minutes through July 2022.  The required 18-month period for saving taped minutes has expired, allowing us to destroy these tapes.


BACKGROUND

We are required by law to review the Closed Session minutes every six months to determine if they still need to remain closed. We are also required to tape closed session meetings and save such tapes for a period of 18 months.

I will provide copies of the closed session minutes (marked confidential) for you to review during the scheduled closed session. 

It is my recommendation that the Board of Education open the closed session minutes that are marked with "open" in the table as information is no longer considered to be confidential. Closed session minutes labeled "closed" in the table should remain closed as they contain information still considered to be confidential.

In addition, it is recommended that the board approve the destruction of taped closed session minutes through July 25, 2022.  The required 18-month period for saving taped minutes has expired, allowing us to destroy these tapes.

Description: 

RECOMMENDATION

Accept the monetary donation from Lawn Lodge to support our Family Support account. 

 

BACKGROUND

The Lawn Lodge donated a check in the amount of $1000 for our Family Support account at the district level.  The funding from this account goes to support families with expenses that they cannot afford, but is an expense that is needed for the student to gain equitable access to safety and health needs when it comes to educating the student(s).

Description: 

Description:  The appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees of the District or legal counsel for the District, including hearing testimony on a complaint lodged against an employee or against legal counsel for the District to determine its validity. [1] However, a meeting to consider an increase in compensation to a specific employee of a public body that is subject to the Local Government Wage Increase Transparency Act may not be closed and shall be open to the public and posted and held in accordance the [the Open Meetings Act].  5 ILCS 120/2(c)(1), as amended by P.A. 99-646