November 20, 2025 at 8:30 AM - Board of Education Regular Meeting

We received a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request from Mr. Matt Stockwell, from the Data Branch Research Team. The request sought public records for purchasing data, specifically: 

• Purchase order number (or equivalent)
• Purchase date
• Vendor ID or name
• Department or issuing entity (if available)
• Line item description
• Quantity
• Unit price
• Total price

This request has been fulfilled within the required timeline, and the submitted documentation reflects accurate and up-to-date purchase order history and vendor information.

-Staffing Update: 

• Round of Applause — Administrators Celebrating Staff across the ELC- Allie Seeger and Monique Nemes' letters are attached. 

-Professional Development Update: 

• Planning is underway for our January 5, 2026 Institute Day. On this day, we will gather staff in smaller groups to allow for support for students in districts who have returned from the break. 

-Parent Education Report : 

•  On October 24, 2025, we hosted a workshop in partnership with Protected Tomorrows focused on helping families and educators navigate complex government benefit systems including SSI, SSDI, DAC, Medicaid, and Medicare. The session was well attended, with over 70 participants representing ten different school districts. 
•  We are now preparing for our final Parent/Educator Workshop of 2025, scheduled for Friday, November 21 at 12:30 p.m., to be held at the District 128 Administrative Offices in Vernon Hills. This continued partnership with District 128 reflects our joint commitment to expanding access and engaging more parents and professionals across the region. 

ATTACHMENT: See November 2025 Parent Education Report

-ELC West Update:

• During the last month, staff have participated in administrator-led professional development in the areas of effective teaming and behavior support strategies. In addition, we had a two-day visit from trainers with TEACCH out of North Carolina. The coaching they provide our staff is focused on individualizing the classroom environment for our students through the use of work systems and visual schedules. Since they also spent time in our building throughout last school year, they are getting to know our students and are able to provide very specific, student-centered feedback. 
  
  Our students continue to enjoy community-based instruction in a variety of locations, such as Jewel, Aldi, the library, the mall, and Vernon Hills Public Works. These instructional outings are important in allowing our students to apply the skills they are learning at West on a daily basis in a real life setting.

-Technology Update:

• The ELC has grown significantly over the past five years since relocating to Vernon Hills. As a result, our wireless network now supports more users and devices and is experiencing intermittent connectivity issues. We are engaging Netrix LLC, the original network designer, to conduct a comprehensive assessment. This review will analyze the infrastructure, configuration and access point placement, identify problems, and produce an updated coverage map to ensure consistent, reliable wireless performance across our facility.

-Facilities Update:

• As we shared a few months ago, Jen and I reached out to the vice-president of the company from which we lease our properties due to persistent roof leaks. We met with him and thoroughly explained the recurring issues we have faced regarding the roof leaks. He promptly arranged for an independent roofing company to conduct an inspection and assess the locations of the leaks. This week we were informed that both buildings will be receiving new roofs and skylights. The work has started and will continue through the first of the year, weather permitting.  

-Business/Finance Update:

• On November 13th, we convened our monthly meeting via Zoom with the business managers from the member districts to review the financials for October and to discuss our ongoing collaboration in financial planning. The discussion primarily focused on the adjustments made to the base positions during the True-Up process, particularly regarding student data. Business managers requested further clarification on case loads related specifically to TVI/O&M.