November 4, 2025 Morton School Board Meeting

001[music] Call the need to order. Please call the role. >> Dr. Cross, >> present. >> Dr. Crawl, >> present. >> Mrs. Layman, >> here. >> Mrs. Perie, >> here. >> Mr. Roth, >> present. >> Mr. Red, >> here. >> And Mr. Onus >> here. Sayiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Which way do we have presentation? >> We do not. Okay. I'm not going to read those two paragraphs if not. I know everyone loves to hear that, but I'm going to skip that and we will go right to administrative reports. If you click the link, you can do that. >> All right. Well, um before we get to administrative reports, I want to

002remind everyone that last month, October, was kindness month. And since we flipped the calendar to November, I'm going to keep up with the kindness theme. And I'd like to offer um begin this meeting with a statement of gratitude to our seven members of our school board. Um November 15th is actually uh officially the school board member appreciation day. And so tonight, we'd like to recognize and celebrate the dedication and outstanding efforts of all of you serving as elected officials, not only for the Morton schools, but for the Morton community. Okay. I we all know that your work isn't easy, but is founded on the future of education and the strengths of our community. And I sincerely, and I think I speak for everyone, we sincerely appreciate your time, your dedication, your effort that goes into

003and your leadership in making Morton 709 the best school district for our students and families and and overall community. So to honor your invaluable contributions, a few of our talented students put together a special video. It's a small token of our appreciation from our students and our families and our educators. So, Dr. Teeter [music] probably something that a people at school write on a board. Um, >> I don't know. >> Someone that makes for [music] millions or something like take care of the school funds. a school board member does like helps the community and make sure that you keep the school running. They like help us like learn and like make like changes to the schools. >> Um have meetings and like talk about like all the schools. Um, I think they help like enforce

004the rules and they help um with like the teachers like help pick the teachers out. Um $100 probably a lot, but between 150 I'm guessing $24. That's like an hour. >> Oh god. Um maybe like 300400 [music] like dollars. Um maybe a lot of money like $200. No, >> $200 a day. to make sure that there was that we have good math, have good textbooks, all those stuff. Make sure we have good money. Not many people like this and I don't think a lot of people like but have extra school work homework. [laughter] Maybe help with like PE or something like with like Yeah, like PE. [clears throat] Maybe I do like what Mr. Becker did like the Olympics thing or maybe just like have some fun activities you do like monthly. >> A puppy

005golden doodle. [laughter] >> Thank you school board members. Thank you school board members. >> Thank you Morton school board members. Thank you Morton school board members. Thank you, Morton School Board members. [snorts] >> Yeah, let's see. [laughter] >> Wow. Thank you. Uh, I think I I can say on behalf of all of our students, our staff, the Morton community, um, we [clears throat] sincerely thank you for what you do and what you bring each and every day to our school district. Um, you know, as you know, one of the core values in the military and the Air Force is service before self. And I can say as I as I see all of you sitting around here, you all embody that core value. and I greatly appreciate your commitment and ongoing support of what we

006do on a daily basis. So, so thank you. And so I I am going to give Valerie an opportunity. She she put together some swag there. Um some some a goodie bag, but if you know Valerie, she always has a theme. I'm going to put you on the spot. Would you like to share the themes of what's in the in the goodie bag? >> Okay. See if I can remember everything that's in [laughter] there. I'm gonna save the best for last, though, Diane. Um, well, there's a new shirt in there, so you know, you always got to look the part. But let's see. I have in there there's some trail mix because you blaze trails and things like policy um and trying new stuff and saying yes a lot more than you say no when

007teachers have, you know, new innovative ideas. And there's nuts in that trail mix because you got to be a little nuts to do this, you know, for that $250. [laughter] And there um are p there's pens in there because you have all the right stuff. And there is popcorn because you never know what's going to come up. It just pops up unexpectedly and hopefully it doesn't burn down. >> And then I think there was one more. Oh, the best for last chocolate because everything is better with chocolate. So, and it's Ghirardelli because we know that's a board favorite. Anyway, thank you. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> We're incredibly blessed to have you. So, thank you. So, with that, we're going to proceed to the um administrative reports. And first up, we have Brian Matas.

008He's a CPA with Clifton Larson and Allen. And he's going to be covering the 2425 financial audit. [clears throat] Hi everyone. Hi everyone. My name is Brian Mattis. I am a signing director with Clifton Larson Allen and here to present the results of the FY25 audit of the district. With me here I have Caleb Mormon. She's a director with CLA. Um she served in the supervisor supervisor role um for the audit this year. Um and then I was the engagement leader who had ultimate responsibility over the audit engagement. Uh before I move on to the next slides, I just want to um point out that these are draft audit results. Um the audit is not formally issued and dated and that is because um the federal compliance supplement which directs us on what exactly we're

009going to test um specific to the single audit federal grant compliance part of the audit is not released by the federal government, the office of management and budget. So there's a draft version that's released which was able to guide our testing. So the testing, test work, reviews are all done and complete and assuming there's no significant changes when the final version gets released, um the issuance should be pretty seamless and quick um once that comes out. So just wanted to point that out. On the screen here in front of you are the um five different audit deliverables that we are going to issue as part of the audit. They're reflected in the four different bullet points. Um going to skip over the first three bullet points there as I'm going to be touching on those

010deliverables later in the presentation. Um the bottom one um the consolidated year and financial report that deliverable is a couple pages long and it's required by the state through the grant accountability and transparency act also known as GAT. Um that deliverable is essentially just a summary of the grant expenditures of the district for the year and then we are engaged to um give an in relation to opinion over that cipher and that gets then submitted to the state. I'm going to skip like I mentioned I'm going to skip over the other deliverables for now and kind of just touch on our audit approach real quick. Um, our audit approach, our audit process is very risk based. And what that means is we spend a lot of time upfront focusing on risk assessment and understanding the

011internal controls, the processes of the district. And that helps us um hone in on the higher risk areas. Um, and then we spend the majority of our time focusing on the higher risk areas of the financial statements, the more significant balances, and then spend less time on the less significant areas. Now on to the other deliverables that I'm going to touch on in more detail. Up first we have the audited financial statement at the top also known as the AFR. Um similar to previous years there's two different opinions that got get issued as part of the audit. Um the first one is in regards to the US generally accepted accounting principles. Um we issued an adverse opinion. That opinion is the same as previous years. It's not uncommon for Illinois school districts. And that adverse

012opinion is just because the district instead of maintaining their books um based on US generally accepted accounting principles, the district uses ISB regulatory basis of accounting which is more of a modified cash basis. Um and then specific to the ISB regulatory basis of accounting, we issued an unmodified clean opinion overall opinion units. Moving on down to that second and third bucket on the screen. Um [clears throat] those are the two different pieces that are included in the single audit report. Um first is the government auditing standards report. Um that piece is more focused on financial reporting and internal controls over financial reporting. Similar to previous years, we did not come across any financial statement findings during the FY25 audit. And then that second portion of the single audit is that uniform guidance. um piece and

013that focuses more on federal awards but internal controls um over federal awards and federal grant spending. Um we did not note any federal award findings which is similar to previous years um and it's part of um the uniform grant guidance testing. We tested one federal pro one federal major program which was a special education cluster and we issued an unmodified clean opinion over that major program or expect to issue. Um the third deliverable I'm going to be touching in more detail which is that bottom bucket there is the management letter. Um that deliverable is is new this year. Um I don't think there was one last year the past couple years. And what a management letter is is if we come across internal control recommendations that don't rise to the level of a finding, it

014gets communicated via a management letter. So there were two recommendations we came across during the audit um that did rise to the level of finding, but we thought they were worth communicating to management and those um specifically touch on bank reconciliations. Um we noted a couple discrepancies that were immaterial um that ultimately were corrected through audit adjustments we proposed. And then the second management letter recommendation we had um was related to documentation of review um specific to manual journal entries. And then the last deliverable I'm going to touch on is the governance communication. This letter is just a couple pages long and it is an opportunity for us to communicate noteworthy audit items to the board. I put a couple of the highlights that get discussed in that letter on the screen here. Um and

015I'll just kind of breeze over a few of them. Um there were no new accounting standards that were required to be implemented in FI25. No significant or s or sensitive estimates that get included in the financials. Um no disagreements um with management. No difficulties with management. We did not come across any uncorrected misstatements during the FY25 audit. And then there were a couple of corrected misstatements that will be attached to the governance communication letter and that is mostly related to that bank reconciliation recommendation that I previously mentioned. That is all I have prepared today. Um try to make it short and sweet for you. Um I would like to take a chance to thank Lisa and her team um just for being so helpful and timely in terms of turnaround requests and it's always a

