By Chris Fox
For The Elmhurst Independent
The Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205 Board held a regular meeting on Oct. 27 at the District 205 Center, 162 S. York St. All seven board members attended the meeting. Board president Kara Caforio noted that in-person attendance by the public was neither practical nor prudent due to COVID-19 considerations.
Public forum via written comments
Board member Courtenae Trautmann read more than 70 comments submitted by members of the public during the public-participation segment of the meeting. Most of the comments were related to the district’s recent return to fully remote instruction because of the DuPage County Health Department’s COVID-19 metrics. According to those metrics, the county recently moved from the Moderate Community Transmission Level to the Substantial Community Transmission Level. Several of the comments urged the district to return to offering some level of in-person instruction. Other comments thanked the district and stated its leaders made the correct decision to suspend in-person learning.
Trautmann said there were a total of 129 comments submitted for the meeting’s public-participation segment. She said there was an even split between comments that disagreed with the decision to suspend all in-person instruction and those who supported the decision.
At this time in the meeting, District 205 Superintendent David Moyer delivered a presentation related to COVID-19 and the district’s recent move to fully remote instruction. See full story on pg. 1 of this issue.
All-day kindergarten tuition adjusted
Board members voted unanimously during the Oct. 27 meeting to adjust all-day kindergarten tuition for the 2020-21 school year at a pro-rated amount of 60 percent, or $1,620, for the school year. The original cost per student for all-day kindergarten was $2,700. The funds from those fees were primarily used to hire teachers. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lack of regular in-person instruction, parents are not receiving the experience they anticipated.
BC/BS health and dental plans renewed
The board also voted unanimously to approve the renewal of Blue Cross/Blue Shield health and dental plans for the 2021 calendar year. According to information provided by the district, the district’s 2020 medical and prescription budget is about $14.376 million. The budget for 2021 will rise about $410,000 to approximately $14.786 million.
Whelton presents enrollment projections
The meeting also included a brief presentation about the district’s student enrollment projections. Chris Whelton, the district’s assistant superintendent for finance and operations, delivered the presentation. The district needs to report its enrollment to the Illinois State Board of Education each October. Whelton stated that the overall district enrollment as of Sept. 30, 2020, was 8,339. That figure represented a decline of 257 students from one year earlier. The district reported a total enrollment of 8,596 students as of Sept. 30, 2019. Whelton noted that the current enrollment at York High School is 2,840, down from 2,882 one year ago. He said York’s enrollment peaked during the 2019-20 school year. The district projects small decreases in York’s enrollment over the next few years.
Whelton also noted that the district’s middle-school enrollment is currently at 1,807, down from 1,896 last year. The district had 1,993 middle-school (grades 6-8) students during the 2015-16 school year.
According to the district’s projections, the overall enrollment will rise by 33 students next year, but drop by 33 students the following year, leaving the district with an enrollment of 8,339—the same as the current total—in 2022-23. The district projects its total enrollment at 8,416 in 2025-26.
The board will hold its next meeting on Nov. 17.
