Take a bow Lincoln/Emerson Baldies! They've raised a staggering $447,000 and counting. You can still help us get to our goal of $500,000 for childhood cancer research by following this link and donating. 

As of writing this, D64 has the top St. Baldrick’s event in the WORLD, and it is the most successful one we’ve conducted.

Lincoln and Emerson each had a head-shaving assembly this week, and they were inspiring. More than 300 students and staff shaved their heads. We are amazed by our middle school students and what they accomplished with the community’s help. 

You can read more about the event on our website. You can also find more photos at that link.

The time is here! Registration is now open for ALL students, which includes kindergarten. Please go to our registration page and follow the instructions to register your child for the 2023-2024 school year. 

Also, keep in mind that we need your help to plan for the upcoming school year; please help us by registering before the June 1st deadline!

Registration has also begun for Worlds of Wonder 2023!

Classes for students who have completed K-3 will be held at Washington Elementary School, while classes for students who have completed 4-7 will be held at Lincoln Middle School. 

• Session 1: June 14th - June 30th (No School Monday, June 19) 
• Session 2: July 5th - July 20th (No School Monday, July 3rd and Tuesday July 4th)

You can find all the Course Descriptions, Info, and Registration Links for WoW here on our website.

The District 64 Orchestra Solo & Ensemble Festival took place on March 9 for D64 orchestra students.

Solo & Ensemble Festival is a wonderful opportunity for students to showcase their talents in front of family and friends. There is a judge that will listen and provide a written evaluation of students’ performance and feedback on ways to improve. It is a low-stress way to challenge students to perform while allowing them to gain valuable experience and confidence on their instrument.

The festival involves many students and small student ensembles from District 64. Students perform a solo on their instrument or join forces with other students to participate in a duet, trio, or quartet. They perform music that is selected in advance and practiced so that it is refined and ready to be played for a judge and a small audience consisting of family and friends. Students will play for one judge at the festival, who will rate the student(s) on such factors and instrument hold, tone, correct notes, and appearance. Afterwards, students will receive a medal based on their performance and rating in the festival.

We are so proud of ALL of the students who participated in this event! 

Thank you to everyone who participated in our online superintendent search survey; more than 1,200 surveys were completed. 

BWP has provided the data from the responses, and you can view that info here on our website.

The District 64 Board of Education held a regular meeting on Monday, March 6th.

District 64 Campaign for the Park Ridge Community Fund

• Roosevelt Principal Dr. Kevin Dwyer and Lincoln Assistant Principal Tim Gleason serve as Co-Chairs for the Park Ridge Community Fund, and they gave the Board an update on how fundraising went this year. 
• This year’s theme was “giving begins at home,” and the D64 staff donated $8,771.88! In all, 25% of District 64 employees contributed to the fund. Donations support a wide variety of health and social service agencies to help those in need in our community.

District Spelling Bee Recognition

• Franklin 4th-grader Victoria Antyufeeva won the District 64 Spelling Bee in February. Victoria won in the 13th round after spelling “installation” correctly. 
• The top three finishers from the District 64 Spelling Bee were honored at the Board meeting. Joining Victoria at the meeting were John Hayashi (Emerson 6th-grader) and Micah Cronin (Field 4th-grader). 
• Congratulations to Victoria, John, and Micah, as well as the other 21 spellers who advanced from the school-level spelling bees. 
• Victoria will compete at the North-Cook ISC Regional Spelling Bee on March 15th. 

Spotlight on Field Elementary School

• Field Principal Dr. Courtney Goodman and Assistant Principal Christa Donnelly gave an informative look at what makes Field unique. 
• The focus of their presentation was on how great of a community exists at Field and how that strengthens other parts of the school.
• “We really have been focusing on how to create a sense of belonging and connection,” said Dr. Goodman referring to not only students but also the staff. A video was also shared with Field students expressing what makes Field special. One student said, “I think it’s special because you have a lot of your friends and the teachers are so nice. And it’s just a great place to learn.”
• Their presentation can be viewed here.