016pleasure working with you. Um, if anyone has any questions, I'd be happy to answer. >> Thank you. >> Thanks. >> Well, just one last comment is what as far as audits go, you always strive for making 100%. And so if you don't, if you have your internal controls where you identify certain things and then you make that correction, that's what I like to say that's what right looks like. And so um thank you to Lisa and her team. And one last shout out, you know, uh I don't think Lisa had 100% manning. Um going throughout the entire audit process, uh she was down uh a staff member and so she got through it. She rolled up her sleeves and did it. And so appreciation to CLA for coming in and working with us. So thank

017you. >> Thank you very much. >> Thank you. >> Okay. I'm going to as uh Dr. Teter's getting the next presentation queued up. Um going to have Kate Wyman come on up and present. Uh as you know um or may know uh or will find out October 30th the ISB published all the school report cards. So that went out across the state. Um and so the annual report provides data on student and school performance and is out there for the public. And so uh Kate has a few slides to get through tonight. And so I'm going to turn everything on over to her. There may have been a little discussion about how long this report will go. So, if anyone's timing start. >> Okay. Good evening. As Dr. Sander mentioned, I'm going to be sharing

018a little bit of an update regarding our student achievement from last school year as well as the recently released Illinois report card information. [clears throat] I think it's important to note as I dive into tonight's topic that data is [clears throat] a tool for us as school leaders and the board and staff to make informed decisions, allocate our resources, engage in continuous improvement, and you can see the continuous improvement loop there. ensure our students are receiving the appropriate supports, provide teachers, guidance with regards to how they can improve instruction, celebrate our successes, of course, ask questions, and above all, be curious. Um, and I think the other thing to keep in mind as we go throughout the presentation tonight is every data point is a connection to a student, a teacher, an experience, a lesson.

019and that while we're considering that data, we have to also take into consideration the context behind and the story that accompanies the outcome that you'll see tonight. So, the data that you're going to um be privy to is information for us to learn, plan, and act. And so, this slide just gives you a brief overview of the various district assessments that we administer throughout the school year. A couple to point out that are different than in the past is last year our district um among others transitioned from the pre-SAT SAT to the preACT. And I'll cover in a few more slides some differences between those two assessments, but you'll notice um that change. And then the second change um that occurred last year was seventh and eighth grade are now also taking the MAP assessment

020NWA. Um the difference between the K6 um grade levels is we administer that at the elementary level three times a year, fall, winter, and spring. And at the junior high, they are um administering that test in the fall and the spring. So, a couple other things to keep in mind. Um you're going to hear um growth and percentiles and proficiency and at grade level throughout the presentation and they do um have different um definitions to describe them and different assessments capture either one or multiple of these factors. One thing to keep in mind is student growth is the most meaningful um tool for measuring um our achievement from my perspective and it is allowing us to measure um our students progress over time and over an experience. And as you're going to see in the

021coming slides, there have been some changes to the proficiency benchmarks um with regards to several of our assessments. So, it's very important to um match those proficiency benchmarks with the percentiles because they are contextual and they give us a comparison. And if any of you, we have some doctors on the board. Um when I think about it from a mother's standpoint, it's similar to when I take my child to the doctor and they were telling me how their height and weight compared to other children. So, it's important to look at both that proficiency number and the percentile. And so, I have some charts to outline that. So, as mentioned, one of the changes this year was how NWA um normed their assessment. It's um reormed every 3 to 5 years. The last time that it

022was reormed was we were operating off of the 2020 norms. And so, since that time, they've used 116 million scores over nearly 14 million students in 7,000 districts over 50 states to come up with the new norms. And you see in the bottom left um visual there the three major factors that led to the new norms. Obviously COVID was a major disruption um to what school looked like for a period of time which impacted um our students in different ways. Um the second factor is the EISA which is basically a new algorithm that they use that presents questions to students based on their responses to the previous questions which was previously in place but it also will prioritize the grade level qu questions for that student when appropriate and available. And then obviously the third

023um factor in the reorm was the population who is walking through our doors. that demographic has changed um and has shifted in the last 5 years. One of the other impacts um with our NWA scores and this chart shows the impact at the 30th, the 50th and the 95th percentile. Um this is a change from the the last norm. So if you take a look at that second row on the left, the first grade for example, a student who would have scored in the 30th percentile on reading map on the 2020 norms is now in the 40th percentile. You'll notice that that box is dark blue. The darker the color indicates the more drastic of a change from the previous percentile to the current percentile. Another example is if you look on the right at

024the eighth grade level, the RIT score in the 50th percentile is now what would be the 53rd percentile. So just a few things to keep in mind as you are going to see our map results here in a moment. And so basically what this chart outlines is that there are more noticeable shifts from the at the norms at the bottom and the middle of the distribution. Obviously, if you look in the 95th percentile columns, those are pretty close, if not right on from what they were previously. So, moving into our MAP reading attainment, we um take a MAP test for both reading and math. [laughter] Um this only captures on these slides our third through sixth grade data. So, I wanted to point that out. Um but keep in mind that obviously the results in

025third grade even though this is attainment is obviously the our kindergarten, first and second grade teachers have done work leading up to this point where we're capturing the information specific to third grade. So the red um percentage that you see there represents how our students performed in 2021 when we returned to school after COVID. The black percentage on the far right of each grade band indicates our 2425 results. And you can see that at this point in time in reading math, we have surpassed all postcoid scores. The next slide is similar information but related to math. Again, all grade levels have met or surpassed postcoid scores which I would consider a celebration. This chart indicates um the percentage of students an average by grade level who either met or exceeded their projected growth targets on

026math. And so you can see um our students in math as well as reading. When you're thinking about math, we're thinking about the 50th percentile would be average. And obviously this chart doesn't currently include the seventh and eighth grade simply because it was the first year of them taking this assessment. So it will be captured in future reports. Going back to our conversation about percentile and how important it is to include that when we are looking at our assessment results. This graph shows how very well our students do from the perspective of percentiles. For example, if you take a look at the second grade, which is kind of that yellow um line district-wide from fall to spring, our students scored in the 94th percentile in ELA. And this demonstrates our math percentile. So, if you

027take a look at the sixth grade, which is the blue, you'll see that they're in the 85th 88th percentile, excuse me. Overall, all grade levels are achieving above the 75th percentile and our students are showing great achievement in this area. Kind of switching gears to IR or the Illinois assessment of readiness. Similar to MAP that was reormed, I issued new proficiency benchmarks for 2025. So the image on the right top corner shows what the old cut scores were by grade which you can see very consistent and on the right for both subjects the new cut scores. You can also see that I and ISA are the top bands and then obviously the ACT is in the high school. So, one thing to keep in mind as we go throughout the next couple of slides is

028that the learning standards and the content remain the same despite the change in the cut scores. And another thing to keep in mind is that Illinois has historically set the cut scores that exceeded the national norms and were significantly higher than the college board's indication of whether or not a student was um college ready. So for example, twothirds of Illinois students would graduate and go off to [clears throat] college and within a year most would not need remediation. Yet under the old benchmarks, it would indicate that only 38% of our students were proficient. So there obviously is a discrepancy in what the story is for that particular student where in reality we're feeling as though that they can be successful at the postsecary level. Um, another thing that the state of Illinois wants to make

029sure that um, our communities understand is that high standards are important, but it was time to rightsize the um, proficiency benchmarks so that the story that the scores were telling about the students really matched how successful we felt like they would be at the prof um, postcary. So, as we kind of dive into that, another thing to keep in mind is that there used to be based on the assessment, which is the top graphic, a variation of the performance levels as well as what the cut scores were for them. And you'll notice in the bottom graphic that they have unified those. So it is not only is it termed the same, the performance level is named the same, but also what they would need to reach to meet each per performance level is aligned. So

030we feel like that is a good move in the right direction. So, thinking about IR reading attainment, these charts are set up similar to the MAP data. Um, if you keep in mind the new proficiency benchmarks, excuse me. This shows our attainment and reading. As you can see, most grade levels show an increase in proficiency. Though, it is important to provide contextual evidence to percentiles, which I will show you in a few slides. So again, similar to map, the red percentile or percentage, excuse me, shows postcoid in 2021 and the black is last year. Here is our IR math percent proficient. And then this graph I did want to point out is capturing the same information for ELA. And then the next slide will be math. One thing to keep in mind is that this

031combines the PAT SAT data as well as last year's preac data and there are differences in those two assessments and I recognize that. Um a few of the differences to point out is the subjects covered in the assessment are different. Um, also how it is scored is different and there are several other variations of what makes those two assessments um, different. Um, but both obviously the ACT is what colleges are looking at now. Um, and that's what they would accept for admission. So obviously that switch was important. Um the other thing I want to point out on this slide, you'll notice um in the three sections to the left, the that there is not a um 2021 score available to show the red percentage. Even though we were in school, it was not an assessment

