Throughout the year, staff engaged [music] in professional learning around structured teaching, inclusive lesson design, and augmentative and alternative communication, [music] or AAC. We partnered closely with staff and families to refine how we describe our continuum of services [music] so it better reflects a flexible, student-centered, and family-friendly approach. Additionally, our partnership with Educating [music] Outside the Lines helped build disability awareness and a stronger sense of belonging across our schools. We also continued to strengthen our multi-tiered system of supports for social-emotional learning. At tier one, schools reinforced consistent expectations [music] and positive behavior systems. At tier two, each site established a team to support the rollout of check-in, check-out, helping ensure students receive consistent connection and support from a trusted adult. [music] Finally, we focused on increasing student voice and choice. At the middle school level, we expanded encore offerings, >> [music] >> adding courses like broadcasting, digital media, and guitar, so students have more opportunities to explore their interests and engage more deeply in their learning.
And they did feel as though their students were engaging a little better in the classroom environment. And yeah, they're pretty happy with it. All right. Thank you all for your participation. Do we need to make any changes on appointments? Uh will we take action on these tonight? I Everything stayed the same. Nothing changed from my list. >> Uh just that Mike is going to be the representative to the Downers Grove Plan Commission. Um that's really the only change and that's just because that [clears throat] is a every the year Yeah. The appointment. So, Mike, thank you for volunteering even though I'm not sure you volunteered, but Yeah. That goes between 58 and 99? >> Yeah. Yeah, flips, I think, yeah. Every other year we trade back and forth. All right, that's an action item this evening. All right. Uh consolidated district plan, Gina's not here tonight, um but she did share at the last board meeting the consolidated district plan.
And for So, for a first reading tonight, they would recommend and I endorse a recommendation of A301 wireless communication device policy that reads that the devices must be stored away, powered off, and inaccessible. Luckily for us, the definition of the of the school day that Church Churchill and Antrim has in their version of A301 for us defines the policy or the school day as the entirety of the time a student is present on school property for a student instructional day, which allows for us with the number of high school students we have who travel between buildings all day every day, as well as during lunch, that this allows them to have access to their their phones when they're traveling um for a safety perspective that they were to be in an accident or something, that they would have access to their cell phones. But, the uh policy that has been posted on the website, um I apologize that it has not been posted for the full 2 weeks prior to tonight's first reading, but the reason is because the committee made a recommendation and the Corporation Continuous Improvement Council just met last Wednesday and um got that recommendation from them, had a discussion, and decided to move forward uh with the first reading this evening, and then a recommendation to adopt in June.
And I still have a lot of questions, even though I've done a lot of speaking this evening. Um with regard to the RAM to to a large degree to the RAM reports. And maybe any subsequent questions that we have. So, is that uh is that a path forward for for the applicant to I think it's a path. I'm just confused as to so, the sidewalk would be the first item, then you would submit written comments. Then we would have the time to um respond. It strikes me as cuz I think our team and your peer reviewer will be ready probably at the next hearing to talk about item number two. So, do we take the environmental discussion and plan for it at a future hearing to provide adequate time to do this, or does everything get, you know, pushed down the line until we kind of reconvene for public hearing number two on this item.
This year, we were excited to expand Special Olympics to include both track and field and basketball events, creating more opportunities for students to participate, connect, and shine while proudly representing District 62. As we look ahead, our focus will be on continuing to refine these systems by strengthening [music] implementation, deepening support for inclusive practices, and expanding opportunities for student voice so that every [music] student experiences a responsive, engaging, and supportive learning environment. >> In goal three, we are working to foster an engaged and productive workforce by prioritizing staff satisfaction [music] and cultivating a strong positive culture that provides equitable opportunities for engagement and [music] growth for all employees. This year, we have focused on asking for and acting on staff feedback, [music] ensuring regular input opportunities at both the school level. Collaboration is standard with structured team meetings and professional learning community Mondays. We [music] are excited to launch a district-wide feedback opportunity in May.
Uh I talked to her this afternoon, she said no additional questions came from anybody. I didn't receive anybody from anything from any board members. Uh if you had something, I could do my best to address it or get uh response to you from Gina, but to move things forward, uh we need to ask for board approval approval this evening. Gina couldn't be here because she is receiving formally the Scott Helton Award at the District 88 board meeting this evening, so uh she's out being recognized for her amazingness tonight.
