5/17/19
In This Issue

Maximizing the academic, social, and emotional potential of each student.

Dear Friend of CCSD93,
Inaugural District-Wide Shark Tank a Success! 
As I shared with you last month, 8th graders in Information and Media Literacy classes at both middle schools have been working in groups of 2-4 students on Shark Tank projects this trimester, creating, designing and marketing a useful invention. In addition to building a prototype of their products, they created websites and promotional videos for their inventions to help sell peers on the concepts. Lizzie Bertness, Engineering Manager for local manufacturer Prince Castle, visited all of the classes multiple times to push students to think critically about their products and embrace advanced design thinking concepts used in manufacturing.
Each class held a competition to establish a classroom winner, and then on Wednesday of this week, each winning classroom team competed at Stratford Middle School's Innovation Center in the inaugural CCSD93 District-Wide Shark Tank Competition! Local community business leaders Steve Romanelli, President and COO of Core Pipe Products, and Steve Shei, Vice President of Strategy & Innovation at Prince Castle, served as the "Sharks" for the event, rating each team on originality of idea, quality of prototype, product of promotion, and presentation of the product. After hearing each group's presentation, they asked questions about their products to challenge them to think further and provide greater clarity on purpose and functionality.

Congratulations to the Jay Stream students from HEAP Inc. whose winning product The Craig Backpack helps to lighten the load and make it easier for students who need to carry heavy backpacks! Runner-up products included a vending machine that takes student-earned tokens instead of money, a marker that enables its user to choose from several different colors of ink, an app where well-behaved students can earn rewards from their teachers, and scrunchies that help earn money for cancer research.

The event was a terrific celebration of the students' efforts and I'm extremely pleased that they had the opportunity to work with real-world manufacturers throughout their experience. The students will be visiting Prince Castle and Core Pipe next week on a field trip to gain an even better understanding of the manufacturing process. Find out even more about Wednesday's event by watching the video here!
Students Benefit from CCSD93 Staff Member Independent Study Participation 
Strategic Goal 1 of CCSD93's 2018-23 Strategic Plan prescribes that we provide A Relevant Education for All Students. One unique way that CCSD93 does this is by encouraging our teachers to participate in the CCSD93 Independent Study program, which helps participants to incorporate new and innovative teaching strategies into their classrooms.
 
This year, 44 licensed staff members participated in Independent Study, engaging with new educational technology tools and practices on their own time to help personalize learning for their students. Their projects were aligned to learning standards and to CCSD93's Strategic Plan.
 
They showed off what they've learned this year to peers at CCSD93's Celebration of Learning on Wednesday. It was wonderful to see what these teachers were able to accomplish this year by challenging themselves to take on new methods, tactics, strategies, and tools. Find out more about CCSD93's Independent Study and Celebration of Learning by watching the video linked above!
Thank You
Last night, current and former CCSD93 staff and community members attended a Retirement Reception that the Board and the District put on for me. I was absolutely delighted by a surprise performance from CCSD93's Orchestra, appreciative of the words the guests speakers spoke, and extremely humbled by the Board announcing that they'll name Elsie Johnson School's innovation Center after me. I thank everyone involved from the bottom of my heart for contributing to a special evening that I'll never forget. 
CCSD93 in 93 Seconds:
Liz Sanchez EL Parapro at Carol Stream 
Liz Sanchez is an English Learner Paraprofessional at Carol Stream School. She specializes in helping students whose first language isn't English succeed in the classroom. Find out a little more about Liz, including her favorite hobby and her favorite memories from working at CCSD93, in our first-ever Spanish language CCSD93 in 93 Seconds linked above! Don't worry if you don't speak Spanish, subtitles are included!
CCSD93's Online Registration for 2019-20 is Live! Register by 5/31! 
Online Registration for the 2019-20 school year is now open. Last night, we sent out messaging to all parents whose residency has been verified inviting them to register online. If you received an email with registration information, please register as soon as you're able. Be sure to check your email, and you can find out more at   www.ccsd93.com/registration .

For parents whose residency we could not verify, we sent separate messaging indicating that it must be verified with CCSD93 before you can register for next school year. Our goal is to have parents who verify residency register for 2019-20 on the spot as soon as they do. If you received a message about needing to verify residency, please keep an eye out for a letter with even more information being mailed to you soon. For more, visit www.ccsd93.com/residency.
5/23 Board of Education Meeting Preview  
Gavel
The next CCSD93 Board of Education meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 23 at CCSD93's District Office, 230 Covington Drive in Bloomingdale. All community members are invited to attend. The following are among the agenda items
  • The Board will recognize 19 licensed staff members who have shown extraordinary dedication to classroom teaching, learning and innovation with CCSD93's new Distinguished Innovator Award.
  • There will be a Finance Committee meeting report from the May 14, 2019 Finance Committee meeting.
  • The Board will appoint a new School Treasurer and approve the Treasurer's Surety Bond.
  • The Board will vote on the approval of five Transfer of Funds Resolutions, the following three of which will have public hearings:
    • Transfer of fund balance from Transportation Fund to Education Fund.
    • Transfer of fund balance from Education Fund to Operations & Maintenance Fund.
    • Transfer of fund balance from Operations & Maintenance Fund to Capital Projects Fund.
  • The Board will vote on a resolution to designate interest earnings for fiscal year 2019-2020.
  • The Board will vote to ascertain the prevailing rate of wages for laborers, workmen, and mechanics.
  • The Board will discuss attendance to the Triple I conference in November.
  • There will be a presentation from Early Childhood Center (ECC) Principal Rosary Horne, updating the Board on the programs and events taking place at the ECC.
  • The Board will vote to award contracts for the installation of interior cameras at Jay Stream Middle School.
  • The Board will review an Annual Assessment Appeal Summary.
  • There will be a discussion on the 8th grade graduation ceremony format.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Sincerely, 

Bill Shields, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
CCSD93






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