032our students were able to take that year, even though we requested to do so. And so we unfortunately we don't have that comparison to postcoid for that assessment but you can see um our current scores as well as the prior to co the 2019 scores. And this is the same information but for the subject of math. So I know that this is small but um as recommended when we were diving into the data it's important to report proficiency as well as its relationship to percentile. So this chart shows historical data for our district from through last year across grades 3 through 11 considering the assessments I which we discussed and the pretending upon the year. The importance of providing both the proficiency score and the percentile could best be described if you take a look

033at sixth grade in our district. And so you'll notice there that for example in um sixth grade in the 24 reporting it was 82% proficient which was at the 73rd percentile and then in sixth grade it is the 74th percentile proficiency. So we went down there. However, if you hop over to the fifth grade column, you'll notice that we had 74% proficient, but that equates to the 73rd percentile. So, even though the proficiency went down from 76 to 74, the percentile went up. So, that's just something to keep in in mind. Another example, um, if you take a look at 7th grade, we had 88% of our students considered proficient, which was the 82nd percentile. Whereas in 2025, 87% of our students were considered proficient. So you can see a slight decrease, but the percentile

034rank went up to the 83rd percentile. God bless you. And then this is the same type of graph where it's showing the proficiency for math and the percentile. So you can also see on this chart the cohort data if you follow the third to the fourth to the fifth to the sixth etc across the years. And then that kind of transitions us into the Illinois report card which Dr. Sander mentioned was recently released on October 3rd which is perfect timing to be able to combine that information with tonight's report. It's going to highlight several of the achievement um pieces that we already covered. Um as he mentioned, there's a lot of information on the report card and obviously academic achievement is a portion of what is contained within the report card. One of the things

035that's important to note about the report card and you may be aware that every school receives a summit of designation based on the indicators on this slide. It's important to note that the they are both broken down into academic indicators as and then school quality and student success indicators, but you can see the discrepancy between how those percentages are made up at the elementary and middle school level as compared to the high school. The chart on the right then shows a percentage breakdown for each indicator and the value it provides to help determine the summitive designations. One glaring um example between the oopsie sorry one of the things that you'll notice is in the high school 50% of their summit of designation is determined by their graduation rate. Ours [clears throat] last year was um

03694.4% up from 2024 which was 94%. Another um significant difference between the elementary, middle school and the high school and how the designation is determined is the weight that the chronic absenteeism weighs. At the elementary level it's 20% however at the high school it's 10%. So, as with the other things we've discussed tonight with the reorming of MAP and the new proficiency benchmarks for IAR, the state of Illinois has also informed us that there will be a redesign for our summit of how summit of designations are determined. The image on the right shows how they are currently determined which is just um it outlines specific information about exemplary designations are given to schools that are in the top 10% of all schools have a high school graduation rate higher than 87% and have no underperforming

037student groups for example. Um one of the reasons why the state is um coming up with a redesign for um the summit of designations is the command commendable designation is a very wide span. So for example at the elementary level um a school could have a 38.71 weighted index score all the way up to an 81.99 and still be within a commendable rating. And obviously that's a very wide span and yet have the same designation. The other thing that the state has told us um though we are waiting for more information is that in addition to the summit of designation they are actually going to be able to provide some guidance to schools of how to increase or improve to attain a higher designation than they currently have. So that information is yet to come

038but I want to share with you um how our schools did. We um had um three of our schools that um were commendable and again at the elementary level um the cut score is 81.99. I think it's important to note not only how close our schools in the commendable range were to that um breaking point between commendable and exemplary but also where they lie in the bell curve. We did very well. So, um, Jefferson and Morton High School, and you can see how very, very close it was to being exemplary. >> And the junior high all were in the upper bell curve, close to that exemplary range. And then we have three of our buildings, um, Lety Brown, Grundy, and Lincoln that were in the exemplary. And so, it's a testament to all of the

039hard work. um among all of our staff members in our building as well as our building leaders who are looking at this information and helping um determine building goals for the current year and beyond. One of the other pieces that the Illinois report card captures is a chronic absenteeism rate. We have been closely monitoring that in our district similar to other districts across the state and you can see our trend data there on the left. We're moving in the right direction. We're not quite back to precoid. Um, however, on the right side, you can see that our district is doing very well comparatively to the state and some of our buildings have um included a goal regarding um absenteeism um for their buildings. So, we appreciate all of their efforts um to make sure our

040students are in school and we thank our parents for making sure that happens. The last couple of slides are um some scatter plots um that indicate um all of those little gray indicators are dots that represent the unit districts within the state of Illinois. And the red triangle represents Morton. The scatter plot shows our percent of students considered proficient compared to the other unit districts considering how much we spend per pupil on those students. You can see the ver or excuse me the horizontal line shows the state average for proficiency and you can see Morton is doing very well with regard to I ELA. We are above the state proficiency line obviously and to the left. So we are efficiently using our funds to educate our students so that they are doing well on the

041assessment. um 79.7% um of our students were proficient with regards to I ELA. Here's the math scatter plot. Again, we are well above the state average being very responsible with our fund. 65.5% of our students were considered proficient. This transitions to the ACT ELA um 74.5% and then math is 61.1%. On the next slide shows some percentile rankings. Again going back to the importance of presenting that information right alongside um our proficiency. We contract with a company called ACRA who provides a lot of data sources. We have seen so far tonight. One of the great benefits of ECRA is their ability to provide reports that um consider not only our students attainment, proficiency, and growth compared to the national percentiles, but they also give us information regards to our typical or local attainment, proficiency, and

042growth. So this chart shows our 24 to 25 achievement values and percentiles as well as in the far right column that orange column shows the change in value and percentile from year to year. So for example in the second row of math proficiency our district in 24 had 48.4% proficient which was in the 87th percentile. Last year our district had 64.4% proficient which was in the 92nd percentile. So obviously an increase in both proficiency level and percentile rank. And as you can see as you look at the dark blue columns in down that chart, our students are doing very well compared to not only the state and proficiency and percentiles across all measures. So I would consider that a celebration. This chart shows um again with ECRA the effect size by grade level through 8th

043grade. Green dots indicate that our students are growing as expected. Blue dots indicate that they're growing better than expected. And so again, all of our dots this past year were green or blue, which is again another celebration. And the building leaders are diving into this data with their staff and identifying areas where they could improve specific to their building. As mentioned at the beginning of the report, um obviously data can help us continually assess, reflect, plan, and implement. And therefore, our review of the data is an ongoing process. Um the data that we've seen tonight directly relates to our two district pillars of preparing students for a future with a purpose and maintaining rigorous standards driven curriculum and instruction. So you might be asking what do we do now and what was the process like

044um to review and look at that data. So obviously um as I mentioned the building principles are using the data to set goals with their teams. Um, we also, um, I had the opportunity to go with Dr. Sander this year, um, and meet with the building leaders individually. We identified strengths within their building, some areas for growth within their building, and then obviously invited them to um, dive deeper into it um, with their specific staff. So, at both the school level, the teacher level, and the student level. And I know that they're doing that. I even had a conversation with a principal today about um presenting data um at an upcoming meeting and how um to present that to staff so that they could engage with it and set some goals for themselves and or

045their students. And then what are next steps? Obviously, we are continually collecting data. So, our responsibility is to analyze that as it is as it comes to us and determine if we're going to use that to change our instruction or to plan for future. Um we obviously have the obligation to identify trends in the data. We're looking for um what do we need to provide to our teachers so that they feel equipped to um to offer instruction that is high quality to our students. And then we have the obligation to continue to review our resources and make sure that they are adequate to meet the needs of our students. We're going to continue to focus on standards driven classroom and then um across the district which we're excited about. We're meeting individual student needs through

046the MTSS process. So there's a lot happening with data. It's always present. So obviously that's a lot of information. It's typically covered in two different presentations. Are there any immediate questions? Otherwise, I would be happy to follow up with you and discuss them at a later time. >> Where' the river go? >> Oh, the [laughter] question. >> What was the question? >> Where' the river go? >> The river still exists. He loved the river. >> The river. We limited to 70 slides, so it was like >> 37. [laughter] >> 37. >> Would you like to see the river? I'd be happy to share. I don't know. I was just, you know, >> email it to him. >> Okay, I [laughter] will. >> You don't have to email. Really, you don't have to. >> She will.