And that meets the requirements set by the state legislature. Correct. Yes. So, I did have a question about the 2-week thing. So, if it's Mike, if it's not out there for 2 weeks and the public can't see it for 2 weeks, is it considered a first reading tonight? The policy on adopting policies has some provisions in it when policies are being adopted in and I'm going to use my word, I don't have it pulled up in front of me, emergency circumstances or where circumstances require uh a different step. I believe it's in there even that you could adopt it without a second reading in some circumstances. Um so, from that standpoint, given the mandate from the state and the timing from the state, I would say that that the best effort has been made to comply with that that's possible. Check that for us and make sure that we're on the cool side.
I'm just asking the question. >> So, what you're suggesting is that in the next hearing we move on to the next topic and bring this back subsequently. I think personally, I think that would be a good use of time cuz I think your peer of I don't I don't know. I'm speculating, but I think your peer review consultant may be ready. We're certainly ready for that next topic, but it sounds like a site walk and then written questions, we're going to need a little bit of time to respond. That's going to take a month, you know, or so. So, it'd be a shame to push everything down until we reconvene to do that. How do the rest of the commissioners feel about that? Well, one of the things that we discussed early on, very early on, but got no answer on was a on. >> [clears throat] >> Um, as having a LSP peer review.
We've invested in significant professional development covering full-day kindergarten, inclusive practices, student-centered scheduling, [music] literacy pilots, and safety trainings like Ukeru and standard reunification. In recruitment, we are engaging in strategic workforce planning to address staffing challenges and ensure a team reflective of our community. We are proud that about 1/3 of our staff hail from Des Plaines, and we continue to partner with Maine West to encourage future educators. Finally, we successfully executed a robust interview process to hire new assistant principals at Algonquin North and Central, involving critical input from a wide array of staff. We are committed to supporting our new leaders with mentoring and job-specific support. Over the last several months, we have focused on accessibility, [music] community engagement, and strategic communications. As we kicked off 2026, [music] we began refining our website for ADA compliance in order to ensure ongoing support for all users. Community partnerships were a major focus, highlighted by art shows hosted [music] at the Des Plaines Public Library and Jean Center in January, February, and May.
So, are there any questions that you want me to try to answer? If not, I think Gina's done a nice job in all of her memos and presentation explaining it.
Other questions or comments about the My only question is uh regarding the specific wordage stored away uh cuz we've had conversations of locked bags or lockers or something. Um are we going to basically allow in their backpacks or in their vehicles as acceptability for that? The last um vehicles would certainly be would be allowed under either one of those policies, but the other part of this legislation is that the Department of Education is required to publish guidance for schools, and that has not yet come out. So, the committee has developed um really strong um guidelines, consequences, and recommendations, but um we're going to wait until we see the guidance from the DOE before we know whether or not it's even is a locker allowed, is a backpack allowed, or do you have to put it in a vehicle or in an inaccessible, you know, bag that you've all seen and heard of.
That would help us reviewing all this material, um, you know, from for us. Um, and that was not agreed to by you at the time. You said you would take that under advisement or something. I'd like to revisit that and and get ourselves a a peer reviewer just like we have for you know, stormwater peer review. I I agree. I I think that we didn't get a response or at least a positive response from the applicant with regard to that. After we received the supplements from Mr. Lucas, I wasn't sure that there was enough substance there to peer review. Um, but I think that before we settle on the environmental plan that we should have it whatever that is the the final plan peer reviewed. Well, I mean, we've got a lot of material that's been provided to us that I think it I guess it's preliminary information because this we don't [snorts] have our detailed site review, but I think there's enough information here that a peer review could give us some some guidance.
We also welcomed our local businesses and agencies into our schools this year as a way of connecting our community with our students. And of course, full-day kindergarten is on all our minds as we prepare to welcome our youngest [music] learners this summer. In anticipation, we spent time earlier this year gathering staff feedback [music] and developed a dedicated webpage and video showcasing our construction and implementation progress to date. >> [music] >> Finally, as we look ahead to this August, we are preparing for another National Night Out event on August 4th that will have some new features [music] in place. We hope to see you there. Fiscal year 2026 has been significant to Goal 5, which strives to improve the district's use of resources. Progress continues on the implementation of full-day kindergarten. Presently, work is completing at Carol Stream and construction is ongoing at Central and North with updates at the other schools starting at the completion of the school year.
