The Lyons Township High School District #204 Board of Education conducted a Regular Action Meeting on Tuesday, January 18, 2022, in the North Campus Reber Center. The following items occurred during the meeting:
Board President Kari Dillon reminded those addressing the Board that individuals are expected to behave with respect and civility toward others and shall not use vulgar or obscene language, or impede, delay, disrupt or interfere with a Board meeting. For full policy details, consult the Board Policy manual on the District’s website.
Agenda-Related Public Speakers: There were no agenda-related public comments.
Communications
LT Education Association President Andrew Johannes thanked the school nurses and the health office staff for their continued efforts in keep everyone healthy and safe. He applauded the district for offering additional COVID clinics and for securing weekly COVID testing for students and staff. He encouraged everyone to get vaccinated and boosted and reiterated that the LTEA remains committed to in-person learning. He also noted that the LTEA is hopeful there will be a resolution to the LTPA contract soon. He noted that staff and students are enthused about air conditioning coming to South Campus b- and c-wing classrooms, as well as the North Campus fieldhouse. He added that teachers appreciate the district’s willingness to adjust the grading policy, and hope the changes will make a difference.
Student Representative to the Board Report
Student Representative to the Board Aamina Qureshi highlighted the following student activities: • Sustainability Club is hosting a Rummage Sale this Saturday • Speech Team took 6th place at a recent tournament • Model UN took 1st place and Best Small Delegation, with 9 individual winners at the Naperville North Conference • Tabulae took 1st place with Special Merit and Outstanding Theme for their 2020-2021 edition • Last year’s Menagerie edition took 1st Place with Special Merit and Most Outstanding High School Literary Art Magazine from the American Scholastic Press Association and was also named a Crown Finalist by Columbia Scholastic Press Association • The Student Equity and Belonging Committee gave presentations about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s "What is Your Life's Blueprint?" speech
• In athletics: Bowling is advancing to regionals • Varsity Poms were named West Suburban Conference Champions • Competitive Cheer took 2nd place in Conference • Color Guard took 1st place
• Holiday Food Drive winners include Ms. Patel's class for collecting the most items at North Campus and Mr. Anderson's class for collecting the most overall.
Superintendent’s District Report
• Superintendent Dr. Brian Waterman wished Happy New Year to the Board of Education and to our community and thanked students, staff and community for their efforts during a positive start to second semester.
• Despite the surge in COVID cases, LT has been able to maintain in-person learning because of the efforts of our staff and community. Superintendent Waterman reiterated that LT will continue to do everything possible to maintain in-person learning. He noted that LT is hosting vaccine clinics January 20 and February 10 and encourages vaccination as the #1 mitigation effort in the fight against COVID.
• The Class of 2026 will be officially welcomed to LTHS with a WebEx event on January 26. Dr. Waterman highlighted LT’s dedicated webpage - lths.net/classof2026 – which includes details about the transition timeline. Principal Tyrrell will continue to communicate information with families throughout the transition process.
• Superintendent Waterman noted recent student discussions which explored Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s “What is Your Life’s Blueprint” speech. Facilitated by the Student Equity and Belonging Committee, the small table discussions examined three fundamental principles of life and work: a belief in your own dignity, a determination to succeed and achieve excellence, and a struggle for justice. He added that yesterday, January 17, the nation celebrated Martin Luther King Jr., a national civil rights leader who was instrumental in challenging our systems in the United States. Also yesterday for the first time, Illinois officially commemorated Muhammad Ali’s birthday as a champion of social justice. Waterman said, voices like Muhammad Ali’s and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s inspire us to take action and continue their advocacy work for social justice. Dr. Waterman added that although we celebrate and commemorate their work on one day each year, Dr. King’s message of equality and justice and Muhammed Ali’s work as an advocate for change are best remembered and celebrated every day.
• FOIA Request: The District has received two FOIA requests since our last meeting.