047>> That was one of my favorite. She will [laughter] >> just because of how excited when he we give it. He was excited. >> Well, that green and blue for sure. They're a lot of our friends are going to be right in the river. Yeah. Confirmation we're doing good things. >> Yeah, the green and blue is my favorite of all of them. That's my my favorite because that shows individuals that they're growing. >> Yeah, it's a powerful chart when you can actually hover on a dot and see a specific student, which goes back to the statement at the beginning that obviously all of this is related to a student and their experiences and um the work of our teachers. So, it's pretty powerful. >> Kid that gets 75 might be trying really hard. A kid

048that gets 95 might be trying nothing. So that growth one is really what I like. >> Thank you very much. That was it was well presented. >> Do you know how long this presentation went on average when Dr. Teter did it? >> That is an excellent question. [laughter] There were some conversations about that today, but I do not know. >> I'm guessing under some money lost. [laughter] >> Yes, there might have been a conversation about if I could accomplish it in 40 minutes or less. Yes is the answer to that question. >> Any other questions? >> I did have one. Um it was kind of at the beginning. I think you were talking about the MAP testing and in junior high you said we tested in fall and spring. >> Correct. >> And then in

049elementary it was fall, winter, and spring. Correct. >> Is there a reason why we are different in that? >> That's a great question. Um we have traditionally always tested fall, winter, and spring at the elementary level with this being the first year that the junior high is utilizing MAP. Um I anticipate though I was not a part of that discuss decision originally that it was to um be able to track most of the data that we look at is looking from fall to spring of the year. So, I anticipate that that decision was made because they were hoping to see what a year of growth looked like. Um, also obviously the um map sets are or projected growth for students and the earlier in the grades they are, the more variation there is with regards

050to the the um growth targets for students. Um, and so as they get older, those growth targets um, shrink, I would say. And so I would assume that that might have also been part of the decision. >> Okay. Thank you. >> And I'd be happy to ask Mr. Carter if he has any more insight or Dr. Jeter and get back to you. Any other questions? Okay. All right. >> Great job, Kate. Thank you for what you do. It's a lot of information and and my just one comment. I I I love the recognition that we need to celebrate. Just as I mentioned with the audit, we strive for 100% but in academics, we're not going to hit 100%. So, in our conversations with the building principles and and we meet every I meet with all

051the building principles every two weeks and we go through a whole bunch of different topics. Um, they have set up their building goals and a lot of it is data. As I look at Mr. Edwards, I know he set up uh attendance data at the high school because uh Kirk and his team identified a trend that we can improve upon. At least that's the goal and the direction is to improve upon the attendance because it will make a difference make a difference just organically within what we're doing at the high school um but it also make a difference on the um school report card as well. So the biggest thing is is that with these measures like with MAP, school report card, ACT, it's not a one, you know, one assessment is going to dictate

052level of success. We need to look at what Morton does incredibly well from beginning all the way through the end until they walk across the stage. The data is very important. I'm not trying to minimize it, but as the state has shifted from when we've been in education long enough to go from the ACT to the SAT and now back to the ACT, it's not always the easiest to work with, but we don't go wholesale into that is the only thing is to help us get to the future goals, whether it's college or skilled trades or the military or just other service. Okay? And so that's our end goal. Whatever we do at the preschool level is a building block to when they walk across the stage and [clears throat] Kurt gets to, you know,

053read off their names of those that are graduates. So thank you for all your work on that. Everyone, all the principles. So moving on. Okay, don't go too far because I think on the next slide I'm going to bring you back up to the podium. But uh wouldn't be a board meeting without talking about facilities. And so today I actually met with Mr. Edwards and we talked about phase one and phase two. So um phase one we're in the we're in the ninth inning uh to use a baseball term. We are we are trying to get this game closed out. Um there is a picture there on the lower left. That is the um uh oh gosh, what do we call that thing? Trophy case. Thank you. Uh so that is being installed. The next

054phase or the next step on that is they'll come on in and get they'll get the glass set and then you know the shelving and then we can display some of our hardware that has uh been well uh deserved and earned. Um the the other three pictures there uh is you know from the outside you can see construction activity. get a good look at that one wall there that has the peeling paint because in the future I'm looking forward to that being uh gone. Um in our conversation I I today with Kirk um he did recognize Hine Construction as just doing a great job facilitating the meetings, the communication from the contractors. Hines the general contractor that's uh that's running the project. They've been great to work with. the communication flow has has been organized.

055Um and so then also we've had two football games where Hine was very accommodating uh with the high school administration they let our students park in that you know cordoned off area. So you know when we've had big football games with the playoffs and then the last game of the season uh senior night senior recognition um they've they've just been incredibly accommodating. So um so we have some demo and abatement work. So the top picture that is the abatement of some asbestous tile and apparently there was some also abatement in the tunnel the service tunnel underneath. Um and then right below that as I was in there today this is a partition wall that is going to separate the Bertha lobby from where they're going to be doing some demoing of the exterior of that

056lobby. So, they're setting up a wall and so that wall will be the new barrier between uh the construction that's going to be taking place. And so, it is exciting to see that. Um just one other note with that that there's a water line that feeds the athletic complex, the stadium. um that needs to be capped, but unfortunately or fortunately, uh we still have activities going on at the stadium and so they can't cap that. Uh they'll do that once the fall season is done and then that way they can um there's a line that supplies the entire stadium that is going to need to be reworked when they get into the construction project. So, a little bit about the facilities. Moving on to school safety. Um we've had uh two of our evacuation drills

057at Lincoln and Morton Academy. [laughter] And tomorrow is going to be the high school evacuation drill. Um that's going to be a big project. And with a summary of some of the school safety items, I'm going to turn the floor back on over to Mrs. Blank. >> Thank you. Um so as Dr. Sander Sander mentioned, we have completed two of the three um full evac drills. Lincoln um cleared their building in 22 minutes and that included 562 individuals and seven parents caregivers participated in the reunification process um out at Grace Church. And then later in the month last month, Morton Academy um their building was cleared with the help of the Morton Police Department in 8 minutes and evacuated 23 individuals at that time. um three parents, caregivers participated in their reunification and they um

058held their reunification site here at the district office which allowed our new district reunification team um to participate and have an opportunity to practice what they learned in a training on October 9th. And then after we um served as the reunification team and were assigned roles, we had a debrief meeting um as that team. So that the goal would be that that district reunification team could go and support um in the event of future situations um where the impacted site might not have the staff or um to be able to function in those roles, those critical roles during that incident. So we're excited about that. Um that is new this year. Um the other thing that is new this year is the raptor emergency management. As you've seen through previous communication, the visitor management system

059is already up and running in all of our buildings. Um, our administrators participated in emergency management training through the Raptor app just last Wednesday and there'll be more information to our families soon um with regards to the roll out of um that with and it will help us to initiate, account for and um complete the reunification process um if there were to be an incident. Obviously, all of these drills are possible um because of the collaboration between the Morton Park or Police Department um specifically Chief Dar and SRO um Officer Dryden. Um they did a lot of work behind the scenes coordinating the manpower and planning for the drills. Um there's an amazing team out at Grace Church. Um Becky does the scheduling. Sam um has helped with the setup of the facility and making

060sure that it is unlocked and what we have um that we need is available. Um obviously Julie Tharp, our director of transportation, coordinates the transportation to and from the reunification site and also schedules all of the bus drivers um who assisted to make sure that our students and staff evacuated and then returned to the building safely. um the principles um and assistants that are um have been working alongside me to plan and communicate not only with their staff, their students, and their families. And then we give a we need to give a big shout out to the families that were willing to participate during the school day in the reunification portion of the drill. um from the comments that I heard when they participated um in both of the evac drills that we've um held

061so far, [snorts] they appreciated just having an understanding of what the process would look like in the event that it was a real situation. And then of course our students and staff um they understand the importance of being prepared and we are thankful that they responded quickly and followed through um our safety protocols. And I think it's important to remember that safety is everyone's responsibility and preparation is key. And this is obviously why we hold evacuation drills each year. So I'd be happy to answer any questions. I know um you had the opportunity to see the afteraction reports for the two that have taken place and another one will be coming after tomorrow's drill at Morton High School. >> Yes. >> So let's just pretend these are scheduled. You got your reunification team ready to

062go. Mhm. >> Let's [clears throat] pretend that part of your team is absent for an actual emergency. Do you guys have a what I used to call a continuity of operations book or a manual ready to go for somebody else? >> The lovely thing about the reunification process is we have a reunification kit in the sanctuary currently and there are binders and name tags that you pick it up and you are assigned the role that day. And on the back of the lanyard, it tells you exactly what your responsibility is for the day. So, it is set up in such a way that even if you're not trained, you there's a supervisor that can give you the directions of what your roles and responsibilities are, as well as if you can read, you can you

