News from the December 14, 2021 meeting |
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Board Welcomes Dr. Pearson as Next Superintendent |
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Dr. Jason Pearson has been selected as the next superintendent of Northbrook District 28, effective July 1, 2022. He will replace Dr. Larry Hewitt, who is retiring June 30th after 15 years of service as superintendent.
The Board of Education welcomed Dr. Pearson at the board meeting following the announcement of his appointment to the staff and community in the afternoon. Dr. Pearson comes to Northbrook from St. Charles Community Unit School District 303 where he spent the last 11 years, including the past four as superintendent. He attended the Board meeting to accept the appointment. His contract will be formally approved in a special meeting after winter break when regulatory public notice is satisfied.
“Thank you for giving me this opportunity. I want to start by thanking the board, parents and teachers who participated in the interview process. It was very comprehensive and helped me learn about the culture of the district and some of the things you are proud of as an organization,” Dr. Pearson said. "I look forward to the opportunity to partner with the board in the next steps as we commit to a cycle of continuous improvement.” Hear Dr. Pearson's full statement on the live-stream video.
In announcing Dr. Pearson’s appointment, Board President Tracy Katz Muhl said, “Dr. Pearson impressed the board with his professionalism, honesty and passion as a forward-thinking educational leader.” She also thanked all of the teachers, staff, parents and community members who participated in the process by completing the online survey, participating in focus groups and the interview teams.
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D28 Math Score Gains Buck State Trend |
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The 2021 Illinois Assessment of Readiness was administered in Spring of 2021 when the learning environment was challenging at best. Despite this, District 28 proved to be an exception to the majority of districts across the state with a high participation rate and with students performing better in math than before the pandemic.
IAR scores in math and English Language Arts were released by the Illinois State Board of Education on December 3. The overall percentage of students meeting or exceeding standards in math increased over 2019 by 5 percentage points to 71%.
The IAR is a standardized assessment that measures student knowledge and skills expected at a given grade level as designated in Illinois Learning Standards. The assessment was not given in 2020 due to the pandemic.
District 28 had a higher participation rate at 93% than most districts statewide, according to Michelle Jackson, Director of Learning. The district’s third-grade math score increase was highlighted by the Illinois State Board of Education. The percent of 3rd-grade students who met or exceeded standards in math was 87%, and 11 percentage point increase over 2019.
“The efforts we made in math programming are impacting students,” Assistant Superintendent Dr. Kris Raitzer said.
In English Language Arts the overall percentage of students meeting or exceeding standards was 3% lower than 2019 at 65%. The slight decline in ELA scores is something to look into while also considering the context of the pandemic.
Superintendent Dr. Larry Hewitt said the district is appreciative of all the staff’s efforts last year in creating stable learning environments in a very uncertain time. The district was able to offer in-person instruction to about 77% of students and a Remote Learning Academy for the other 23%. To participate in IAR, remote learning students were entering their schools for the first time all year in March 2021 when the assessments were given.
“Teachers engaging students in meaningful instruction – both in-person and remotely – along with family support provided a strong and stable foundation for student learning in a most uncertain year,” Dr. Hewitt said.
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2022-23 Calendar Approved
The 2022-23 calendar closely aligns with Glenbrook High School District 225 for the start of the school year, holidays, and winter and spring breaks. The tentative first day of school for grades K-8 is scheduled for Aug. 17, 2022, which is also the same first day for District 225. The draft calendar includes:
Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022, is a new state-declared holiday.
Winter break begins Dec. 19, 2022. School resumes Jan. 3, 2023.
Spring break begins Monday, March 27, 2023. School resumes April 3, 2023.
The tentative last day of school is Thursday, June 1, 2023.
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Health Metrics Reflect Overall COVID case increase
COVID cases among students suffered a spike the week following Thanksgiving, with a 74% increase in youth cases (under age 20) township-wide.
Weekly cases per 100,000 were 304 for the week ending Dec. 4 and the weekly test positivity rate increased from 2.3% to 4.8%, still relatively low. In District 28 a spike in the average number of daily student absences increased from 30 the week of Nov. 29 to 51 the week of Dec. 6. The spike is primarily due to an out-of-school event whereby approximately 20 close contacts at one school were quarantined. The District maintains a COVID Dashboard to monitor district cases.
Dr. Hewitt also reported that the Northfield Township vaccination clinics for youth continued with a second dose on Dec. 2 and Dec. 8 for approximately 1,800 children under 12.
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Bilingual Parent Advisory Committee Supports Families |
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The district has 104 students enrolled as English Learners. Russian and Korean are the most common native languages, however, each school has 19 or fewer students speaking any one language, Dr. Kelly Sculles, Director of Student Services reported.
The district provides a transitional program of instruction in which students receive English as a Second Language services and native language support.
The district has 19 students at Greenbriar who speak 13 different native languages; 36 students at Meadowbrook across 16 languages, 32 students across 12 languages at Westmoor (excluding Young Explorers), and 17 students at NBJH across 10 languages.
The district also facilitates a Bilingual Parent Advisory Committee with multiple meetings per year to support English As a Second Language families. Families are contacted about the meetings based on their student’s participation in the English Learner program.
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Tax Levy Tied to 1.4% CPI |
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Each year, the district files a tax levy request with the Township Assessor for funds that will be applied to the following year’s budget. For Tax Year 2021, the district is requesting $40.2 million. This represents a 4.99% increase over the previous year, according to Chief School Business Official Jessica Donato.
State law restricts school districts’ year-over-year property tax extension to no more than the CPI or 5%, whichever is less, plus new property growth in the district. The state law is commonly referred to as the tax cap law. The CPI, or inflation rate, is a measure of price changes in consumer goods and services set by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The December 2020 CPI of 1.4% is used for the 2021 levy calculation.
Ms. Donato said the revenues from new development are the only other source to increase the amount of property tax revenue that the district receives. The district must over-estimate the levy increase in order to capture all potential new property growth, which is why the request is always higher than the CPI. The township assessor determines the actual amount paid to the district after all property is assessed. Property taxes provide about 87 percent of the district’s total revenues.
Last year, the tax levy request was $37.4 million but the district was actually extended $37.2 million. This year’s request of $40.2 million is expected to actually result in $39.6 million of revenue, $1.3 million more than the 2020 property tax revenue. For more explanation, view the tax levy presentation.
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Livestream/Archive Video
Next Meeting is January 25
The Board of Education is holding in-person meetings at Northbrook Junior High. The meeting will be held following health and safety protocols. The meetings will continue to be live-streamed on the District 28 YouTube channel. The next regular meeting of the Board of Education is scheduled for 7 p.m. on January 25.
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STAY CONNECTED TO WHAT'S HAPPENING IN DISTRICT 28! |
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