By Chris Fox
The Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205 Board held a regular meeting on June 13 at the District 205 Center, 162 S. York St. Board member Jim Collins was absent from the meeting.
The meeting’s spotlight/recognition segment noted the achievements of several district students, including winners in the PTA Reflections program. In that program, more than 300,000 students nationwide create original works of art each year in response to a student-selected theme. Students submit their works of art in one or more arts categories.
Kennedy Burklow, a student at Hawthorne Elementary School, and Rowan Hoppe, a student at Sandburg Middle School, were both recognized with the Award of Merit at the PTA Reflections program’s national level. Burklow submitted her entry in the Dance Choreography category. Hoppe submitted her entry—”The Spark”—in the Literature category.
The board also recognized York High School’s girls and boys water polo teams during the spotlights/recognitions segment of the June 13 meeting. York’s girls water polo team recently completed the best season in the program’s history, posting a record of 29-4 and winning the third-place trophy at the IHSA state meet. York’s boys water polo team also enjoyed an excellent 2023 season. The Dukes, who finished their season with a 27-7 record, won the fourth-place trophy at the IHSA state meet. That effort delivered the program its first-ever IHSA state trophy.
Public forum
The meeting’s public-participation segment included comments from six people. One of the speakers criticized the district for what he felt was the lack of homework, testing and overall rigor. That speaker, who said he had three children in the district, claimed the district tried to make its test results look better by comparing those results to certain districts.
Four people spoke during public forum in support of the district including the fiction book “American Street” in the English curriculum for York High School freshmen. (See story on pg 1 of this issue.)
Results of MAP assessments discussed
The meeting also included a presentation about results from Northwest Evaluation Association (NWEA) Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) assessments. District students in kindergarten through eighth grade took three administrations of the NWEA MAP assessment during the 2022-23 school year—one during the fall, one during the winter and one during the spring.
That presentation during the June 13 meeting, which included numerous charts, graphs and statistics, reviewed the results from the recent spring assessments. Kevin Rubenstein, the district’s assistant superintendent for student services, said that the results from the spring assessments show the district’s students are making gains, and doing well across the board.
The meeting also included a presentation about the district’s 2022-23 instructional reviews in the areas of mathematics, dual language programming and emergent bilingual programming. The presentation noted that the district currently serves 856 English Language Learner (ELL) coded students in kindergarten through 12th grade. The district’s dual language program currently serves 308 students in kindergarten through fourth grade who attend Conrad Fischer Elementary School. In that program, students in kindergarten and first grade spend 80 percent of the time speaking Spanish and 20 percent speaking English. Second-graders in the program spend 70 percent of the time speaking Spanish and 30 percent of the time speaking English. The Spanish to English ratio is 60 to 40 percent for the program’s third-grader students, and an even 50-50 for the program’s fourth-graders.
Latest staffing figures presented
The June 13 meeting also included a presentation about the district’s latest staffing figures for the 2023-24 school year. The district is planning for 715.84 Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) positions for certified staff members for the upcoming school year. That figure includes 492.37 certified positions in general education, 166.8 certified positions in special education and 57.17 positions in English Learning (EL).
New assistant superintendent of HR approved
Board members voted unanimously during the meeting to approve Joseph Schumacher as the district’s next assistant superintendent of human resources. He will replace Luke Pavone, who is departing from the district. Schumacher’s annual salary with District 205 will begin at $175,500. (See full story about Schumacher elsewhere in this issue.)
Funds for person to oversee Special Olympics teams accepted
Board members voted unanimously during the meeting to approve a stipend for a person to oversee the district’s Special Olympics volleyball, basketball and track and field programs. The board also voted unanimously to approve a contract amendment with Rush Physical Therapy for athletic training services. Rush Physical Therapy was able to find two athletic trainers to provide services for York High School’s student-athletes during the 2022-23 school year. The amended contract calls for 2.75 training positions, which will feature two trainers working 40 hours a week and one trainer working 30 hours a week. The additional position will offer three trainers at York during the busiest times of the week. The trainers will earn $22.72 per hour during the 2023-24 school year.
Purchase authorized for LMS for $71,700
The board also voted unanimously to approve the purchase of the Schoology Learning Management System (LMS) for the 2023-24 school year at a cost of about $71,700. The Schoology system will provide interactive communication between students and teachers, teachers and parents/guardians, and teachers and administrators. The rollout for Schoology will be gradual during the upcoming school year. It will initially be available to York students, their parents/guardians and teachers and administrators.
The board will hold its next regular meeting on July 25.
