Across the Board in D303
Notes from the District 303 School Board Meeting
December 13, 2021
All agenda items, documents, and recorded meetings are available to view on BoardBook.
School Board
Heidi Fairgrieve, Vice President
Becky McCabe, Secretary
Kate Bell
Joseph Lackner
Ed McNally
Matthew Kuschert
School Board meetings are held on the second Monday of the month at the Haines Center until further notice. All meetings begin at 7:00 p.m. and the public is invited to attend. Agenda packets are available at district.d303.org.
Next School Board Meeting:
January 10, 2021
Haines Center
Public Hearing for 2021 Taxes
Superintendent’s Report
Micah Wilson is a State Champion in Track
St. Charles East High School senior Micah Wilson won first place in State in both the 3 mile cross country race, which he ran in 14:11, and the 2 mile cross country race, which he ran in 9:11. Dr. Pearson indicated that this is the first time in the history of St. Charles East High School that we have had a track state champion. Micah plans to attend University of Wisconsin Madison next year.Three students win QuestBridge Scholarships
Three students from East High School won QuestBridge scholarships. The scholarships are open and available to students who may need some assistance. The process is to match students with highly selective research universities and liberal arts colleges in the US. This is the first time that the district has had students who won these scholarships. The students are:
- Melissa Gomez who will attend Dennison
- George Holm who will attend Yale
- Jazmin Morales who will attend Princeton
We would like to express gratitude to the St. Charles East High School Counselors Jamie Swenson and Katie Perkins for all the work they did to support our students as they pursued this amazing opportunity. #qualitystaff
John Baird wins Paul Harris Award
Morning Rotary Club recognized John Baird, Assistant Superintendent of Operations, with the Paul Harris Award. The Award pays tribute to a community member whose life demonstrates a shared purpose with the objectives of the Rotary Foundation.
For Discussion
The School Board began the school year by asking the CAC to discuss public comment and two-way communication with the Board. Those recommendations will be made as part of the January 10 meeting.
Mrs. McCabe discussed the possibility of CAC beginning work on the Strategic Plan and the Portrait of a Graduate.
The CAC co-chairs also would like to use the committee as part of the Equity Audit, though that will not be ready yet by January. The board will have to see how the organization charged with the Equity Audit sees the CAC fitting into their work.
Mrs. Fairgrieve asked to consider how to get broader community involvement in the Strategic Plan beyond the CAC. Mrs. McCabe noted that this could be a good topic for the CAC to discuss.
In January, students from both middle and high schools will begin serving on the CAC.
There will be students from both high schools and middle schools serving on the CAC. Mrs. Carol Smith, Director of Communications and Community Relations, explained the selection process of these students.
High school assistant principals identified students, who are not necessarily serving on the Superintendent's Leadership Council, who showed interest in a leadership role.
Nine high school students applied. Mrs. McCabe and Mrs. Bell will meet with them before the CAC Executive Team meeting on January 13.
Four students from both middle schools will also be representatives on the committee. Mrs. Smith will work with the middle school principals on communication to parents about the CAC and the role students will play.
Consent Agenda
The consent agenda, without item K, was approved by a vote of 7-0.
The consent agenda includes items such as:- the minutes from previous committee meetings
- the personnel report
- list of bills
- review of closed session minutes in accordance to the Open Meetings Act
- technology renewals
- gifts and donations to the district
Item K: Disposal of Surplus Technology Equipment
Mr. Lackner asked for it to be pulled from the Consent Agenda to discuss further.
- Item K was proposed at the Business Services Committee Meeting on November 29.
- Mr. Lackner asked if instead of disposing of the devices, we could make them available for purchase by community members.
- Mr. Matt Smith, Executive Director of Information Technology, said that the devices are old and often, if the devices are sold, the district would be responsible for the maintenance of the devices.
Item K was approved by a vote of 7-0
For Action
Discussed at the beginning of the meeting.
Motion to approve the Fiscal Year 2020-2021 Budget Carry-Over passed 7-0
Unused funds of $650,828 from fiscal year 2020-2021 will be carried over to fiscal year 2021-2022 for the Educational Fund balance. School administrators submitted plans on how they plan to use these funds within their schools. The requests total $334,934.
Motion to approve Summer 2022 Capital Projects Equipment Purchases passed 7-0
Discussed in Business Services Committee Meeting on November 29.
The purchase of equipment through a joint purchasing cooperative will help to make sure that the district has equipment available for use in the summer due to the supply chain issues. Equipment costs should not exceed $700,000.
Motion to approve Purchase of Buses for Transportation Department passed 7–0
Discussed in Business Services Committee Meeting on November 29.
The district will purchase eight 71-passenger buses and two 14-passenger activity buses for a total cost of $694,700
Motion to approve Purchase of Six John Deere Commercial Mowers passed 7–0
Discussed in Business Services Committee Meeting on November 29.
The district will purchase 6 commercial mowers as per the regular rotation of vehicles for a total cost of $122,158.
Motion to approve data Center Storage Refresh and Expansion passed 7-0
Discussed in Business Services Committee Meeting on November 29.
The district will replace and expand the storage array with a 5-year support contract for a total cost of $188,000.
Motion to approve staff Recognition Payment Resolution passed 5-0
- Dr. Pearson clarified that discussion for this item is allowed to happen in closed session because it falls under collective negotiating and compensation.
- Mr. Mark Moore, Assistant Superintendent of Leadership and Administrative Services, drafted the resolution and it was approved by legal counsel.
- Mr. Attaway, Assistant Superintendent of Business Services, explained the total cost to the district to be roughly $2,160,000.
Mr. Lackner and Mr. McNally abstained because they have spouses employed by the district.
Motion to approve the Strategic Planning Proposal passed 7-0
Discussed in Business Services Committee Meeting on November 29.
The administration recommends that Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates (HYA) assist District 303 with a strategic plan at a cost of $24,500.
Motion to approve the Equity Audit passed 7-0
Discussed in Learning & Teaching Committee Meeting on November 15.
The administration recommends that the district contract with Consortium for Education Change (CEC) to conduct the equity audit because the organization most closely aligns with the following criteria:
- a comprehensive review of student outcome data
- comprehensive representation of all stakeholder voices
- an in-depth report of finding
- fiscally reasonable
- provide an array of educational services
For Information
- October 31, 2021 Financial Report for CUSD 303 and Mid Valley
- June 30, 2021 Audit
- Freedom of Information Act Requests
- District Enrollment
- COVID-19 Financial Impact Summary
There were no comments related to these items.