Approval of 2022-2025 Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Board of Education and Support Staff Council (SSC) of District 64

• Motion Carries
• SSC has about 79 employees. 
• The new deal will add approximately $591,000 to the District’s expenditures over the three-year life of the contract. 
• “Our secretarial, custodial, and maintenance employees play an essential role in ensuring our schools run smoothly and create a positive environment for our students,” said Superintendent Dr. Eric Olson. “This agreement recognizes their valuable contributions and provides fair compensation and benefits that will help them continue to thrive in their roles.” 
• “I am grateful for the hard work and dedication of the SSC bargaining team and look forward to continuing our partnership to support our students and staff,” added Dr. Olson. 
• Board members Gareth Kennedy and Dr. Denise Pearl were on the mediation team representing the Board. 
• You can find more information about the agreement on our website.

Approval of 2022-2027 Collective Bargaining Agreement between the Board of Education and PRTAA

• Motion Carries
• PRTAA has about 76 teaching assistants. 
• The new deal will add a little more than $800,000 to the District’s expenditures over the five-year life of the contract. 
• This is the first time the Board and PRTAA have agreed to a contract that is five years long, the previous two have been for four years. 
• “We are thrilled to announce another multi-year agreement with our teacher assistants, continuing the Board of Education’s commitment to the taxpayers while recognizing the vital role teacher assistants have in our schools,” said Board President Dr. Denise Pearl. 
• Board members Carol Sales and Phyllis Lubinski were on the mediation team representing the Board. 
• You can find more information about the agreement on our website.

Discussion & Approval of Summer 2023 Construction Projects

• CSBO Dr. Adam Parisi and Director of Facility Management Anthony Bersani brought two items of need to the Board. Replacing carpeting at Emerson Middle School as well as mitigation and restoration of the Lincoln Middle School LRC interior and exterior walls. 
• “It has some wear and tear on some items, especially on the first floor and the high-traffic areas,” said Dr. Parisi on the carpet at Emerson. “We’re looking at replacing it with a similar type of carpet that we used this past year with the better quality carpet square. So if we have issues, we can pop them out and replace them.”
• Bersani went through the two one-year studies the District did on moisture in the walls at Lincoln’s LRC. The first study was done in the summer of 2021, and it found moisture content in the brick walls. The study the following year found that the brick walls were still holding high moisture levels.  
• The proposed plan is to re-study the moisture in the walls. Part of this process would be to remove the paint and sealant on the interior walls allowing the brick to breathe. Additionally, parts of the exterior wall would be investigated, like the lintels. The interior walls would be kept without the paint for a year as the moisture is monitored. After that time frame, “we can make an honest assessment of where we’re at and what we’re going to do collectively to come up with a plan for the future and what the interior walls can look like,” said Bersani. 
• The process of taking off the paint on the walls will happen during summer break. 
• Both Motions Carry

You can find the full recap here.

Upcoming Board Meetings

• April 20, 2023 - 7 p.m. - regular meeting, Jefferson School 
• May 11, 2023 - 6:30 p.m. - special meeting/organizational meeting, Jefferson School 
• May 18, 2023 - 7 p.m. - regular meeting, Jefferson School 

Looking to catch up on past meeting highlights? A summary of each meeting is available on our Current Board News webpage.

Please confirm meeting dates and times on the Board meetings webpage.

Join us for an informational meeting about Extended School Year (ESY) for students who receive Special Education services. We are hosting a virtual presentation on March 23rd and March 24th. The content will be the same for each session. 

ESY informational presentation schedule:

• Thursday, March 23rd at 11:00 am
• Friday, March 24th at 11:30 am

To join the meetings, please use this link. The program will include a discussion on the eligibility process and ESY opportunities. 

Emerson Middle School presents Disney Newsies Jr.

Lincoln Middle School presents Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella - Youth Edition.

Do you want a job driving school buses? Lakeview Bus Lines is hiring!

• Up to $25/hour
• Weekly pay, benefits, 401K
• go to www.sunrisebus.com/careers or call (708)-234-5555 to apply

Comments and questions may always be directed to the Superintendent or Board members through these links:

Email Dr. Eric Olson, Superintendent or contact members of the Board of Education via email links.

Park Ridge-Niles School District 64 | 847-318-4300 | news@d64.org

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