063can do the job. >> That's the biggest thing. Expect the unexpected. >> Correct. >> For not having your A team there, your B team or your C team. And not to say that they're any less valuable, but they're just not as trained. >> And I think that was one of the other things we talked about when we were um going through the training for the district unification team is we really have to while we might have preferences about what role we would prefer, the reality is is we have to be flexible to be able to adjust and move to different roles. For example, the greeters are the first people that our um families are going to see when they walk through the door. But once we've greeted all of our family members, we need to

064transition those individuals to help in a different capacity. Okay. >> Until all of our students are reunified. >> Thank you. >> I've got one more add-on to that. So, let's say we don't have enough resources. >> Yes. So that's the civil or central Illinois valley uh school safety team that group that the board approved a a mutual aid agreement so that that team is at the ready in the event that a school district would need additional resources. So, one of the points that, you know, Kate brought up is, you know, the lanyards, it's a standard protocol that everyone, so someone from another school district could jump in and have an awareness of what it is that they're doing and be able to deliver the resources during that event. So, we do have a little bit

065of what I would say umbrella coverage. Uh Morton's a big school district, so we should be able to handle most of the things internally. But in the event that we couldn't, um we've got the the other team that would be able to help. >> Do you have to do annual CBTs to keep up on this? >> It's all part of this team. So that that we're doing that >> computer- based training. Sorry. >> Yep. >> Great job, Kate. Thank you. >> Thank you. And I, you know, everyone that's involved from transportation to the police, uh, it it it is something that we have to put on our radar screen to practice and practice. So, tomorrow we're going to add one more, uh, level of exercise to this. Um, I talked to Mr. Edwards about it

066and we're going to engage uh, Valerie. So, when when the drills go off, all the board gets a text message. all of the building admins get a radio call so that we're exercising their communication. So, tomorrow we're going to um do a uh sample um of a uh school messenger that would go out to all the high school what I say the high school community and we'll preface this is a drill. This is a test. This is a drill in the subject line so that we don't create any anxiety about a lockdown. But Mr. Edwards uh sent out a communication last week about it and um so we greatly appreciate that. So we're going to take it one more step. All right. Um moving on. Uh as far as Jefferson School, I wanted to circle

067back to this. Last month we had a parent uh that came and addressed the board. Um, I want to I want to publicly say that we recognize not only um her concerns, but also she came and offered suggestions um recommendations on how we can uh improve our process. As Kate mentioned, and you saw a graphic in uh her academic and student achievement presentation, it's a continuous improvement loop. I've got that note right here and I greatly appreciate our community and I greatly appreciate the parent bringing those suggestions forward. In my mind, that's what right looks like. Um the suggestions were wellreceived. Uh we've reviewed a lot of the areas. We've already initiated changes um to our processes and and procedures. And then um once the policy committee gets together for the next uh press update

068review, I think that's press 120, we're also going to review the the following three policies 4170, 4190, and 7180. So I wanted to uh spend a little bit of time recognizing that. So um moving on to other items, we had uh three foyas since our last meeting. Um, one was from Steve Watts, Justin Wenig, and Steve Waggan. Um, those uh, FOYAS have uh, been received and responses and they are out there on our website. Um, I did want to talk about the board and community engagements. Um, and first before we get on to the next, I I want to recognize Miss Adawson and the Jefferson staff for doing a commendable job. I thought it was commendable. It was a very well-received. There's three parts to this. The first part uh was a a a site

069visit in the evening starting at 5:30. We had a building tour. There was a um second part where board members could go and visit during the day and see kids in action, seeing the school in action. And I believe some of you did that. And then the third part is this Jefferson highlight. So, um this was a video that was put together. And so here we go. [music] Hi, my name is [clears throat] Jamie Adson and I am the principal at Jefferson Elementary. Um, we have three focused building goals for this school year that we are working on. The first one is um underneath the first pillar for the district of preparing students and staff for a future with a purpose. So we are implementing monthly character goals. This month is self-awareness. So we focus

070on talking to students about what self-awareness actually means. So being aware of how their body is feeling and what it's telling them. So a simple way to do this is to talk to your kids about what is your body doing. If your stomach is growling, how does that make you feel? Are you hungry? If you're starting to sweat, are you feel shaky? Are you getting nervous? So recognizing those signs and those symptoms that your body is giving you and it helps you to be better aware in how you're reacting and what you're saying and doing with your classmates and at home. And so part of this is also me going into classrooms and I get the chance to talk with the students and then read a book with them. One of the books that we

071highlighted this month was called Pause Power. And that was teaching our students to take a moment, take a deep breath, count, pause, use that moment of pause before they react or they do something. The next thing that we're working on is our social emotional health. That goes for staff and for students. Making sure that we are checking in on one another as staff. There are a lot of days where there's amazing things happening, but there's also stress. So, making sure that we're touching base with each other and uplifting one another through the process. And then for our students, we're working on reducing the number of office discipline referrals. So, part of the advantage of doing that is making sure that students know what the expectations are at all times. and reminding them what we need

072from them and how they can best serve themselves in the classroom and then carry that out into the community. One of the things that we're actually going to begin to pilot the junior high uses a red, yellow, and green status system and we're going to start implementing that with our sixth graders. We feel like it'll help them with the transition into the junior high, make them aware and accountable for the actions that they have while they're at the school. The next goal that we're working on under the pillar of maintaining rigorous and standards driven curriculum instruction is we're really focusing on our math goal this year and that is to see 20% or less of Jefferson students falling below the 40th percentile for their math math achievement scores. We are piloting K2 curriculums here in

073Jefferson. Some of our teachers are working through different curriculum selections to see what will be a best fit for our students and for our staff. And so that's pretty exciting to see them getting to be hands-on with those different curriculum choices and then helping to make a decision for the district for moving forward and what we think is best for Wharton and for Jefferson. We also have a spin the wheel opportunity for our students. So every month I send out an email to staff asking them to recognize a student who exemplified the character trait of the month. The students will get the opportunity to come into the office. They'll get a certificate that they get to take home. On the back of the certificate will say who nominated them and why they were nominated. And

074then they get to come and spend a few minutes in the office getting that award, having their picture taken, and they also get to spin our prize wheel, which is pretty exciting. So, it's just another way to reinforce not only in the social emotional aspect, but also the behavior. We want to make sure that you're doing all of those things um and really showing what it means to be a patriot. We always say that um to educate patriots today is to be leaders tomorrow. And so, we want to make sure that we're doing that within the classroom, within the hallways, and then anywhere else in the building. All right. Well, thank you Jamie for uh and our tech crew for putting that piece together. I think that captures everything what we've talked about tonight. You

075know, using data to drive our future goals and to try to, you know, raise the bar on what it is that we're doing. So, um this is a reminder that our next uh site visit is on the 18th and that's at Lety Brown. And so, uh they'll be here in two weeks. Um my last point here is the policy review. We had section 410 through 490 and that is all the stuff that is financially and business operations related. So, I think that's it. Any questions? I had a question back on facilities. >> Uhhuh. >> With the lobby, they're putting the tropic case in. >> What's the plan for like furnishing the lobby? And >> I missed that point. Great question. It was in my talking notes, too. Um, so I believe the furniture should be

076shipped or arriving on Monday of next week. Is that correct? >> That's correct. >> I had the talking point. I just missed it. >> All right. All right, let me see if I uh >> the woman in me. I just want furniture is >> Yeah, furniture should arrive on Monday. >> Cool. >> So, on the Jefferson, thanks the teachers and thanks Jamie for that. But one of the little kids at lunch set me up for failure. He says, >> "Oh yeah, >> I bet you can't say 67." And he said it real soft. And I said 67. And then the other little girl that's sitting next to him said detention and went and told on me because you're not supposed to say that. If you do, you get a detention. So I got a detention

077while I was there. >> Yes. >> Sounds like Mr. Rod's not spinning the wheel. >> It was great. I I think that that the I mean I the success, the video, everything. Um it it just captures I think Valerie's throwing this video in a future Potter Post, right? >> Yes. >> And so uh we look forward to uh the next round at Levy Brown. [clears throat] >> Okay. >> While we're talking about what you guys what everyone think about the building meeting that way. >> Personally thought it hit the sweet spot. I mean we we were there for Tuesday night. We were there for about an hour. We got to go visit the schools. So, I mean, I don't I always thought I would be an intrusion. Um, I don't think the teachers thought that

078we were an intrusion. Three of us went together. So, I think that helped as well, but I I really thought it hit the sweet spot. And I read the afteraction from Jefferson, and I feel like they thought it was pretty good. So, and of course, this is one one school, but right now, I I like I like what we're doing. I like this change. >> I like the casualness of walking around the building and getting to see >> and just dialogue and not be in a very formal eating and kind of stuck in one spot. >> I love visiting. >> Yeah, I like to visit with the teachers and just hear their heart for the kids in the community. We were very blessed to have those staff. So, it was it was great to see

