ACROSS THE BOARD
District 303 Committee Meetings
Upcoming Meetings
April 13, 2020 at 7:00 p.m.
Policy Committee
April 20, 2020 at 5:00 p.m.
Learning and Teaching Committee
April 20, 2020 at 5:30 p.m.
Business Services
April 27, 2020 at 5:30 p.m.
Special School Board
At the beginning of the meeting, School Board President Carolyn Waibel took the opportunity to let the students, families, staff members, and community members know that the school board cares. She also thanked Dr. Pearson and his administrative team for their dedication and leadership over the last several weeks, the employee associations for their hard work to implement the remote learning plan and continue to educate all our students. Ms. Waibel recognized the efforts of district families for taking on the role of educator at home to help facilitate their children’s learning.
Dr. Pearson reviewed the timeline of communication by the District related to COVID-19 and remote learning that began on February 28. The District provided regular updates to families as we received information from the Governor’s Office and the Illinois State Board of Education. The District launched new pages on the District website with resources on COVID-19, remote learning, technical supports, and community meal resources.
Dr. Pearson also reviewed the process by which the District proactively sent devices home with students on March 13 in anticipation of e-Learning. At the same time, educators from across the District came together to design e-learning and plan for its roll out on March 17. When the Governor extended remote learning for all schools through the end of April, our staff members worked diligently (even over spring break) to plan. In addition, the technology department staff spent countless hours gathering devices from the elementary schools that are being distributed to families with children in kindergarten through second grades.
The District has developed procedures to ensure that families across the District have access to meals. We began by having grab-and-go meals at Thompson Middle School, but that has expanded to Anderson, Wasco, and four apartment complexes in St. Charles.
Learning and Teaching and Business Services Committees
The two committees held a joint meeting with Mr. McNally and Mrs. Barker serving as committee co-chairs for Learning and Teaching and Mr. Manheim and Mrs. Fairgrieve serving as committee co-chairs for Business Services.
Learning & Teaching Committee
Members of the Learning and Teaching Department provided information in writing and voiced presentations about curriculum maps and wellness resources.
The Board discussed the video presentation by Mr. Blomquist, SCEA President, about an early release plan for students in grades K-8 beginning with the 2020-2021 school year. The district assured members of the School Board that we have been in discussions with community partners about providing elementary child care on those days.
Dr. Melissa Byrne, Director of College and Career Readiness, included the timeline for opening the NorthEast Academy that had been discussed by the Board in September. Administration is asking the School Board to approve the timeline on April 13.