Action Items
2023 Tentative Tax Levy Approved
Director of Business Services, Brian Stachacz, shared an initial presentation regarding the 2023 Property Tax Levy on November 6. Tentative approval happened during the meeting on November 20. Brian Stachacz will request final approval in December.
Below are items shared during the 2023 Tax Levy:
• The Consumer Price Index in December of 2022 was 6.5%. School Districts are capped at 5% so the increase to the total 2023 levy can be 5%.
• Including additional amounts for new property, the likely request will be an increase to the
2023 levy of 5%-7% over the 2022 levy.
• With an expected increase of over 5%, the District will hold a Truth-in-Taxation Hearing
before final adoption in December.
• A 5% increase will bring an estimated increase to the 2023 levy of $3.8 million.
For homeowners within District 204, the amount of increased taxes paid to D204 will be a calculation based on the value of the home. The below four scenarios provide a general model of what the increased taxes for the expected levy could result in for houses valued at or near these amounts.
• A house valued at $1.1 million would receive an increase of approximately $190 per year.
• A house valued at $775,000 would receive an increase of approximately $139 per year.
• A house valued at $550,000 would receive an increase of approximately $95 per year.
• A house valued at $500,000 would receive an increase of approximately $55 per year.
For additional information regarding the District 204 Tax Levy, please click here.
Change Order Approved
The Board approved a deductive change order related to a project from Summer 2023. Knickerbocker Roofing is the company that completed the work on the North Campus clay-tile roof over Exit 5 and the Reber Center this past summer. The contract with Knickerbocker Roofing included a $50,000 allowance to address unknown issues during the project. During the project, $9,702.65 of the allowance was used for some minor unforeseen issues but the remainder of $40,297.35 will be deducted from the final contract amount with this Change Order. The original contract amount was $680,000 and the final amount, including this deductive Change Order will be $639,702.65. This contract is complete and closed after approval of this Change Order.
2023-2024 School Calendar Modified
LT has been given the option to offer the tests at any point in a window of dates rather than the exact same dates as every other school in the state.
This is an opportunity to avoid any potential delay or disruption that a high volume of test-takers might cause. The proposal calendar moves testing to a Friday/Monday schedule. This gives seniors, freshmen and sophomores a 3-day weekend, allows for continuous instructional days across testing weeks, and only interferes with one day at north and two days at south. LT already interrupts north campus for a day to give the Illinois Science Test, it better balances the instructional time for all students that are lost to testing.
Stipend Committee Recommendations Approved
The Board approved a request to increase the Robotics Team stipend from two stipends at 6% and 4%, respectively, to two stipends totaling 24%. Over the course of its history at LTHS, Robotics Team has grown from a small group of students that were part of a larger, established club to its own standalone competitive team that fields multiple teams of students on an annual basis. This has grown over time to include competitions against other schools, and now includes additional tournaments and competitions, including at the state and national level. The request is based on moving the Robotics Team stipend in line with other competitive clubs and teams that have a head level and assistant coach, such as Model UN, Congressional Debate and Speech Team.
The Board also approved a request to move the Polish Club from pilot status to official club status. Polish Club began in pilot status in the spring of the 2021-2022 school year as a cultural club along the lines of other existing cultural clubs at Lyons Township High School. The Polish Club is a group dedicated to exploring Polish culture and cultivating relationships among students who have any connection or interest in Poland. All students are welcome to join, regardless of nationality. Last year, students from multiple nationalities participated, and they enjoyed not only learning about Polish culture, but also to learn about the other cultures represented. It is a club where students can interact with each other, participate in activities, connect with students that share different backgrounds, offer leadership opportunities, participate in Polish theme outings/field trips, fundraising opportunities, and try Polish cuisine. Polish Club had a successful pilot year with approximately 20-30 students attending each meeting. The total cost associated with the stipend for the Polish Club is $1,4263.00.
Discussion Items
Annual Assessment Report
At the November 6 Committee of the Whole Meeting, the Board of Education heard a presentation from the leadership team that included 1) a Strategic Plan Goal One Update, 2) Annual Assessment Report, 3) Advanced Placement Report, 4) Illinois School Report Card and 5) Equity Journey Continuum. Please click here for additional information regarding this report. In addition, please click here to watch a recording of the November 6 Board of Education meeting.
Parent Teacher Advisory/Behavioral Interventions Board Committee Update
The Parent-Teacher Advisory/Behavioral Interventions Board Committee (PTABIC) met on November 9, 2023 to hear an update from the district's Restraint Time Out (RTO) Committee as well as to begin discussing the revision of the current Code of Conduct for athletic and extracurricular participation. The committee, composed of two members of the Board of Education, District 204 Administrators and Staff, and parents/guardians also welcomed Hodges Loizzi attorneys, Michelle Todd and Valerie Robert, who provided legal updates and guidance in drafting a Code of Conduct.