079the school as well, but I love to hear just the true heartbeat of Morton schools. >> I was going to say I Yes, I agree with all of you guys. Um, and it was my first time in Jefferson, so that was really cool. Um, cuz I've never really had a reason to go. And so, um, that was really neat to see it. And I love the character of it. I think it's um just such a a neat school and it seems like all the alumni have such an affinity for it which um is just a really cool thing. Um I would say that when Jerry and I and Amanda um that we ended up going at the same time um that was also great to go on our own and loved doing that. Um there

080were a few instances where we felt like we were like we walked in on a math test and we're like, "Oh, shoot." Um and it was timed. And so um if there was like a way that we could um like the the teachers or staff could let us know maybe it was wouldn't be a good time for us to pop in. Um cuz we abs we were I think Amanda was like, "Oh, give them 20 more seconds or give them 20 extra seconds." So, you know, we didn't um we didn't, you know, like I think cuz they all kind of looked up and, you know, we were we that was not uh expected. So, it was one of those things where it's like, oh, um but that was only like just like one or two

081times, but for the most part, it was great. So, um we I I think we did it was great and we really enjoyed it. >> All right. All right. Um and then from our perspective, I have committee updates. I had facilities. Was that different than what we already did? >> Yeah. Uh facilities was the only committee that uh than that. So, um, I'll kind of lead into this and get Amanda and Jerry, you know, the the, uh, the the warning time that I'm going to turn the floor on over, but, uh, so the overview of the facilities committee is, uh, we're trying to schedule these at set times, three time at least three times a year. And so, this is our um, late fall meeting. And one of the goals is from this meeting is

082to whatever projects we're looking at for the future um summer projects is to be able to get designs prepared and ready to go so that at our next meeting in the early spring um we can have the facilities committee in, you know, take bids in and then make the decision at the board level. um and plenty of time before we get into the crunch time of school ending and when contractors can be in doing the work. And so um so with that, I I don't know, Amanda, Jerry, do you want to do you want me to go through and hit some of the highlights? Okay, >> do that then we can kind of piggyback. >> So with the s we'll stick with the summer projects. Uh so here are some of the ones that are

083queued up right now. Um at the junior high, uh Mr. Carter and his team. Uh the STEM labs has been a part of our long-term facility plan. So when we say STEM labs, uh we're talking the eighth grade uh science lab. Currently, right now, the junior high has one lab and it's shared by both eighth grade teachers. And so um so the uh project design on this is uh looking at the current STEM lab and turning into just a dedicated classroom space that has all of the lab space included and then the other eighth grade uh classroom doing the same thing. So we're looking at doing two eighth grade science STEM labs. Now, what we get out of that is it frees up a classroom where the eighth grade one of the other eighth grade

084science teachers is currently at, that classroom is going to become available. The other thing that um that we talked about was the library. Um I if you haven't been in Morton Library um during the day, we have one half of it is a CL is dedicated to career readiness. The other half is dedicated to librarian. It has a a computer lab. In my meeting with uh Mr. Carter today, we were talking about this project and he's he's discussed it with Mrs. Acres. She's actually really excited about it. And if I use addition by subtraction, that's the topic that came on up. What we're looking at doing is dividing the current library space into two spaces. So, put there's two doors that go in there. is putting in a wall. One of the sides that is

085kind of our library space could be reconfigured and would actually provide more library space than what Miss Acres has to use right now. Why? Because the other side is a classroom space. So, you know what we do with the other side? Turn it into a classroom space. So, Miss Selli has her own dedicated classroom and it's not shared. So, there are some advantages of doing that. Um, right now it's hard to have two classes in that combined space at one time. So, if we can move forward in that direction, we'd be able to have two classes in the one on the library side and one in the classroom side. And so, that's uh pretty exciting. Lenny Brown uh looking at the original building is doing a a window replacement. I think those windows are original

086and if my math serves me right, we're approaching 50 years on that construction. So, we've gotten our mileage from that. It's time to replace the windows. That should be a not a significant dollar amount. I mean, windows are expensive. I get it. But it uh it should be in a ballpark. I don't know, $50 to $80,000. I don't I don't know. Don't hold me to those numbers. But then uh also is engaging our architect to continue on with phase three and phase four at the high school. Phase three is the current weight wait room becoming administrative offices and then at the same time or shortly after um where the current principal's office and AD office is is a conversion to classrooms and so keeping the design work going because after the wait room's done and

087we move that becomes vacated space that means we could get contractors in there to start redoing that dedicated space during the school year and so hopefully Hopefully um we can make some good progress on that. So, those were some of the summer projects. Why don't I pause there and see if anybody's got any questions or any additional comments on that. So just so everybody's aware, I have people come to me, te teachers specifically, coaches more specifically, if they have a gripe, a complaint, uh, this would be better, this would be better, I'm directing them to the principles and then the specifically you, Mr. Edwards, you might get an email. I send them your way and then they can go up to the district and or when we're having our facilities meetings, you should be well

088aware of a change that may or may not happen and you can say yes or no to individual X, Y or Z. So just make sure that that's the process how it should flow. And then the other part is is when we go through these meetings, um, uh, Lee and Rody here, Rodney is a huge and he knows everything about everything about this these school system. So he is he's you just can't even put a a a number on how high he rates. >> Everybody to hear that. So, uh, and I'm going to circle back on one of the things that you said there, and I think it ties to communication, but, um, so next up is with Morton Academy. Um, so Lisa and I met with the CYFS, uh, staff last, it was on

089Halloween on Friday. Um, and so we've [clears throat] reduced down the scope that ties back to the original one pager that uh, was shared. So reducing the scope down. Um as we looked at, you know, if money were no object, it'd be nice to build whatever, but money is an object and it's an object for us and the CYFS staff. And so the next step in this is putting uh the pen to paper and coming up with a draft of a potential long-term lease agreement. And so we had a really good meeting uh with them. And so our task, Lisa and I will be working on putting just some contract language together, most likely a 10 or 15. It could lean towards a 15-year, you know, long-term lease agreement. The longer that you go out,

090it distributes the initial investment, the capital investment, and then we would get a savings on lease payments moving forward. And so, um, we hope to bring something back to the board by, uh, the December board meeting. But that was a really good meeting. It gives us direction as to the next step. So the next one uh came up in our facilities committee and when uh I prefaced communication. Um so as you know our preschool program has just taken off and that's with the hard work of Bethany and her team, everyone l and her team at Grundy that uh supports that program. And so in order to support the continued growth of the program, um, one of my end goals for tonight's meeting is just to get a consensus from the board um to have our

091architect continue on with the development of a uh plans for adding additional classrooms and facilities at Grundy. Okay. Um and so uh the facilities and a playground designed to support students from uh preschool through grade two. Now the good news is is that we've already received the playground equipment that was purchased with grant monies. A a good share of that was purchased and so that's in storage that is and the uh contractor is okay with us holding on to it until we get to the point uh for its installation. So, a couple of the key points here. We're looking at creating additional classrooms. Um, I'm not going to give a number. I I don't know what that is. Uh, we got to look at the entire project, but financially speaking, some of the items that

092were in the one pager, you know, about a $2.4 million in in working with Lisa and our projected finances, that's that's a num number that we're comfortable with. um establishing a new playground, the reallocation of the existing preschool classrooms, and then a reconsideration or a reconsider the location and layout and security of the front office space. As you look at Grundy, like the current main entry, we have this porch area that is substantial construction. Is there a way that we could expand out into that front area where the front facade is of the gabled den and make that indoor space because when you go into Grundy and if you haven't been into Grundy when you come on into the main office once again we have a kind of a quirky uh entryway on in um

093that could be improved but then once you get on inside you know you have uh three offices right there, three desks, and when you walk on in, you may be looking at a student that is being seen by the nurse without much privacy in that area. And so, when we look at that expansion in there, that could be one of the things that we could have a dedicated uh nurses area. You know, the the junior high has a phenomenal main entry when you come on in. The nurse is right there in the main office area, but it it's somewhat private. And so, um, trying to capture some potential expansion in that. I don't want to say it shouldn't be a high dollar. You already have a substantial roof over your head. So, but Lee seems

094to think that that would be um a manageable upgrade. So, I want to give a some recognition to Miss Hygus um and Miss Scrogs. We met last week with the preschool team to let them know ahead of time before this meeting. I didn't want them being caught off guard that, oh hey, we're talking about this. And so, um, Bethany and her team has put together a great onepager. Uh, I love a good one pager that just talks about the growth of the preschool program. And then L yesterday sent out an email to the entire Grundy staff. Um, just kind of sharing, hey, at tonight's meeting, um, this is going to be discussed about, uh, about an expansion at at Grundy. Um, we're excited. I think everyone is excited about this. The only commitment we're looking