All right, hearing none, that's up for approval. Athletic training services, uh this is another action item this evening. I'll turn it over to Jeri. Okay, um tonight we're presenting another 3-year renewal with Athletico. Athletico has provided athletic training services to the district since 2008. We've been very pleased with the partnership over all these years. Um >> [clears throat] >> athletic training services includes the practices, they're at all practices, athletic events, and the summer camps. And the district spends around $200,000 a year for these services. Tonight, the proposal shows the hourly rate that's being proposed for the next 3 years. Our current rate is $26.52 an hour. We all feel that these are reasonable rates and administration is recommending that you approve another 3-year renewal contract. Question.
Any forecast as to when the Department of Education might be forthcoming with those definitions for us? Just as accurately as I can tell you if it's done raining tonight or not. My forecast will be exactly that accurate. Thank you. Other questions? A question not necessarily in the policy per se, but since there's been a committee meeting regularly, can you say a little bit about the communication plan when this is adopted? I would venture to guess parents might have more of an issue with this policy than some students per se. I am one who texts my son at lunchtime to verify where he's going after school, for example. So, we might need office runners with little messages again. We We're going to have a lot of behaviors that need to change across the community, and I just want to make sure we're equipping them with the information they need.
Well, we had we had lined up if I remember correctly, a peer reviewer when we first got the RAM report. And as we went forward, we realized [clears throat] that the the the RAM report had expired. And so, we had contacted someone about peer reviewing that, and then that went by the wayside because the RAM reports were expired. We could We could revisit that if the commission thinks that's appropriate and if the applicant would agree to it. Well, that's a good question then. I mean, the the new RAM report you prepare if you're not doing any more sampling, you're not generating any more data, and you you all you've got is what was generated from 2022 and now 2016. What more information is going to be provided in this new RAM report when you file this in a year? Well, they're going to do a full characterization as they Under construction.
District 62 is continuing to work with an outside firm on boundary recommendations to help address class size inequities. [music] The district also moved to a health insurance cooperative to better control future health insurance costs. [music] This year, in collaboration with the district safety committee, several key security systems were updated to improve communications for first responders and staff >> [music] >> during emergencies. Our early artificial intelligence rollout shows increased staff use for creating instructional materials and supporting daily tasks. The AI task force will reconvene this summer to update our student AI literacy lessons, the district AI guidelines, the parent FAQ, and our AI student expectations. [music] >> Thank you. All right.
Any questions? >> Did you solicit other bids or did did you just get a bid from them? Actually, it's pretty hard to even get a company to offer services these days. A lot of school districts have lost out on their contracts because they don't provide enough after hour services to the company. So, we feel pretty fortunate. We did a quick survey just to page high school school business managers and actually these rates beat everybody else's rates. So. Fair enough. We're very We're We're one of the few that actually has Athletico still for services. Most of them have moved to employees and that's much more costly. >> Sure. All right. As Jerry mentioned, action item this evening. Moving on to textbooks, another action item. We have a lot of action items this evening. Travis? >> [clears throat] >> Yeah, we had two departments bring forward recommendations for new resources for their classes.
Yes, we are going to use all of the modes and methods of communication available to us once the final determination has been made, the policy has been passed and the DOE has put out guidance to make sure that through Parent Square, the media, open houses, schedule pickup days, all the all the ways that we possibly can, >> [clears throat] >> we'll communicate and try to over-communicate, but we know the first week of school is going to be difficult. And this applies to all students. Correct. Now, the big question is if a student sees a teacher on a cell phone, what's going to happen? The policy doesn't apply to >> I know the policy doesn't apply to the teacher, but how are we going to make it so that uh students don't have that continued complaint because you know and I know that'll be the next thing that'll get blasted on social media is teachers can have the phones in class, but the kids can't.
Yeah. But the RAM report has to be done before the start of construction. So, if there's nothing new being done, you could prepare that right now. Although you can't do it because you can't do it before it within a year of the construction. I understood that. But my point is if nothing new is going to be put into that report, everything we have is something is what that RAM report's going to say. I mean, what new is going to be in it if you're not going to do anything else? Am I missing something? It's a timing issue. Depends when we do the RAM report. If there's additional data collected before we submit it, then it would be incorporated into it. If there's no additional testing, uh RAM report would effectively be the same and would be submitted to DEP for review. And the DEP's You said you didn't want to do more testing.