Sangamon Sun

Springfield Public Schools Board of Education met July 10.

Here is the minutes provided by the Board:

Present: Adam Lopez, President

Julie Hammers, Board Secretary

Charles Flamini Blake Handley Donna Moore J. Michael Zimmers

Jennifer Gill, Superintendent

Call to Order

1.1 Roll Call President Lopez called the meeting to order.

Approval of Executive Session

Mr. Zimmers moved to adjourn to Executive Session to consider the following matters:

2.1 The Appointment, Employment, or Dismissal of Employees – 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(1) 2.2 Student Discipline and Other Matters Concerning Individual Students – 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(9,10)

Motion seconded by Mrs. Moore and carried by the following vote:

Those voting “aye”: Flamini, Handley, Lopez, Moore, Zimmers Those voting “no”: None.

Adjournment to Executive Session The meeting adjourned at 5:34 p.m. and reconvened at 6:35 p.m. Upon reconvening, it was noted that five Board members were present.

President's Report

3.1 President's Comments Mr. Lopez made the routine announcement that public comment on published agenda items would occur during the Public Comments portion of the meeting. He instructed those interested in addressing the Board to fill out the required Public Participation at Board Meetings Form and submit it to Ms. Frankie Baker Brown in the front row of the audience. Additionally, he reminded those interested in addressing the Board that comments are limited to three minutes.

Mr. Lopez asked for a moment of silence for Enos Elementary School teacher, Pam Wall, who passed away recently. A moment of silence was observed.

Mr. Lopez then read the following statement regarding the impending vacancy in Sub-district 3:

“On June 19, 2017, I announced Mr. Handley’s resignation from his “seat” as representative of Sub-District No. 3. The vacancy will exist and Mr. Handley’s resignation will take effect immediately following tonight’s meeting.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Illinois School Code, Mrs. Gill’s office will notify the Regional Superintendent’s Office of the vacancy in writing tomorrow.

The remaining Board members will select a temporary Board Member to serve in Mr. Handley’s place until the first meeting of May 2019 when the newly elected Board member will take her/his place. Under the School Code, the selection process is time sensitive, and the Board will move swiftly to name an interim member.

To be appointed to fill a School Board vacancy, a person must have the same qualifications as the person he/she was appointed to replace. On the date of the appointment, he/she must be at least 18 years of age, a resident of the State and the District for at least one (1) year preceding appointment, a registered voter, not a school trustee or school treasurer and shall not be a child sex offender. The successor board member must be an inhabitant of the particular area (or Sub- District) from which his predecessor was elected if residential requirements apply.

The Board invites any qualified resident of Sub-District 3 who is interested in serving to write to me, Adam Lopez, Board President, 1900 West Monroe, and provide me with (1) your contact information; (2) a short statement of the reason(s) why you would like to serve on the Board; and (3) a resume outlining any qualifications you feel you have to be a Board member. All nominations are due by July 19, 2017, at 4:30 p.m.

If the Board decides to conduct interviews, you will be notified. Any interviews shall take place prior to the Board meeting on July 24, 2017.”

Mr. Lopez wished Mr. Handley well in his future endeavors and thanked him for his dedicated service to the community and District. Next, Mr. Lopez reported that he recently attended a fundraiser for a student from Lanphier High School that has brain cancer. He asked the community to keep the student and his family in their thoughts and prayers.

3.2 Board Salutes Mr. Flamini saluted Mr. Handley for his exceptional service to the Board and school district.

Mr. Zimmers also saluted Mr. Handley. He expressed his appreciation for representation Mr. Handley provided to his constituents. Next, Mr. Zimmers saluted State of Illinois Representative Sara Wojcicki Jimenez for how she has represented her constituents during the recent legislative session.

Mrs. Moore saluted Mr. Handley, also. She expressed appreciation for his demeanor and representation of his constituency.

Mr. Handley thanked the other members for their guidance during his time on the Board and kind words. He thanked his family for their patience and support. He expressed confidence in the current leadership of Mr. Lopez and Mrs. Gill. He thanked the community for their support during his tenure. Lastly, he reported that while he is moving out of his own sub-district, he would remain on the north end of Springfield.

Student Election Judge-in-Training Program Mr. Lopez introduced Sangamon County Clerk Don Gray. Mr. Gray thanked the Board for providing him the opportunity to speak. Next, Mr. Gray complimented Mr. Handley on his professionalism during his tenure.

Mr. Gray then thanked the District for partnering with his office to provide students with the opportunity to become involved in the November 2016 election process through an election judge-in-training program. He reported that 30 students participated in the program. Lastly, Mr. Gray offered to partner again with the District to provide a mobile birth certificate unit for registration day and Kindergarten Night use. Mrs. Gill thanked Mr. Gray for reaching out to the District on these partnerships.

Discussion Items

4.1 Old Business There was no old business at this time.

4.2 New Business There was no new business at this time.

Presentations To The Board

5.1 There were no presentations to the Board at this time.

Business Reports

6.1 Financial Report Board members were provided with copies of the Monthly Financial Report for June 2017. Copies have been filed with the Official Minutes and are available for public viewing on the Electronic School Board.