095from the board is a consensus to move forward with the development of plans. There aren't any decisions made, but if we get that, and I'm hopeful we do, then the next step is is utilizing as as Mr. Rudd said, um, engaging our our Grundy community as well as the junior high or the high school community and the junior high community in providing input on what it is that they would like to see in all of these projects. And so, um, we're already down the road. Um, I'll circle back to the junior high, um, with the STEM lab. Uh, Mr. Hammond has already done a a site visit at Peak High School. Why? because they just did a $2 million project on all of their like STEM and chemistry labs. And so we're trying to see

096what they like and if they had to do it again. Anybody ever built a house? When you get to the end of the construction, you're like h I wish I would have done it differently. So we're trying to get out ahead of that. [clears throat] But um that's the communication piece. Um I don't think I missed anything on this, but I don't know. I'll throw it back. I would just say um Jerry and I both sitting in there, we felt like we were comfortable with a thumbs up for all of this moving forward, seeing just some preliminary talks and plans and ideas and again the bid does not, you know, moving forward doesn't lock you in, but it would be nice to know what it would take to to be able to proceed. >> Yes.

097And then the other thing is the safety and security is not going to die anytime soon. So when they started adding that part on, which we hadn't talked about that before until this, this is a perfect time to do it in my my opinion. So yeah, that's what we talked about was thumbs up to at least get something in writing cuz right now it's it's more speculation and the communication so that way everybody knows what's going on is I think imperative moving forward um with anything that we do. And just like STEM labs, um I know that was on the docket like three years ago. Unfortunately, we had to push it back for financial reasons and I think a couple and I want to thank Lisa, too, because she says, "Hey, we have x amount

098of money. You can spend it here, here, or here." And unfortunately, the STEM clubs got pushed back. So, sounds like it was a good thing it got pushed back so we can do it right. >> Great. >> It's nice that all these projects do cover a wide range of students in our district. from preschool to high school. >> Yes. And Morton Academy, that's been a big deal for >> for a while. >> Yeah. >> I think it hits all the areas. So, >> I mean, I know >> looking. Yeah. I mean, it doesn't, you know, it doesn't commit you to doing it, but you you can't decide if you're going to do it if you don't have plans on what you're going to do. So, >> Okay. All right. I'll let Lee know to go

099ahead and proceed. >> Thumbs up. You want thumbs up from everybody? >> Yeah. [laughter] >> There you go. >> Thank you. Thank you. It's exciting as as I've talked um it's preschool to uh 22 years old because high schoolers we have kids that are approaching 22. And so it's hitting every corner. And then it gives us a little bit of flexibility. um additional space at the junior high, potential classroom space, potential additional classrooms at uh Grundy and at um the high school. It's a win-winwin across the district. Gives us more mobility and uh allows us to pull more letter levers in the event that we start seeing a significant change in our population. So, I love having that, you know, that redundancy built in. So, okay, that's it on committee reports. >> All right, agenda

100building. >> I got two things. >> Okay, >> first, um, the finance audit. Good job with that. Thank you very much. I know how much work that takes. So, awesome. The audits, unfortunately, we got to go through them. We all get audited or we all get evaluated, whatever it is. So, good job with that. And then secondly, goals. We talked about goals last month. Um, if you go out to the board folder, at the very bottom of the board folder, it's got board uh goals uh in the green, I've got smart for specific, measurable, actionable, relevant, and timing. So, I just put that in there. But when it actually hits once we get decided hopefully next month, we'll we can go through this when we we can update our goals on our agenda. So there

101will be smart goals instead of I mean these are good goals. They're just a little bit fluff and we need to get it to where it's smart. We can't hold our superintendent accountable if we're not holding ourselves accountable. And if you guys recall last October we had a board self evaluation to hold ourselves accountable. And one of the um items was to update your small goals to smart goals. So there are two tabs in that goals. I couldn't figure it out. So I asked Dr. Sander, he goes, "Oh, push this." So that is the finance and facilities probable [clears throat] or possible um goals. So there's two tabs. The first tab has the three that I did about a year ago. I looked through a little bit and you I think I we can update

102those. And then the second tab has the facilities and finance. So we need to have smart goals. use AI. AI is a wonderful thing to help with this stuff. >> That's it for Jerry. >> I have a couple of things as well. Um, one is just, um, in light of the security update, having a student at the junior high and being a board member, I recently in the security um, situation there was updated from both sides and just thought it was extremely timely and I appreciated as a parent knowing that the school was completely aware of what was going on and that I would be updated when it was resolved. And then I got a second updated everything's fine email and just so on the parent side appreciated it and then on the board side

103appreciated that that worked as well that we knew what was going on. Um so just kudos to the administration for their um quick response to um all of this going on in the district way too much this year. And then um secondly, I just wanted to bring the board's attention to um another kudos for the junior high. Um our board has a policy saying parents are our partners or we are parents partners. And so um Mr. Carter sent out an a cover letter along with things that we've gotten emails about the panorama that we do that the governor requires now by law that all students be screened for their social and mental health. And so I received my daughter's survey along with a letter ex expressing a desire to partner with me as a parent

104and for me to have this data. And I just want to say I um am really thrilled that our district is doing this implementation of a law the Morton way which is using the data to build relationships between our students, their teachers, their administrators and their parents. So I just had to highlight it. I just thought it was fabulous. And for our constituents who've emailed or asked us, you know, what are they going to do with our kids data? Um, I really appreciate the clear communication from Mr. Carter of what my daughter's data, where is that going? So, um, yeah, 500 parents got letters saying, "What are schools doing with the stuff we get on our kids?" So appreciated that very much and just I'm hoping that our further policies will really as we're looking

105at what do we need to update, what wording needs to change, it really needs to be centered on what do our parents need to partner with teachers, what do our administrators and teachers need to partner with our parents for our students best. >> Thanks for sharing that. That's fantastic. [cough] discussion items. >> Yeah, discussion items. So, >> all right. Uh, in a few weeks, we're going to be attending the uh joint annual conference and so this is time set aside to talk about uh conference selections. So, turn on over. Anybody want to share what they're looking at uh attending? I kind of scoped it out and couple classes I'm looking at are the board engagement with students. It's not really titled that, but that's kind of the general idea of it. Just how the board

106can maybe engage more personally with the students um schools, [clears throat] which I thought was nice because we're starting to implement that this year anyways. Um, another one is the Illinois legislative updates. I attended that last year and I just felt it was interesting. It's just how it affects our schools and things that are kind of on the docket that might um impact us. The last one um I almost attend every year this one. The art of school boarding. I love it. [laughter] [gasps] It's a great one. Do I always just have some really good takeaways? He was a school board member. I think he was a board member of a hospital and he was also a superintendent. So, he's worn a few different hats and just has >> advice beyond his book that he

107wrote. That's my goal. >> I was looking at the board scenarios for new board members. Felt like that would be fitting for me as a new board member. I know I have a lot to learn and um look forward to learning more in that workshop as [clears throat] well as um interested in the one that's called trust the key to successful educational leadership. So just kind of learning more about how we can partner with our community and administration with that. So, all right, I'll just keep on rolling. Friday morning, all morning. Uh, dollars and decisions, school finance for board members. So, there you go, Lisa. Hopefully, I'll learn a little bit. I You've already given me a class. I'm I'm getting there. It's just I'm I'm a slow learner. And then, u the annual superintendent

108evaluation best practices. I'm going to sit in on that one. That'll be Friday afternoon. Saturday, I'm going to be setting your new superintendent up for success. Thought that would be a good one to go to. Uh, board and unions, um, evolving district relations in the afternoon and stay strong, stay kind, a playbook for, uh, difficult people. Thought thought that would be good. [snorts] Christine, >> I thought you were going to say you were going to be at the Rest and Relax Lounge from 10:30 to 3:30. [laughter] >> That's new this year, by the way. >> Is it? >> Yeah, >> it is new. Yes. >> Might have to pop in. [laughter] >> No, I um I actually uh same as Wes for the new board member thing. Um I didn't I didn't know if that

109was something that was um again because we are new um if you guys did have any recommendations um that we do go to the new board member staff or if that's um I know it's just to any you know everybody's individual taste but if there were any recommendations as to like oh you should definitely you know [clears throat] hit this or avoid that or you know whatever it is. So um any >> I do think the new board member I that's where a lot of the value of this conference comes from. I think um I I think about probably one I went to was in 2017 as a new board member. Um, and I found that conference more useful than the second time I went and more useful than the third time I went just

