The District 64 Board of Education held a regular meeting on Thursday, October 19th, at Lincoln Middle School.
Spotlight on Lincoln Middle School
- Lincoln Principal David Szwed and Lincoln Assistant Principal Timothy Gleason had a special presentation to showcase LMS. “We’ve given our perspective on Lincoln, and we thought it would be great this year to be able to have some of our students share their experience and some things that make Lincoln what it is,” said Szwed.
- Mike Taglia, Technology/DEN teacher, had a group of his broadcast students create a video about what Lincoln means to them and their classmates. Thank you to Catherine H., Ewa S., Madelyn G., Evelyn S., and Rowan H for the awesome video and interviews.
Principal Appreciation Month
- The month of October is Principal Appreciation Month!
- “I think anytime you walk into a school and you see all the magnificent things that all of our kids are doing and the great things that our staff are doing, it really can’t function without our wonderful administration,” said Superintendent Dr. Ben Collins. “They work thanklessly and tirelessly all the time. They are really the heart and soul of our school and the support system for our staff. What little we can do is just say thank you and make sure that they understand how valued they are, and we will do everything we can to support them. Thanks for all of your efforts.”
Authorizing an Interfund Transfer and Resolution
Approving Accounting Transfer(s) to the Capital Projects Fund to Implement State Regulations
- Motions Approved
- As discussed in previous Board meetings, these transfers are for fund balances needed to pay off construction costs associated with full-day kindergarten and the Jefferson renovation project. The actual number was confirmed with the District auditors during their fieldwork visit in late August.
- $19,385,685 from the Education Fund to the Operations and Maintenance Fund of the District.
- Transfer $19,385,685 from the Operations and Maintenance Fund to the Capital Projects Fund of the District.
Review of the Tentative 2023 Proposed Tax Levy
Adoption to Approve the 2023 Proposed Tax Levy and Establishment of Public Hearing
- Motion Approved
- The Truth-in-Taxation hearing will be on December 21, 2023, at 7:00 p.m. at the regular Board of Education meeting.
- Per state statute, the School Board must adopt an estimated tax levy not less than 20 days prior to the date it adopts its final levy. The final levy is scheduled for adoption at the December 21, 2023, regularly scheduled Board of Education meeting.
- The 2023 proposed levy does exceed the 2022 levy by more than 5 percent, making a Truth-In-Taxation hearing mandatory. The hearing is planned to be held at 7:00 p.m. during the December 21, 2023, Board of Education regular meeting.
- No matter how large the levy request is for 2023, District 64 will only receive a 5 percent increase plus the taxes associated with new construction.
- You can view Chief School Business Official Dr. Adam Parisi’s Proposed Tax Levy presentation here.
Authorizing Commencement of Social Media Litigation
- Motion Approved
- “ I am recommending that we join in on this legislation that right now has about 700 school districts and 57 school districts in Illinois,” explained Dr. Collins. “Essentially, we don’t see a downside to us. There’s no financial hit that we would take regardless of any kind of financial decision that would happen.”
- “We’re seeking a change in behavior,” added Dr. Collins. “Can you change the algorithm so that you don’t take situations that become toxic for adolescents and teenagers and then completely destroy their self-esteem? Because all they see is repeated videos of situations that are just not good or situations that may be unrealistic for them.”
Approval of Recommended Personnel Report
- Motion Approved
Approval of Board Protocols
- Motion Approved
- You can find the Board Protocols on our website.
5-Year Facility Plan Update & Tour of Lincoln Middle School and Washington Elementary School
- Over the past few Board meetings, the District admin team has been working with our architects to update the 5-year facility plan. To add context, Dr. Collins wanted to let everyone know that these conversations might be years away, but as we strategically plan, we need to be two to three years ahead of the cycle.
- “This is just planning right now, but I would much rather have the School Board and the community see the entire deck of cards at once,” said Dr. Collins. “We’re not trying to solve how to make it happen yet, but I think this is going to be a multi-year conversation that I’d rather just always know, as the variables change, what’s happening.”
- “This is a large conversation, and I think it’s really important for our community to know that a lot of things kind of come together all at the same time. We wish we had unlimited funds, we don’t, and we need to be fiscally responsible with all the taxpayers' money,” said Dr. Collins.
- You can view Dr. Parisi’s facility plan presentation here.
- “One big thing you’ll see throughout the plan, which we’ve been talking about, is safety and security,” said Dr. Parisi. “Safety and security remain high priorities.”
- “One more thing that is important for a building like Lincoln, or Washington, or Roosevelt…they were built when some of our largest education programs in the District did not exist,” added Dr. Collins. “Special Education did not exist as a thing. Those words didn’t even go together when the buildings were built. Those are some of our highest priority situations where it does matter what kind of room you have for those students and these families that move here and make decisions about where they put offers down for houses based on what schools are able to offer for them.”
- The Board toured Lincoln and Washington to better understand some of the buildings' needs and what our maintenance team has to deal with on a month-to-month basis. Director of Facility Management Noel Mendoza led the Board and District Admin team on the walk-through.
Consent Agenda
- Motion Approved
Approval of Minutes
- Motion Approved