Mr. Joe Bascio, Business Manager, reported that the Education Fund saw revenues of approximately $34 million and expenditures of approximately $13.4 million. The Operations and Maintenance fund saw revenues of approximately $5.7 million and expenditures of approximately $1.5 million. Outstanding State payments total approximately $7.9 million.

Superintendent's Report

7.1 Superintendent's Report Mrs. Gill reported that the General Assembly has passed a budget, which will provide $350 million more for K-12 education. However, the bill requires an evidence-based model of funding that has yet to be approved. Currently there are two bills in the legislature that address this requirement, Senate Bill 1 and a separate bill proposed by Senator Barickman. Senate Bill 1 has been passed by the General Assembly but has not been sent to the Governor and seems to have the most traction currently. Senator Barickman’s bill may be slightly more beneficial to the Springfield Public School District and more palatable to the Governor, but before General State Aid will be distributed to school districts, one of these models, or a viable alternative, will need to be passed and signed by the Governor. Mrs. Gill applauded Senators Manar and Barickman for their work to provide equitable funding.

Mrs. Gill then provided information on the implications of a possible property tax freeze. Mr. Zimmers asked for an update regarding federal Title II funding. Mrs. Gill reported that there has been no change to the program funding, as of yet.

Next, Mrs. Gill reported that the proration for transportation would increase under the new budget from 75% proration to an 80% proration. This will increase the amount of reimbursement the District receives for transportation. Mrs. Gill then provided a brief timeline for the presentation of the District’s budget. She indicated that by the first meeting in August a resolution to begin the budget approval process would be presented to the Board. At the second meeting in August, the Board will be provided with an overview of the budget and where things stand with the passing of an education bill by the General Assembly. The budget will then be provided for approval at the second meeting in September.

Lastly, Mrs. Gill provided a brief update on summer school. She reported that thirty-one students are taking a pre-Advanced Placement (AP) course this summer at Lanphier High School to prepare them for their fall AP classes. She reported that there has been a 40 percent increase in the number of students that are going to take an AP course this fall.

Consent Action Items

8.1 Approval of Consent Action Items Approval of consent action items as listed in the agenda. Resolution: The Superintendent recommends approval of the consent action items 8.2 through 8.6 as described in the corresponding resolutions.

ORIGINAL - Motion Member (Donna Moore) Moved, Member (Blake Handley) Seconded to approve the ORIGINAL motion 'The Superintendent recommends approval of the consent action items 8.2 through 8.6 as described in the corresponding resolutions'. Upon a roll call vote being taken, the vote was: Aye: 5 Nay: 0. The motion Carried. 5 - 0

Those voting “aye”: Flamini, Handley, Lopez, Moore, Zimmers Those voting “no”: None.

8.2 Approval of the Minutes of the Executive Session and the Regular Meeting of June 19, 2017 Resolution: WHEREAS, the Board of Education of Springfield School District 186 reviews the minutes of the regular session and the executive session of the previous Board Meetings; and WHEREAS, copies of these sets of minutes were distributed to the Board in the board packet prior to this meeting; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education approves the aforementioned set of regular session and executive session minutes and directs the Secretary to include them in the official records of the Board of Education meetings.

8.3 Approval of Payroll and Bills Payable Resolution: That the Board of Education approves payroll and bills payable as shown in the attached report.

8.4 Approval of Consultant Services for Cathedral School from Bright Side Training Solutions, LLC Bright Side Training Solutions, LLC. will conduct a one-day workshop to instruct all teachers and administrators at Cathedral School about conscious communication for improved results. Resolution: WHEREAS, Bright Side Training Solutions, LLC. will conduct a one-day workshop to instruct all teachers and administrators at Cathedral School about conscious communication for improved results; and WHEREAS, the training is aligned with Common Core State Standards and will help all teachers improve student achievement in core content areas; and WHEREAS, Bright Side Training Solutions, LLC. is qualified to provide such training and has agreed to provide such training over one day at a total cost of $1,125; and WHEREAS, Bright Side Training Solutions,

LLC consultant services are completely reimbursable through the Title II grant; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education approves the retention of consultant Bright Side Training Solutions, LLC. per the terms identified above and directs the Superintendent to execute the necessary documents on behalf of the Board.

