Board Briefs
Highlights from the May 20, 2019 BOE meeting
Board Briefs is a newsletter-style overview of the highlights of the Board of Education's discussion and action. You can find the meeting agenda online here, and look for minutes of the meeting to be posted after they are approved at the next BOE meeting (June 17, 2019).
Community Comments
In the first opportunity for input, the following community members spoke:
- Alex Botvinnik, parent, expressed that the enrichment programs have been valuable to his children and the enrichment providers are a gift to the community. He said that he is concerned about the fees that enrichment providers must pay to rent space at the District.
- Mary Beth Darr, parent, also spoke about the enrichment programs. She said that added costs to small businesses that offer programming would not be sustainable. She worries that they would have to raise costs for families, or not offer programming. She said that the increase in fees would be a hardship for some families.
Superintendent Dr. Dane Delli explained that the District administration is holding a meeting with enrichment providers this week.
Discussion
Pilot Learning Spaces
Alison Keller, instructional innovation specialist who serves as co-chair of the learning spaces committee, said that the process to transform learning spaces and instruction has been in the works for several years.
The committee visited other schools and learning environments and conducted research when considering the design of the classrooms. They learned that space has a direct and profound impact on student learning. They developed a shared vision for D34 learning spaces and what instruction looks like in those spaces.
Pilot classroom teachers Matt Vogel, (2nd grade, Lyon) Mandy Kirsch (4th grade, Pleasant Ridge), Jenny Levin (2nd grade, Henking), and Kris Lacivita (3rd grade, Hoffman), gave examples from their classrooms of how they have seen the spaces encourage:
- Problem solving
- Inclusivity
- Choice
- Ownership
- Collaboration
Matt Vogel said that his second grade students take ownership of the classroom, and the community. They work collaboratively on solutions. Jenny Levin said that students treasure the space and the furniture and materials in it; they feel welcome into the space and a part of a classroom family.
The District will continue to evaluate and improve the spaces and instruction.
Space Utilization Study
Ron Richardson and Troy Kerr from FGM Architects presented the results of the space utilization study, which was a months' long review of the schools and the use of space. They outlined the process for the study, and listed the "Priority 1" needs per building:
Middle Schools:
Attea: None
Springman:
Cafeteria size/layout
Locker room renovations
Special education spaces for each teacher
Circulation choke points
Stair redesign
Administrative office consolidation
Additional conference spaces
Staff lounge
Drop-off/pick-up circulation
Intermediate Schools:
Glen Grove: Building/program storage
Hoffman:
Undersized multipurpose room
Administrative office consolidation
Building/program storage
Classroom storage
Office for speech pathologist
Pleasant Ridge:
Building/program storage
Classroom storage
Primary Schools:
Henking:
Full-day kindergarten
Undersized multipurpose room
Parking
Storage in mobile units
Building/program storage
Classroom storage
Lyon:
Full-day kindergarten
Undersized multipurpose room
Added toilet rooms
Assistant principal’s office
Dedicated conference space
Larger nurse’s office
Building/program storage
Classroom storage
Westbrook:
Full-day kindergarten
Early childhood/pre-K
Eliminate mobile units
Small classrooms
Additional parking
Safer drop-off/pick-up
Special education space (sensory, ELL, adaptive PE, resource rooms)
FGM developed 10 tracks to address the needs. These needs are in addition to those needs uncovered in the facilities assessment, estimated at $72M.
They gave examples of the ideas they studied, including:
- Reducing class sizes (the number of students per class)
- Right-sizing classrooms (increasing the physical size)
- Implementing full-day kindergarten, which would require an increase of 13 classrooms and increased core spaces
Mr. Richardson explained that the concepts presented are preliminary ideas. Here is an overview of the tracks:
Dr. Delli said that the next step for the Board is to decide if they would like to have a committee that works with the administration and architects to vet the concepts further. The Board expressed that they will select two members to be on this committee.
It will be necessary to narrow the scope; therefore, it will be important to get stakeholder input to understand the priorities of the community. The administration will begin work on surveys to gain this input.
In response to a question from a Board member, Dr. Delli said that if a referendum does not pass, the District would have to cut programming in order to pay for the required repairs. Dr. Delli also said that the administration would ask the Board to commission a Geographic Information System study to get an in-depth review of demographics and geographics, and get more information to understand future enrollment. He explained that study also would help in reviewing shifts in enrollment that impact the split of students from intermediate schools going to the middle schools. In the past, the split used to be 50%-50%. However, it has shifted. At Hoffman, 65% of students attend Springman, and 35% attend Attea.
Fiscal Year 2020 Tentative Budget
The final budget will be presented in August. At the next meeting, the administration will ask the Board to approve a resolution to hold a public hearing on the budget in September.
Community Comments
Meet the Board of Education
Glenview District 34 is governed by a seven-person Board of Education, elected by the community, that consists of the following individuals:
- Natalie Jachtorowycz (President)
- Jim Baumstark (Vice President)
- John Heggie
- Katie Jones
- Mike Korman
- Scott Nelson
- Diane Stefani
You can contact the Board at board@glenview34.org.
About Us
Email: news@glenview34.org
Website: www.glenview34.org
Location: 1401 Greenwood Road, Glenview, IL, USA
Phone: 847-998-5000
Facebook: facebook.com/glenview34
Twitter: @glenview34