D41 Board Highlights

Following is a summary of the Board of Education (BOE) meeting held on August 27, 2007. Minutes are posted on www.d41.org once approved.

REVIEW OF STORM IMPACT and RESPONSE
Superintendent Dr. Ann Riebock reported on the District’s response to the extreme weather of Thursday, Aug. 23 which hit near dismissal time on the second day of school. The administration has been debriefing to examine its emergency response, specifically those things that did not work well. Dr. Riebock said that school staff displayed calm and resolve in putting child safety foremost, that the District’s weather radios did not issue alarms at Central Services or at the elementary schools, and that the District lost power and communication. Four of the five District schools delayed dismissal and implemented severe weather procedures. However, with a dismissal time of 3:05 p.m., 15-20 minutes earlier than the other schools, Churchill’s dismissal was underway when the storm hit. Principal Scott Klespitz had been monitoring the weather on the Internet and watching the sky, and had information that a storm could be expected around 3:30 p.m. When the storm hit at 3:10 p.m., some students were already on their way home. Staff immediately halted dismissal and began bringing students still on campus back inside the building. Dr. Riebock and Principal Klespitz have met with Churchill parents to discuss their concerns and questions. District officials have also met with the Glen Ellyn Police Department and District transportation provider Laidlaw Educational Services to review the events of the day and collect information that will be used to improved emergency processes.

Next Steps
The District plans to review and improve its emergency processes, procedures, training and equipment in conjunction with a comprehensive security audit.

NEXT MEETING
The next regular BOE meetings will be held Sept. 10 and 17. A special BOE meeting is set for Sept. 12. Meetings are held in Central Services, 793 N. Main St., Glen Ellyn at 7:30 p.m. unless otherwise noted. Other special meetings may be called and their agendas will be posted on www.d41.org at least 48 hours in advance of the meeting.

WATCHD.O.G.S. UPDATE
At its meeting Aug. 13, the BOE put the WatchD.O.G.S. program on hold; shortly thereafter, letters explaining the decision were mailed to District families. Since that time, the District has received a number of questions about the reason for this action. Dr. Riebock explained that the program’s effectiveness in involving dads is not the issue. Rather, the action is part of an effort to encourage broader parent participation by ensuring that there are accessible, consistent and meaningful opportunities for all parents. WatchD.O.G.S. is a father and father-figure involvement program that was piloted in 2004 and established District-wide in 2005. Feedback has been consistently mixed and has included support, as well as concerns about the learning environment, exclusion and other issues. The District has implemented modifications including scheduling parameters and a WatchD.O.G.S. code of conduct but the concerns have remained.

Next Steps
The District’s Continuous Improvement Team will help define the mission and scope of a stakeholder group that will be convened regarding parent involvement opportunities.

BOARD ADOPTS 2007-2008 BUDGET
Following a public hearing, the Board of Education (BOE) approved a $41,546,771 budget covering July 1, 2007 through June 30, 2008. The document outlines how the District expects to meet educational needs consistent with the long-range plan. The budget is a culminating document growing out of planning for Fiscal Year 2007-2008 that has taken place over the course of the year. About 85% of District revenues come from local property taxes, and about 80% of expenditures go toward salaries and benefits for the District’s 430 full- and part-time employees. This also includes salary costs for substitutes and other non-contractual staff such as lunchroom monitors. The document outlines an expected 7% increase in revenues. This increase is largely due to a rise in real estate taxes consistent with the 2.5% increase in CPI (Consumer Price Index) and additional dollars from taxes on new construction. The budget reflects a proposed 8% increase in expenditures over last year's budget. Among the reasons are a 3% increase in salaries, a 21% increase in benefit costs (approximately 9% of which is due to rising health insurance costs), and a 29% increase in purchased-service costs. Budgeted activities related to space include a master facilities study, a space utilization study and a stormwater analysis for all district properties. Among the other costs that are budgeted for are a district-wide security study, curriculum program evaluations and textbook purchases. The budget includes adequate working cash and fund balances, measures which are used as criteria of financial health by the Illinois State Board of Education.

Next Steps
The budget will be posted on www.d41.org and available at all D41 buildings. The budget is a plan, and spending decisions are reviewed by the administration and the BOE over the course of the year. (Expenditures of more than $10,000 must be approved by the BOE in a public session.)

APPROVAL OF STORMWATER STUDY, RFPs FOR SPACE and SECURITY STUDIES
The BOE approved steps toward acquiring data which will help the District develop a Master Facilities Plan to address facility needs for the next 15-20 years. The BOE directed the administration to create a Request For Proposal (RFP) for a space utilization study to determine if building space is being maximized. It also approved the RFP process for a security study to determine what capital improvements or staff development will be needed to ensure the safety of our buildings and the effectiveness of our emergency processes and procedures. The BOE also approved a stormwater study to be coordinated by District architects FGM. All District properties will encounter stormwater issues for any future building or site improvement projects. The stormwater study will yield detention options for areas that may be disturbed in the future. The study will not include Benjamin Franklin, as a similar study was done for that site last year in connection with parking lot improvements. The vacant Spalding site will not be included, but a study would be done if improvements or construction are considered for that site at a future date.

Next Steps
RFPs for the Space Utilization and the Security studies will be brought before the BOE for consideration at a future date at which time the BOE will review costs and recommended vendor proposals. Work will commence on the stormwater study at a cost of $15,400 plus architectural coordination fees.

ORGANIZATIONAL WORK AT HADLEY APPROVED
The BOE approved $15,600 in contracted services with a consultant to work with staff on systemic improvement at Hadley Junior High. Specific components will include an evaluation of the exploratory program, review of the school’s scheduling model and use of time, improving teamwork and communication both internally and externally. Consultant Dr. Ron Williamson of Eastern Michigan University is a nationally-known middle school expert, author of many professional books and leader in professional organizations representing the interests of middle schools. Williamson has worked with Hadley in an evaluation of its Exploratory program and is currently working with the school to develop a Mission and Beliefs statement; the additional work will build on that foundation.

Next Steps
The scope of work will include a focus on team structure, scheduling, structure of the school day and exploratory programming.

DEMOGRAPHIC VOTE ANALYSIS
The BOE discussed the demographic analysis provided to it by a volunteer as a followup to the 2007 facilities referendum. The study provided information on voter turnout by gender, age, location and other characteristics. Consistent with the pre-election canvassing, the analysis showed that parents did not support the referendum in sufficient numbers to pass the measure. Churchill and Forest Glen area parents supported the measure; parents in the Ben Franklin, Lincoln and Hadley areas did not. After discussing the value of a phone survey to find out more about voter motivations, the BOE decided that it would not yield enough new information to be worth the estimated cost of $13,000-$15,000. Superintendent Dr. Ann Riebock stressed that there will be multiple opportunities for community members to give input on and become involved in planning for the future of District facilities as the process for developing a master facilities plan unfolds.

Please direct your questions or comments to our Communications Director, Julie Worthen at jworthen@d41.org. We ask that you do not reply directly to this email. Thank you!

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