Board Briefs
August 26, 2021
Deerfield Public Schools District 109
Email: esteckling@dps109.org
Website: www.dps109.org
Location: 517 Deerfield Road, Deerfield, IL, USA
Phone: (847) 945-1844
Twitter: @DPS109
Board Meeting Details
This regular Board of Education meeting was held in person at the District Office with no pandemic-related capacity limit. In-person public comment was available for attendees.
1. Call to Order
2. Approval of Meeting Agenda
3. What's Good in 109
Director of Communications Eric Steckling shared highlights from around the six DPS 109 schools. You can see his presentation below.
4. Teacher Presentation: Wilmot Elementary
5. Superintendent's Report
He said that the governor’s announcement about a vaccination mandate for staff will be applied ASAP. He added that the vaccination rate for staff is already very high.
Mr. Simeck said that will be a booster clinic for staff in July. Dr. Filippi will be finalizing details soon.
He acknowledged a Blackboard glitch that delayed the email with the health certification forms today and encouraged families to go ahead and get the form on their school’s website if they don’t want to wait/rely on the daily email.
Mr. Simeck said that we just completed the first round of SHIELD testing and that it is going well. He acknowledged that there are several changes behind the scenes from last year, as how SHIELD is running things with the state. He thanked Dr. Filippi for his work in arranging all of this.
He said we are one of the only districts locally that has begun testing. DPS 109 is eligible for test-to-stay protocols and right now, no student has been quarantined that hasn’t tested positive.
Mr. Simeck said that in terms of COVID notifications, the current LCHD is to only notify close contacts in the event of a case, not the entire community. He also said that we are not sending classroom-wide notifications because LCHD does not have protocol for that.
He mentioned that schools have had climate control issues. Middle school issues have been limited, but all of the elementary schools have had equipment failures and some are waiting for parts that are delayed due to supply-chain shortages.
He said that we need help from all families to help make running school as smooth as possible. Staff are working incredibly hard, and school looks a lot more like school than last year.
Mr. Simeck talked about the mission & vision process and why we are going down this path. He said that organizations that want to remain vibrant go through processes like this and it is not an indication that anything is wrong in the district.
He said that the community and all stakeholders will be a valuable part of this process and will have opportunities to participate, whether through focus groups or ThoughtExchange.
Mr. Simeck congratulated Mr. Steckling and the communications department on winning 7 awards from the Illinois Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association for their work last year.
6. Community Participation Relative to Matters on the Meeting Agenda (Policy 2:230)
INFORMATIONAL ITEMS
7.1. Freedom of Information Requests (Policy 2:250)
7.2. Internal Control Audit Firm
7.3. MOU Team Leader Stipend
7.4. MOU Covid-19 Paid Administrative Leave
7.5. Caruso Auditorium
7.6. Proposed Job Description - Library and Interventions Assistant
7.7. Board of Education Master Schedule of Monthly Reports
ACTION ITEMS
8.1. Consent Agenda*
Personnel items were approved.
Bills for payment were approved.
The July Treasurer's Report was approved.
8.2. Appointment of Kelly Mitchell as IMRF Authorized Agent
8.3. Approval of Traffic Duty MOU
8.4. Approval of Team Leader Stipend MOU
8.5. Approval of COVID-19 Paid Administrative Leave MOU
8.6. Approval of Letter of Engagement with Internal Control Audit Firm
8.7. Approval of Consulting Proposal for Mission, Vision, and Values Work
9. Committee Reports (Policy 2:150)
Mr. Morrison reported that the Policy Committee has an upcoming meeting.
Mr. Kuo said the finance committee will be meeting in October to discuss the levy.
Mr. Begley said a date for the Executive Development Committee’s next meeting will be forthcoming.
10. Open Community Participation (Policy 2:230)
11. Board/Superintendent Other
Mr. Simeck thanked his leadership team and staff on all levels for a successful start to school.
12. Adjournment
Upcoming School Board Meetings
Thursday, September 23, 2021 @ 7 p.m. - Regular Board Meeting
Thursday, October 28, 2021 @ 7 p.m. - Regular Board Meeting