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Board Highlights
June 8, 2016 Meeting
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| Board Highlights are timely recaps of School Board meetings. They are emailed to staff, parents, and interested community members before the official minutes are approved and posted. Links to pertinent memos and presentations from the Board packet are highlighted in green. Board packets are posted the day before regularly scheduled Board meetings. Meeting podcasts, packets, and Board information can be accessed using the links on the left. |
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Regular Meeting
Board President, Kendra Wallace, called the meeting to order, and thanked District staff for their service in 2015-2016. Superintendent, Trisha Kocanda, noted the importance of safety, especially in light of the morning's lock down drill and acknowledged the Crow Island School staff and the Winnetka Police Department for their swift response to the situation, which was deemed an invalid threat. She shared end-of-the-year highlights from the District schools, congratulating the recent graduates from Carleton Washburne School this week. She also acknowledged the contributions of staff who retiring or are moving on from the District and wished all in attendance a safe and relaxing summer.
Presentations
Maureen Miller, Director of Technology, along with District 36 Building Principals,
provided background information and timelines on the Design Thinking projects that staff and students have engaged in since June 2015. These include an enhanced utilization of the outdoor spaces at Crow Island School, a "Kids Leading Kids" initiative at Greeley School, the development of an outdoor garden to complement curriculum at Hubbard Woods School, the pilot of two possible options to improve the school day schedule at The Skokie School, and a redesign proposal to make the cafeteria space more versatile and accessible at Carleton Washburne School.
Greg Kurr, Chief Financial Officer, provided the preliminary Fiscal Year 2017 budget. Initiatives to be undertaken were identified including the implementation of STEAM-focused spaces and other curricular activities, the expansion of required special services, and a number of facility improvement projects, particularly at Hubbard Woods School. Staffing, revenue, and expenditures will be monitored throughout the summer and a budget update will be presented at the August 16, 2016, Board Meeting before approval of a final budget at the September 20, 2016, Board Meeting.
Informational Memos
The 2015-2016 School Improvement Plans were presented to the School Board in October 2015 with a mid-year progress report in February 2016. The year-end evidence of goal attainment was shared for each school. Goals were targeted in the areas of math and reading.
A preliminary report was presented from Northwestern University's Dr. Sherin and University of Illinois - Chicago's Mr. Lynn. Three initial recommendations were related to assessment, communication, and professional learning. Additional classroom observations will be conducted in the fall with a final report expected to be provided in the fall.
A year-end update on the implementation of the Social, Organizational, and Academic Readiness (SOAR) programs piloted at both The Skokie and Carleton Washburne Schools was reported. Program goals and recommended changes for the 2016-2017 school year were provided.
By state law, the District is required to formally evaluate non-tenured teachers annually and tenured teachers every two years. A summary of this process and 2015-2016 evaluations were shared. Starting in the 2016-2017 school year, every public school district in Illinois must include student growth measures in evaluations.
A Strategic Plan Year-end report was provided, summarizing the Strategic Planning efforts for the areas of specific focus (The Big "5"). In addition, progress in the areas of Differentiation, 21st Century Experiential Learning, Environmental Design, and the Professional Learning System were reported upon.
The 2016 survey quantitative and qualitative findings were shared. Response rates were low for parent and community groups. Five themes emerged from the analysis related to curriculum and instruction, progressive education, the recruiting and retention of staff, communication, and financial management. The District will use the data gleaned from the survey to help inform goal-setting for 2016-2017.
The final quarter update regarding the District's enrollment and staffing shows little change since the start of the year.
The District is initiating the process of hiring a demographer, starting this summer, to provide 3-5 year enrollment projections by school, by grade. Enrollment projections are anticipated for early fall to assist the District in addressing imbalanced attendance patterns at the three K-4 schools. Resolution to correct the imbalance will include community outreach and participation. A timeline for this process was shared.
Following a 2nd read, twelve updated or new School Board policies were approved during the Consent Agenda portion of the School Board meeting.
Action Items
The Consent Agenda and following action items were approved:
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Kinetic Wellness/Health Curriculum
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Prevailing Wage Resolution
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Interest Resolution
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FY17 Preliminary Budget
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Intra-District Transfer Request
The Complete Board Packet for the June 8, 2016, School Board Meeting, containing all Memos and Presentations, is here.
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Upcoming Regular Meeting Dates
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August 16, 2016
September 20, 2016
October 18, 2016
November 15, 2016
December 13, 2016
January 24, 2017
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February 21, 2017
March 21, 2017
April 25, 2017
May 16, 2017
June 7, 2017 |
Regular meetings are open to the public and will be held at The Skokie School in August 2016 and Crow Island School from September 2016-June 2017. Regular meetings begin at 7:15 P.M. Work sessions are also open to the public and may be scheduled at the discretion of the Board. Discussion topics and times for work sessions will be posted on the District website 24 hours in advance.
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