A contractor requesting bid results on the Asbestos Abatement and Protect Parents Rights requesting emails regarding LT-hosted vaccine clinics.
• Vita Plena Award: Dr. Waterman presented a Vita Plena Award to Clar Triner, who was hired as a weekend security staff member in 1994 and transitioned to his current role as a full-time student assistant in 2001. Clar works 3-11pm when South Campus is often at its busiest with after school activities, athletics and events. He connects with students, as well as parents, grandparents, and community members and helps with anything that is needed. We often receive compliments from parents and community members expressing appreciation for the way all of our student assistants help out, and Clar is a shining example of this important work.
• The Board reviewed as a first reading the 2022-23 Textbook/Instructional Material Change requests, most of which replace previous editions or swap one novel for another. The bulk of the monies requested are for new health books. Two of the new texts are digital, where each student will receive a code to access the digital book online. The total textbook requests total approximately $89,000.
• The Board awarded the contract for the 2022 Mechanical project in the amount of $6.3 million. The district will utilize $3 million in grants to help offset nearly half of the project costs.
- The project includes a new chiller/cooling tower at South Campus. The project also includes the replacement of 23 unit-vents in the B-wing and 25 unit-vents in the C-wing as well as piping from the chiller to all of the unit-vents in both wings. When this work is completed, South Campus will have 64 additional classrooms with air-conditioning. Roughly 60% of the classrooms in South Campus will have air-conditioning at the conclusion of this project. The summer mechanical work also includes the replacement of 9 air handlers in the North Campus Fieldhouse. These new air-handling units will provide both heating and air-conditioning to this district facility.
- The contractor who was awarded the contract will work six days a week with three crews with three foremen to complete the projects on time. Work will begin in classrooms the first week in June, while some project work will begin outside and piping in the South Campus tunnel as soon as possible. The work in the North Campus Fieldhouse will begin in mid-May but is not scheduled to be completed until mid-September.
- The Board also approved HVAC Asbestos removal in the amount of $55,511 in conjunction with the mechanical projects.
• The Board authorized district architects to create bid specifications for a replacement scoreboard at Bennett Field. LT’s 20-year Bennett Field scoreboard is at the end of its useful life. The Board is looking to replace it with a state-of-the-art LED video scoreboard. The Boosters and the Alumni Association will donate $59,000 each for a total of $118,000 toward the cost of the project. LT plans to host a meeting January 26 at 7pm at South Campus in Room D-103 with residents prior to the Village of Western Springs Public Hearing to inform and discuss details of the project.
• The Board reviewed as a first reading several updated and/or revised District policies as received from its PRESS Plus service.
Section 1: For quality assurance, two policies were presented for review at least once every five years
Section 2: 41 policy revisions includes changes of an administrative nature, such as updates to legal references, footnotes, terminology, or responses to recent legislation and should not affect how the policies are interpreted.
Section 3: 14 policies have been reviewed by legal counsel and recommendations were discussed.
• Director of Curriculum Scott Eggerding delivered a 1:1 Technology Launch and Infrastructure Upgrade report to the Board, noting first semester accomplishments and challenges. Accelerating the 1:1 to a one-year roll out with new Chromebooks distributed prior to first day of school, upgrades to internet access, and rewiring both campuses were all major accomplishments. Next steps were also discussed and include cyclical upgrades and replacements of WIFI, email standardization and simplification, phone system upgrade, and moving TEC coaches into a coaching direction rather than extended tech help.
Non-Agenda Related Items Public Speakers
Board President Kari Dillon reminded those addressing the Board that individuals are expected to behave with respect and civility toward others and shall not use vulgar or obscene language, or impede, delay, disrupt or interfere with a Board meeting. For full policy details, consult the Board Policy manual on the District’s website.
The following individuals provided comments during the public participation portion of the meeting:
- Ethan Rosenkranz
- Harold and Becky Lorentzen
- Mary Fran Griffin