8.5 Approval of a Consulting Agreement with Marty Huitt for BIST Training Workshop schedule - 3 workshop days each session: August 29-September 1 November 13-17 January 9-12 March 19-22 Matheny-Withrow will have separate workshops paid with School Improvement Grant funds. Marty Huitt has been a consultant for the BIST Model for the past seventeen years. Prior to that, she taught students with behavior disorders first in a residential setting and secondly in Liberty Missouri Public Schools. She has worked with students of all ages. BIST stands for Behavior Intervention Support Team and is a model developed to work with kids who do not respond to traditional discipline and classroom management. BIST is an evidence- based model and works in partnership with PBIS. It is a framework of relationship and accountability to help students who struggle make life long changes. The components of BIST are tier two and tier three interventions. When appropriately implemented whole class learning time should increase. The benefits experienced by most schools when implementing this model are reduced office referrals, reduced suspensions, and more positive school (students and adult) climate. The long-term benefit is to be able to reduce the number of repeat suspensions to less that 2% of the school population by creating a prevention-based re-entry format after suspension. The goal is also to identify and support students early in the school year through additional restrictions and supports created and implemented by teachers. In order for schools to effectively implement this model, teachers and administrators need to attend the BIST in-service as well as work individually with Marty to plan and problem solve any concerns around the implementation of BIST. The goal is to not only help schools look at their resources and logistics, but also to assist the adult community to move from a thinking of punishment and forgiveness to a philosophy of teaching and protecting the most difficult students so that they may become productive young adults. Resolution: WHEREAS, Springfield Public School District 186 is constantly looking for ways to improve the knowledge of the staff; and WHEREAS, Marty Huitt, a consultant for the BIST model for the past twelve years, is prepared to present a BIST staff development workshop which is an evidence-based model and works in partnership with PBIS to assist staff in working with kids who do not respond to traditional discipline and classroom management; and WHEREAS, Marty Huitt’s consultant services will be completely reimbursable through Title II funds; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education approves the retention of consultant Marty Huitt to conduct workshops throughout the school year at a cost of $2,200 per day for 12 days for a total cost of $26,400.

8.6 Approval of an Agreement with the Illinois Department of Human Services Resolution: WHEREAS, Illinois Department of Human Services (DHS) and Springfield Public School District 186 are professional entities that are required to administer Rehabilitation Service Programs; and WHEREAS, DHS and Springfield Public School District 186 are interested in strengthening cooperative intergovernmental services to provide Secondary Transitional Experience such as job experiences for students with disabilities; and WHEREAS, DHS is willing and able to provide funding for Secondary Transitional Experience Program (STEP); and WHEREAS, the District is willing to accept the funds for training, evaluation and an employment program that prepares students with disabilities for transition to employment and optimum community participation during and after high school; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education accepts and approves an intergovernmental agreement between the District and DHS on the administration of a STEP contract for the 2017-2018 school year.

Roll Call Action Items

9.1 Approval of Personnel Recommendations Resolution: The Superintendent recommends adoption of the Personnel recommendations as presented.

ORIGINAL - Motion Member (Michael Zimmers) Moved, Member (Blake Handley) Seconded to approve the ORIGINAL motion 'The Superintendent recommends adoption of the Personnel recommendations as presented'. Upon a roll call vote being taken, the vote was: Aye: 5 Nay: 0. The motion Carried. 5 - 0

Those voting “aye”: Flamini, Handley, Lopez, Moore, Zimmers Those voting “no”: None.

9.2 Approval of a Lead Partner Agreement with the Consortium for Educational Change Springfield Public Schools has chosen the Consortium for Educational Change to provide lead partner services for the 2017-2018 school year. These services will work to further the progress of the School Improvement Grant 1003(g) at Matheny-Withrow School. Resolution: The Superintendent recommends adoption of the following resolution: WHEREAS, Springfield School District 186 has chosen the Consortium for Educational Change as the lead partner for the School Improvement Grant at Matheny-Withrow School; and WHEREAS, a requirement of the grant is that each school establish a lead partner; and WHEREAS, a contract between Springfield School District 186 and the Consortium for Educational Change has been developed regarding lead partner services at Matheny-Withrow School for the 2017-2018 school year; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education of Springfield School District 186 approves the contract with the Consortium for Educational Change for the amount of $463,233 to be paid from the School Improvement Grant.

ORIGINAL - Motion Member (Donna Moore) Moved, Member (Blake Handley) Seconded to approve the ORIGINAL motion 'The Superintendent recommends adoption of the following resolution: WHEREAS, Springfield School District 186 has chosen the Consortium for Educational Change as the lead partner for the School Improvement Grant at Matheny-Withrow School; and WHEREAS, a requirement of the grant is that each school establish a lead partner; and WHEREAS, a contract between Springfield School District 186 and the Consortium for Educational Change has been developed regarding lead partner services at Matheny-Withrow School for the 2017-2018 school year; NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Education of Springfield School District 186 approves the contract with the Consortium for Educational Change for the amount of $463,233 to be paid from the School Improvement Grant'. Upon a roll call vote being taken, the vote was: Aye: 5 Nay: 0. The motion Carried. 5 - 0

Those voting “aye”: Flamini, Handley, Lopez, Moore, Zimmers Those voting “no”: None.

Announcements

10.1 Next Regular Meeting — Monday, July 24, 2017, at 5:30 p.m. — Board Room

10.2 Freedom of Information Report

Public Comment

11.1 There was no public comment at this time.

Adjournment

12.1 There being no further business to come before the Board, President Lopez declared the meeting adjourned until Monday, July 24, 2017 at 5:30 p.m.

The meeting adjourned at 7:08 p.m.

http://esbpublic.springfield.k12.il.us/Reference_Library/ESB_Minutes/7.10.17minutes.pdf