With respect to the RTO Committee update, District 204 does utilize the practices of restraint and isolated time outs for behavior intervention. The committee meets quarterly to review professional learning needs for behavior intervention and to update the RTO plan annually.
Next steps for the Code of Conduct revision include reviewing ‘red line’ edits from Hodges Loizzi on the current Code of Conduct and committee discussion and decision-making to finalize updates. The committee plans to meet again in February 2024 and will also begin to determine an action plan for communicating the updated Code of Conduct and providing the necessary training for students, coaches/sponsors, and families.
Bond Sale Update
At the November 20 meeting, the Board was provided with an update on the first of
two bond sales. The district had previously decided to sell the bonds with two sales so that we can issue smaller amounts (less than $15.0 million) to avoid arbitrage issues with interest earnings on the bond proceeds. This first sale took place on October 17, 2023. The sale incorporated a competitive bidding process with bidders submitting bids containing their proposed interest rate. The sale attracted six bidders with the lowest interest bid being submitted by Mesirow Financial, Inc. with a true interest cost of 3.875%, not including the cost of issuance. Having six bidders is an excellent number and is attributable to the District’s recently affirmed AAA rating. This sale produced total proceeds of $14,402,773 which will be used to fund the upcoming capital projects. The second sale is anticipated to take place in January of 2024 and will provide the remaining funds and complete our sale process. It is hoped that the January sale will provide an additional $12.0 million but that remains to be seen due to the changing interest rate environment. Linda Byron from Raymond James was in attendance to present additional information and answer any questions.
Superintendent’s District Report
LT Superintendent, Dr. Brian Waterman highlighted the following information during his monthly report.
Monthly FOIA Report
The District has received 3 FOIA requests since the October meeting.
Village of Willow Springs Update
The Board of Education and District Leadership Team has been invited to attend an upcoming Village of Willow Springs Town Hall Meeting, in which representatives from the Village of Willow Springs will hear a presentation from Houseal Lavigne regarding property owned by Lyons Township High School District 204. Board of Education Vice President, Jill Grech, as well as Superintendent Brian Waterman and Director of Business Services Brian Stachacz will attend the meeting as representatives of District 204. A follow-up report will be provided to the Board of Education at the December 4 Committee of the Whole Meeting.
LTCAC Consensus
Shelley Taylor, chair of the LT Community Advisory Council presented a summary of the feedback from the November 1 LTCAC meeting. On November 1, the LTCAC met to discuss the topic of collaborative efforts with Associate Schools. Great feedback on all of the different ways that we can continue to collaborate with our Associate Schools in the future was provided. Please click here to learn more about the LTCAC.
School Board Member Appreciation Day
Wednesday, November 15 marked the official statewide observance of School Board Members Day in Illinois, which serves as an opportunity to show support for school boards as a collective group, but also to share appreciation for the individuals who serve our school communities. There are 6,000 elected and unpaid volunteers who serve on school board members in Illinois. Dr. Waterman shared his appreciation for the District 204 Board by publicly recognizing their service to the LT students, staff and community.
Thanksgiving Wishes
Dr. Waterman wished our students, staff, parents/guardians, and community a very Happy Thanksgiving.
Student Representative to the Board Report
Student Representative to the Board, Sophia Szymanski, presented an update that included a variety of academic, athletic, and extra-curricular highlights.
LTPA Report
LT Paraeducator Association Co-President Lisa Hammon shared an update on behalf of all paraeducators at LTHS. She expressed support for the work that all paraeducator do on a daily basis and brought awareness to the important and often challenging work that paraeducators do. She shared that she and Co-President Yvonne Glodz have been meeting with Superintendent Brian Waterman, Director of Student Services Leslie Owens, and Director of Human Resources Ed Piotrowski to problem-solve a variety of concerns such as proper training, safety, and overall communication, and that their hope is to continue this dialogue through monthly meeting structure in order to effectively support all paraeducators.
LTEA Report
LT Education Association President Andrew Johannes shared his appreciation to the teachers and sponsors who assisted with the 2028 Freshman Kickoff event. In addition, President Johannes shared a variety of celebrations regarding athletics, activities, and academics, as well as his gratefulness to LT Principal, Dr. Tyrrell. Finally, President Johannes applauded the Board’s recent decision to join the lawsuit against Meta and the other social media companies. He reiterated that teachers have firsthand knowledge of the negative effects that cell phones and social media have on students, and encouraged an annual review of the current cell phone policy in order to modify it so that it better reflects teacher concerns and the research about the adverse effects cell phones and social media have on students.
Public Participation
1 individual participated in public participation.
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