Veterans Day
Director of Communications Jamie Lavigueur led the celebrations on behalf of the District and began with a recognition of Veterans Day. She said principals and staff worked together this year to share a Districtwide virtual Veterans Day assembly with all students. The assembly includes two student boy scouts leading the Pledge, a local Veteran and D181 parent, Lori Collins, sharing about her service in the Air Force, a sing-along of the Armed Forces Songs, and 6 middle school trumpet players playing Taps. Schools who have special connections with veterans will also hear from those veterans on video individually. We will be sharing the Veterans Virtual Assembly in our Weekly Update email this Friday. Thank you to our dedicated staff for making these celebrations possible, and most importantly, thank you to all veterans for your service.
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Board Member Appreciation Day
Each year in Illinois, November 15 is recognized as School Board Members Day. Ms. Lavigueur shared a message of appreciation for the Board members and presented them with a special gift — a work of art that the students created, forming a heart with their fingerprints. Thank you students and our art teachers for your creativity! We extend our heartfelt gratitude and appreciation to all of our Board members, especially during this unique year.
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Teacher of the Year & Those Who Excel Awards |
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D181 staff Carrie Fitzgerald, Lisa Hendrix, Maureen Laschober, and Daisy Fulgencio were honored for receiving awards in the Teacher of the Year and Those Who Excel categories in this year's Illinois State Board of Education award recognition program.
Teacher of the Year Award recipient
- Carrie Fitzgerald, Meritorious Service, Classroom Teacher (unable to attend)
Those Who Excel Award recipients
- Lisa Hendrix, Excellence, Administrator
- Maureen Laschober, Meritorious Service, Student Support Personnel
- Daisy Fulgencio, Meritorious Service, Educational Service Personnel
For more information, read our news story here.
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Tracey Miller, Director of Assessment, Instruction, and Evaluation shared the Fall 2020 MAP Results. The assessment was administered to grades 1-8 between Sept. 15 and Oct. 2. The fall administration provides the District with a data point for where to begin instruction, provide support and enrich the curriculum for students. The eighth grade MAP data is also sent to District 86 as one piece of student academic data to assist in course placement for freshman year. Building goals for School Improvement Plans reflect students’ present levels of performance on MAP and also are linked to end-of-year goals for student achievement and growth.
This year, NWEA MAP utilized the newly released 2020 norms for all three assessments that D181 administers: MPG K-2, MAP 2-5, & MAP 6+. NWEA conducts norming studies every 3-5 years to provide the best and most up-to-date information about student achievement and growth to better support educational decision-making.
In summary of the fall results, Ms. Miller shared:
- D181 students continue to achieve in the top 3 decile bands.
- A consistent level of achievement is noted as compared to the fall 2019 data.
- A consistent level of achievement is observed between D181 schools.
The following charts show a consistent level of achievement from 2019-20 for student in reading and math.
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Additional data including achievement by grade, school, remote students, cohort view, and growth over time are linked here.
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Dr. Kathleen Robinson, Assistant Superintendent of Learning, presented the Nov. 6 Institute Day Update.
During a typical year, D181 educators meet regularly to discuss professional development needs across the District in all content areas. Similar to the Subject Area Committees, the Staff Development Team provides feedback and recommendations to District Administrators, building administrators, and CIAAC as part of the curriculum cycle. Since committees are not meeting during the school day this year, the Teachers on Special Assignment (TOSAs) developed an interest survey to solicit feedback from our staff on their current professional development needs. The survey included questions regarding:
- D181 digital platforms and applications
- Social-Emotional Learning needs
- Other topics identified as a need (open response)
Results of the survey were used to plan for the day with the Staff Development Committee. The presentation linked below provides a high-level overview of the needs staff identified and the Nov. 6 sessions.
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Superintendent Dr. Hector Garcia thanked staff and students for continuing to adhere to safety protocols and shared that surveys administered to the D181 Transition Team and all D181 parents came back with favorable results. Both groups were asked for feedback on the safety protocols put in place, curriculum (hybrid and remote), and communication efforts.
The parent survey was sent Wednesday, Oct. 28. Dr. Garcia said the District was pleased to see that 935 responses came in (parents were asked to complete one survey per household). Linked here are the results. The “Favorable” figure represents the percentage of parents who rated the category as “Met Expectations,” “Exceeded Expectations,” or “Far Exceeded Expectations.” With the exception of categories that had a "no opinion" response greater than 50%, categories had an average 88% favorable rating.
Dr. Garcia also discussed the metrics that are being closely monitored to evaluate the current learning model and any possible transition to an alternate learning model.
