Board Briefs
January 13, 2020
Deerfield Public School District 109
Debate Recognition
The Board recognized Caruso Middle School's Debate Team who won the League Championship for the third year in a row. The students said some of their favorite topics to debate were artificial intelligence and the Iran Nuclear Deal.
Debate Team Members: Camilla Amstutz, Rishi Bandhuvula, Rebecca Choi, Aurin Dasgupta, Abigail DiModica, Will Driscoll, Max Drumke, Ella Friedman, Trevor Gross, Jada Harris, Danielle Kaplan, Josh Koyfman, Sandy Levin, Ethan Levine, Yazan Nabhan, Zane Nabhan, Jake Perlman, Harper Ransburg, Kevin Sabau, Sahana Shah, Jon Shapkarov, Joseph Shapkarov, Olga Shinkarev, Gwen Strickland, and Anjimin Zhangson
ILMEA Recognition
The Board recognized some amazing choral students who received a special honor through the Illinois Music Education Association (ILMEA). These students all received an award at a competition hosted by the ILMEA.
Caruso Choir: Carly Elbaum, Serena Devarapalli, Addy Gross, Alexander Iordanov, Daniela Muñoz, Natalia Muñoz, Karin Prince, and Myra Singh
Shepard Choir: Jessica Gordon, Aileen Jung, Juliana Canastra, Mikey Evarts, Nicoella Kirov, Hannah Pfau, and Mira McManamna
Caruso Presentation
Caruso students, along with their activity sponsors, gave a presentation to the Board about various extra-curricular activities at Caruso Middle School. There was a drone demonstration and students announced that the musical they are putting on this year is The Wizard of Oz!
View the presentation here.
Introduction of Officer Maldonado
Superintendent Dr. McConnell introduced Officer Maldonado, the District's new School Resource Officer (SRO), to the Board and community. As the SRO, Officer Maldonado will provide support to all District 109 schools and her work in District 109 will focus on:
Assisting with the delivery of instruction on substance abuse awareness, cyber-safety, and other topics;
Acting as the District’s DARE officer;
Providing wraparound supports for families in need;
Serving as a consistent point of contact between the District and the Deerfield Police;
Supporting professional learning for District 109 staff;
Engaging and educating our parent community on topics of importance;
And, serving as a positive role model for students.
Middle School Schedule
Teachers Rebecca Frase, Lior Tomer, Jennifer Feldberg, Susie Fejer, and Julie Witczak, supported by Dr. John Filippi and Danielle Arnold, presented the committee recommendation for the middle school schedule to the Board. The modified team schedule maintains the core teachers' plan time, maintains teaming, replaces launch, extends world language to three years, modifies the A/B schedule, and has no reduction in math or ELA instructional minutes.
More details can be found in the presentation.
2020-21 Supply & Material Fee Recommendation
For the 2020-2021 school year, the material and supply fee will be $175 with an early bird discount of $25 offered if the fee is paid on or before the fee due date of June 26, 2020. An email with more details about fees will be sent out in the spring.
Action Items
The Closed Session meeting minutes from November 18, 2019, were approved.
The Closed Session meeting minutes from December 16, 2019, were approved.
The destruction of closed session recordings from July 12, 2018, was approved.
Bills for payment were approved.
The quarterly treasurer's report for December 2019 was approved.
Committee Reports
Policy Committee
The Policy Committee will meet on February 10, 2020.
Facilities Development Committee (FDC)
FDC will meet on February 4, 2020.
Open Community Participation
A parent stated that she, along with other parents, feel that District 109 far exceeds other districts in the area. The parent thanked the Board and the administration for their service and dedication.
A parent stated that the proposed middle school schedule, backed by teachers, presents a great opportunity for the District. The parent spoke in support of world language going back to three years in the proposed schedule.
Upcoming Meetings
Monday, February 10, 2020 - Regular Board Meeting
Monday, March 9, 2020 - Committee of the Whole Meeting
Monday, March 30, 2020 - Regular Board Meeting
