By Chris Fox
For The Elmhurst Independent
The Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205 Board held a regular meeting on Aug. 25 at the District 205 Center, 162 S. York St. Six of the seven board members attended the meeting. Board member Christopher Kocinski was absent from the meeting, which lasted approximately two hours.
Board president Kara Caforio stated at the beginning of the meeting that because of the COVID-19 pandemic, it wasn’t practical, prudent or feasible to allow in-person attendance by the public. Board members and administrators who attended the meetings wore masks and observed social distancing.
Public forum via letters
Five members of the public submitted public comments for the meeting. Board member Courtenae Trautmann read the comments. One of the comments came from a parent of a child enrolled in the district’s all-day kindergarten program. The parent said she was happy to pay the tuition for all-day kindergarten if children received in-person instruction. The parent stated that her child’s current school day, which features about five hours of remote instruction, does not equate to what she signed up for—an in-person school day featuring approximately seven hours of in-person instruction. The parent asked the board to consider waiving the fee for all-day kindergarten while instruction is being provided remotely.
Operational plan approved
Board members voted unanimously to approve the district’s 2020-23 operational plan. District 205 Superintendent David Moyer noted that the plan provides direction for the district. The plan also ensures that the community is clear regarding the district’s plans to support its vision and mission.
New technology position created
The board voted unanimously to approve a new position of Director of Instructional Technology. The new position will have a minimum starting base salary of nearly $121,000 per year. Moyer told the board that the administration believed it would be difficult to serve students and employees without the new position. He said the district is short on technology staff and hasn’t added to the size of its technology department staff in the past 12 years. During that time, the district has moved to provide all of its students with a portable device. Additionally, enrollment in the district has grown to its current total of about 8,500 students. Moyer also noted that the district had just begun the 2020-21 school year with fully remote instruction.
Speaking about the start of the current school year, which began with fully remote instruction on Aug. 24, Moyer stated that the district had some issues with online connections. He referred to the Zoom video-conferencing platform’s widespread outages around the country on Aug. 24. Moyer also said the district experienced some intermittent internet disruptions, which had to do with the district’s internet provider. Moyer said the district’s provider stated it expected to have the problem addressed by 5 p.m. on Aug. 26. Moyer said he was proud of the district’s teachers for making adjustments to deal with the Zoom outage and the internet disruptions.
Keeping up with parents about in-person vs. remote learning
Moyer told the board during the Aug. 25 meeting that district parents should get some updated communication on when their children can start to return to school buildings. At its previous meeting on Aug. 11, the board directed the administration to begin the school year with fully remote instruction on Aug. 24, with a goal of providing a hybrid of in-person and remote learning beginning on Sept. 14.
Overview of safety measures in place
Kevin Rubenstein, the district’s assistant superintendent for student services, gave a presentation during the Aug. 25 meeting about the district’s COVID-19 protocols and procedures. Rubenstein said the district receives regular updates from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE), the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), the DuPage County Health Department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Rubenstein noted that the IDPH and the DuPage County Health Department don’t always provide consistent information. Later in the meeting, Rubenstein said the district is required to follow guidelines set by the IDPH.
Rubenstein noted that all of the district’s classrooms have been supplied with hand sanitizer, sanitizing wipes, face coverings, gloves, paper towels, disinfectant and spray bottles. In certain areas, the district has provided other personal protective equipment, including face shields. The district is engaging in enhanced cleaning and disinfecting practices and is providing additional air flow to its buildings when possible.
Rubenstein told the board that if a staff member or student should test positive for COVID-19, the district will work with the DuPage County Health Department to begin contact tracing in an attempt to notify potentially impacted people.
Rubenstein noted that District 205 students will have assigned seats in their classrooms when they return to school buildings for in-person instruction.
COVID-19 update given
According to the DuPage County Health Department’s daily COVID-19 update on Aug. 29, there have been 533 COVID-19 related deaths among county residents. The first COVID-19 related death in the county took place on March 19. According to the county health department, there were 14 COVID-19 related deaths among county residents during March. There were 195 COVID-19 related deaths in DuPage County in April, and another 195 COVID-19 related deaths in the county in May. According to the health department’s Aug. 29 update, there were 83 COVID-19 related deaths in DuPage County in June, and 34 COVID-19 related deaths in the county in July. Through the Aug. 29 report, there had been 12 COVID-19 related deaths in DuPage County during the month of August.
According to the IDPH, about 80 percent (424) of the 533 COVID-19 related deaths in DuPage County involved residents of long-term care facilities. According to the DuPage County Health Department’s Aug. 29 update, 308 of the county’s 533 COVID-19 related deaths involved residents 80 years of age and older. Another 127 COVID-19 related deaths among county residents involved residents in the 70-79 age group, while another 60 COVID-19 related deaths involved residents in their 60s. About 93 percent of the county’s COVID-19 related deaths, therefore, have involved residents 60 and older. None of the county’s 533 COVID-19 related deaths as of Aug. 29 involved residents under the age of 20.
The board will hold its next regular meeting on Sept. 8.