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County
Key Metrics: (10/25-10/31/2020)
- Positivity rate: 10.6%
- New cases per day: 312
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Community
Key Metrics: (11/08/2020)
- Positivity rate: 12.66%
- New cases per day: 386
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He added that if the District were to return to full in-person with 6-foot of social distancing, the additional staffing needed for elementary schools (for the additional space that would be required) is estimated at $2.9 million. He added it would be additionally challenging due to the expected hiring of more than 50 teachers and staff.
The most promising and viable option at this time is surveillance testing for the students and staff, Dr. Garcia said. More information on surveillance testing will be shared at the Dec. 7 Board meeting.
The timeline for next steps includes:
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December
Continue in our hybrid and remote learning model
Parent Survey (Dec.14-18)
- Hybrid <--> Remote requests
- Surveillance Testing feedback
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January
Finalize mid-year movement
- Academic (ACE and LA - middle schools)
- Hybrid <--> Remote
February
Reevaluation of learning models
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District Office Admin Plan |
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Rick Engstrom, Assistant Superintendent of Business and Operations, shared the administration met with the Finance and Facilities Committees on Oct. 29 to discuss the approval of researching available options for a new District Office. The goal is to determine whether the District should purchase or construct a new District Office building to ensure long-term cost savings. |
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The District is currently leasing a 12,000-square-foot space at $206,685 per year. The District is currently in year one of a five-year lease therefore the priority is high to find a long-term space.
The administration would like to spend the next few months researching available property and to bring findings back to the Finance Committee and the Board of Education based on the potential for long-term savings. The Board approved the administration's request to move forward with a study.
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The Board approved the administration's recommendation to continue to follow the abatement schedule with the amounts previously presented on May 12, 2020, for the next three years while also looking annually at the Fund Balance Strategy to determine the levy amount/abatement amount. The image linked below provides a flowchart on the Fund Balance Strategy. The amount will be based on audited numbers. |
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Tax Levy Presentation & Resolution - Estimated Amounts Levied |
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The Board approved the recommendation to publish the tentative 2020 Levy as presented. The Tax Levy is an annual request by the District for property taxes to fund approximately 90% of the District’s operating funds. Rick Engstrom, Assistant Superintendent of Business and Operations, said the total requested 2020 Levy for Operating Funds will be $66,384,320.
In the presentation linked here, Mr. Engstrom said the Business Office was pleased to provide information on the following topics:
- Overview of the Tax Levy and Extension Process
- Calculating Property Taxes and Understanding Your Own Property Tax Bill
- Current and Historical Property Tax Information – CCSD181
- Definitions of Local Property Tax Terms
- Local Property Tax Exemptions and Qualifications
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Committee Chairs provided updates on the latest meetings of the following committees:
The Finance and Facilities Committees met on October 29. The following topics were discussed:
- Quarterly Financial Report
- Annual Statement of Affairs
- Draft FY21 - FY22 Budget Timeline
- District Office Action Plan
- Monthly Financial Report
- Fund Balance Strategy
- Tax Levy Presentation
- Resolution / Estimated Amounts to be Levied
- Summer 2021 Projects
The Academic Success Committee met on November 5. The following topics were discussed:
- Fall MAP
- School Improvement Plans
- Placement Discussion
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The PTO Presidents virtual meeting is scheduled for November 10. The following items are on the agenda:
- STEM during hybrid/remote learning
- Safe, family fun during the winter - PTO Activities
- Elm Presentation
District 181 Foundation Meeting is scheduled for November 17.
- Math Support has been made available to D181 students thanks to support from the D181 Foundation
- Kids Grants are available for community service-type projects
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On Nov. 17, the Community Speaker Series event will feature David Epstein. More information can be found here.
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Policy Committee: The Board voiced their support/no support of the 2020 (non-binding) IASB Resolutions:
- Loan Program
- Gun Storage
- School Report Card
- Pre-K Teacher Licensure
- Teacher Shortage
- E-Learning on Election Day
- Local Control Pandemic (CUSD 16)
- Local Control Pandemic (CUSD 1)
The Board supported the IASB's recommendations on all items with the exception of #2. Number 2 was pulled for a separate motion and Board members voiced (3-2, 1 absent, 1 abstain) to not support IASB’s recommendation to not adopt the resolution.
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- The Consent Agenda was approved as presented.
- No public comments were made.
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COMMUNITY CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL DISTRICT 181
115 West 55th St. Clarendon Hills, IL 60514
© District 181. All rights reserved.
PH:630.861.4900
FAX:630.887.1079
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