Across the Board in D303
Notes from the District 303 School Board Meeting
December 12, 2022
All agenda items, documents, and recorded meetings are available to view on BoardDocs.
School Board
Joe Lackner, Vice President
Becky McCabe, Secretary
Jillian Barker
Kate Bell
Matthew Kuschert
Ed McNally
Public Hearing to Adopt Aggregate Tax Levy
A public hearing was held to provide an opportunity for the community to share feedback on the Tax Levy for 2022. View the Resolution to Adopt the 2022 Tax Levy in the For Action section below for more details.
Administration has also prepared a frequently asked questions document to further clarify the tax levy set by the District, the tax rate set by the County, and the varying impacts on taxpayers.
Superintendent Report
Recognition of St. Charles East Girls Volleyball Team
Congratulations to the girls volleyball team of St. Charles East for placing 4th in the state championship last month! "In my 36 years of coaching, this team might have the best team chemistry I've ever had," said Coach Jennifer Kull. "I'm blessed to finish my career with them."
Recognition of St. Charles North Girls Swimming and Diving Team
Congratulations to the girls swimming and diving team of St. Charles North for placing 3rd in the state championship! Enya Linson, Izzy Beu, Ellie Bawolek, Tess Stavropoulos also won 1st place in the 400 yard freestyle relay. The team, led by Coach Robert Rooney, presented Dr. Gordon and the Board with state medals to thank them for their support.
Illinois Music Education Association Student Performers
Ten students have been selected to perform at the Illinois Music Education Association (IMEA) state conference on January 25 - 28 in Peoria. Six students will represent St. Charles East, and four will represent St. Charles North.
Belonging at the Middle Schools
The middle schools have been collaborating on creating a culture of belonging in their schools where students feel more welcome and safe. Earlier this year, Thompson created "20 Days to the Thunder Way," which helps students re-learn how to do school and sets clear expectations across all school settings. At Wredling, its SEL Committee has been focusing on lessons like building school culture and finding media balance. The schools have shared these learning opportunities with one another so that they are now implemented across both schools.
Book Reviews at Richmond and Wild Rose
Richmond Intermediate School just completed its One School, One Book initiative, where each family received a copy of the book "Out of my Mind." Students were able to read the book in either English or Spanish, and teachers signed up to record chapters in both languages so that all students could follow along at home.
Wild Rose Elementary recently welcomed author John Schu to school to discuss his book "This is a School." His message focused on the joy of reading and how we connect with stories and characters. Schu plans to return soon to collaborate with staff and discuss another book he's authored, "The Gift of Story."
Listen Learn Return Update
Presented by Scott Harvey, Chief Communications Officer
Listen Learn Return is District 303's initiative to engage with families, community members, staff and students. Over the past several months, the District has been conducting in-person and online surveys, asking participants to share their perspectives on the challenges facing the District, opportunities for growth, and points of pride. The surveys are now complete and the District is analyzing the data to develop action steps, which will be shared during return meetings in 2023.
Feedback was categorized into 13 total themes. The District's initial focus will be to develop action steps from the top four themes. They are, along with their associated keywords:
- Administration: Calendar | Policy | Voice in Decision-making
- Staff: Staffing Shortages | Pay/salary | Professional Development
- Student Services: Behavioral Intervention | Mental Health | Special Education
- Operations: Overcrowding | Safety
District 303 is committed to reviewing ways in which we can address both prominent and infrequent feedback themes through clear and practical action steps. The District asks for patience and continued engagement as we develop action steps that are in the best interest of each student, staff member, parent/guardian and District 303 community member.
Additional feedback from the surveys, along with details on the process, participant demographic information and next steps can be found on the Listen Learn Return website.
Committee Reports
Superintendent Committee Updates
The committee has finalized draft definitions for the three Board-approved values: Belonging, perseverance and achievement. They will also be reviewing and revising the District's current vision statement. The committee will solicit feedback from stakeholders once a final draft of the statement is complete.
Equity Committee
They have been working on defining the strategic initiatives for the equity plan. Feedback from stakeholders will also be solicited on these initiatives.
Board Committee Updates
The Learning & Teaching Committee reviewed and confirmed three final sets of benchmark districts: comparable districts, aspirational elementary districts, and aspirational high school districts. The next meeting is on January 17.
Business Services
See details from the Business Services Committee meeting in the Across the Board Committee report link below. The next meeting is on January 30.
Policy
The Policy Committee discussed the current policy and proposed revisions for Intra-District Transfers. The committee will continue to discuss this topic at the next Policy Committee meeting on January 30.
For Discussion
Policy 2:220 - School Board Meeting Procedure
This discussion item was brought forward to clarify when a Board member can participate in a meeting virtually and how the Board will enact the process moving forward.
Consent Agenda
The consent agenda, without items M and Q, was approved by a vote of 7-0.
The consent agenda includes items such as:
- Minutes from previous committee meetings
- Personnel Reports
- List of Bills, Treasurer's Report, and Payroll
- Six Month Review of Closed Session Minutes Pursuant to the Open Meetings Act
- Fiscal Year 2022 Budget Carry-Over
- Review of Vacant Land
- Heath Insurance Consultant Request for Proposal
- Disposal of Surplus Property
- Access Control Upgrade
- Boiler Replacement
- Health Life Safety Survey
- North High School Pool Plaster Replacement
- End Point Protection and Response Renewal
Item M: Resolution Authorizing the Destruction of Verbatim Recordings of Closed Board Meetings
The Board did not take action on this item during the meeting. There is an exception that allows the Board to go into closed session to review the specifics of this item.
Item Q: K-8 Food Service
Item Q was pulled from the Consent Agenda to get further clarification.
- Approving this item is for the approval to explore the option of a single year contract with a vendor
- Administration will speak with the incumbent service, Organic Life, to ensure the best decision is made
- This decision will be made in advance of a request for proposals
- A contract will not be approved at this time
The motion was approved by a vote of 7-0.
For Action
Resolution to Adopt the 2022 Tax Levy
The motion carries by a vote of 6-1.
On December 12, the District 303 Board approved that tax levy for Fiscal Year 2022-2023. The approval followed a public hearing, in accordance with state law. Previous committee and regular Board meetings held in November explained the tax levy process and set the public hearing date. Recognizing the complexity of this topic, we wanted to provide additional information to clarify the process and the decision’s potential impact on taxpayers.
Following the November Business Services Committee meeting, a summary of that meeting, which detailed the tax levy discussion, was provided in the Across the Board newsletter. This newsletter is distributed to District 303 parents and available on the District website. The committee meeting and tax levy discussion could also be viewed live or following the meeting on the District’s YouTube page.
In addition to this information, Administration has prepared a frequently asked questions document to further clarify the tax levy set by the District, the tax rate set by the County, and the varying impacts on taxpayers.
Fiscal Year 2022 Audit
The motion carries by a vote of 7-0.
SCT&M Memorandum of Understanding for Maintenance Staff Snow Plowing
The motion carries by a vote of 7-0.
This memorandum allows any maintenance employee who was previously a grounds employee for District 303 to plow snow in order to cover a grounds employee who is on leave for three or more days. Coverage from maintenance will rotate.
For Information
Informational reports are typically provided monthly to the Board. There is no action taken.
District 303 Financial Report
Mid Valley Financial Report
FOIA Requests
District Enrollment
New Business
An opportunity for Board members to bring up items that they would like to discuss at a future Board or committee meeting.
- School year calendar
- Prom dates and locations