110because um, there's so much stuff that school boarding is and isn't. And a lot of those like you're a new board member like >> this is what you need to know I think is actually really important because once you don't know what you don't know and they try to they guide you that. So I think most of those like you're a new board member things are totally worthwhile going. >> Okay. Um, unless there's a specific thing, you know, there's an AI thing or the finan, you know, schoolboard financing for dummies, um, sessions and [laughter] um, those because it's school finance is weird compared to private sector financing stuff and so and it's kind of complicated. Um, but that >> I think broader strokes initially is almost better. >> Okay, >> agreed. So that's a good

111one. the I didn't see the parent hat versus schoolboard hat. I didn't see that one in there. >> That doesn't sound >> but that's a good one to go to. And then the other one is the open meetings act. >> And I'd almost go to that one every year because you can always learn something new. >> Okay. >> Like like when we went to Jefferson, we couldn't talk schoolboard stuff. So we knew that so we did it. >> Right. Yes. >> But you could still be in this one location together. >> Sure. just got to be cognizant of the fact that okay, we're all on the board. So, but yeah, those are three good ones that I always like to go to and then the rest of them just go through and >> Okay. >>

112and read. >> Thank you. >> Same thing for you, Wes. >> You can always slip in and out. Like if you're five [clears throat] minutes in and you're like, "Oh, I'm not feeling this." >> You can scoot on to the next one. >> Right. Okay. >> They don't take attendance. >> Good to know. Thank you. [laughter] Um, the ones that I'm going to are uh build strong partnerships with higher education and then uh the other one I have is uh what your superintendent wants to tell you but can't. And then uh >> Joe's teaching that one is funny that you say. [laughter] Um and then another one and then I've been to this one before in the past and I really enjoyed it. It's through the ACA fellowship. It's finding true joy through tragedy. So,

113I'm kind of curious what that will be. And then I'm a delegate, so I'll be tied up with that for a bit. [laughter] >> What happens when you don't attend a meeting? >> I know, but it happened last year, too. If harvest is right in October, usually. [laughter] >> So, why don't we just make the motion right now for >> Might as well. >> All right, Diane. the um well as usual most of the ones I want are all in the same two blocks but um I am looking forward to the follow me social media school boards and um the first amendment I just I'm looking forward to that insight and um thought it'd be helpful and then there's one on setting district goals and direction I thought that might be helpful for the policy

114um committee and I'm gonna duck into a revenues for the novice. I think I'm still a novice at that. And um and then hoping to get into the you can't make the stuff up. I think you went to that last year. I >> somebody mentioned it last year, was you? I think we'll see if I >> go up to that. I am I really am so tempted to go to the um dual language seminar, but I think we need a few more people in the community behind me before I propose that. [laughter] It's very important to be bilingual. >> So anyway, I just I love hearing how schools do things differently and maybe one of these years time could have happened. >> Uh so for me uh Friday morning I was thinking um I looked

115through them and understanding school improvement for board members kind of goes through like processes and support to improve schools regardless if they're high achieving or low achieving that could be worthwhile. A Friday afternoon before the first general session um I had two I was trying to decide which one I wanted to go to. So one was the annual superintendent evaluation best practice which you So if you're going to hit that then I'm probably going to go to the other ones at the same time hiring for impact which is selecting leaders who make a difference. Just be interesting to see what they have to say about that. Um and then Saturday morning uh effective meetings productive boards. Um I just want to see what they have to say. I you know meetings are fun. Everyone loves

116them. They like for them to go along um like do our work, do it efficiently. Let's see what they have to say about it. Um that afternoon board self evaluation working together better. Um and then I also the student voice and community engagement. Is that what you said? >> You said something about student voice engagement. >> Um maybe that's a different day. Um I I want to go that to see what they say about how they collaborate with students and Mount Prospect is the district that's putting that on. So, um, Sunday morning there's a board president round table. >> I think I'm going to hit it up. See, that's enough. [clears throat and laughter] >> And then this is why we talk so that way if I'm going to something, I can share [clears throat]

117the notes. Sometimes you want two people to go to the >> is possible. Yeah. Yeah. >> So that way you have a different perspective on on what's going on. So that's this is why we kind of discuss it. And then the other thing is that sometimes you got to get with her really early because there are certain classes that you have to be scheduled to attend. >> So just for >> pre-register for Yeah. Pre-register just for >> for like next year. And if you wait too long like I did to to uh schedule it in in your agenda, then it's too late. >> Are all the pre-register ones you have to pay extra for? >> Yeah. And I have to do that. And actually the dollars and the dollars one is already full cuz Andy

118asked about it. >> So that one was >> the one I'm going doesn't have >> doesn't have that. Well, maybe Andy can get to that one. >> Yeah. When was yours, Jerry? >> Friday morning at 9:00 a.m. Yeah, it doesn't say that it is. Maybe I'm not going to No, it doesn't say that. >> Interesting, doesn't it? >> Yes, it does. If I had my glasses on, I wouldn't see it. >> He has them right there. >> You're not going to that one. >> Shoot. >> Sorry, Lisa. >> Okay. Um, and [snorts] then the other thing is as we get closer, um, Valerie will send us an email with schedule meeting place. You already have it probably typed. I just haven't sent it. >> I have almost It's not completely [clears throat] linked or I

119would have had it tonight. Yes. Um just know cuz you know that's the other great part of this is just kind of team building for us as we do this together to you know meet and um just get to know each other. Um and so that will be you know pizza on Thursday night on Friday night breakfast on Friday morning. >> Can I give a little update on that? Because of our group size pizza won't take us 12 12 people only. >> Okay. >> I said if we had two tables side by side. So, we will return to Doc B's for for those of you that enjoyed that the first night. Um, we will be back at the Palm for dinner and we're going to be in a new location that has windows and um

120the other meal the Miller Hall and Triggs and the Insurance Upland they will have the same at the Swiss. They'll have something on Saturday night. So, it's all in. You will get I call it kind of your linked agenda and we'll tell everything that's going on including for significant others free things to do in Chicago. Um there's also a nice parade. So, that'll all be there. But really, really, really, really important is your conference badge. Once I give you your conference badge, you have to put that something that's going with you because [laughter] because it's a it's hard it's really hard for you guys to put together. I mean, they'll do it, but but it's much easier if you have it and don't lose it. So, I'll bring those all in packets. Is everybody going

121to be at Lenny Brown? I'll bring it that way and I'll email the other information, but then you'll have the actual printed packet that night. So, any questions? Okay. Thanks. Thank you. You're welcome. All right. Um, do I have [clears throat] a motion for the board of education approve the 2026 27 proposed budget and attended levy at the maximum extension increase of the CPI rate of 2.9%. >> So moved >> support. >> Any discussion? Um, have questions? It's pretty straightforward. >> [snorts] >> Okay. Call the roll, please. >> Mrs. Mrs. Layman. Yes. >> Yes. >> Mr. Red. >> Yes. >> Mr. Roth. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Perie. >> Yes. >> Dr. Crawl. >> Yes. >> Dr. Cross. >> Yes. >> And Mr. Ones? >> Yes. And [snorts] do I have a motion for the board

122of education approve the destruction of verbatim audio recordings of close session board of education meetings that are at least 18 months old pursuant to the Illinois opens Meeting Act uh 5 ILCS120 back/2.06 with written close session minutes having been approved and retained in accordance with statute up to including May 4th of 2024. >> So moved. support. >> I just have a couple comments on this. So, um because we haven't been doing this, this is a formal action item, but in the next uh from all the months from here on out, they will land on the consent agenda because it'll be a regular board business. And so, we'll go ahead and destroy that all the um recordings and then um you know, we'll just every month be 18 months. It'll probably be one board meeting or

123possibly two board meetings that we would destroy those audio recordings. Okay. >> So, it'll be a perpetual item. >> Y questions, please call the RO. >> Mr. Roth, >> yes. >> Dr. Crawl, >> yes. >> Mr. Rudd, >> yes. >> Mr. Onus, >> yes. >> Dr. Cross, >> yes. >> Mrs. Layman, >> yes. >> And Mrs. Perty, >> yes. Do I have a motion for the board to approve the consent agenda as presented? >> I move that the board of education consent agenda as presented. >> Support >> Mr. Red. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Pury. >> Yes. >> Mrs. Layman. >> Yes. >> Mr. Roth. >> Yes. >> Mr. Onus. >> Yes. >> Dr. Cross. >> Yes. >> Dr. Crawl. >> Yes. Just a a couple of quick comments on that. So, thank you for approving

124the lacrosse co-op. Just some numbers with that. Last season we had 15 girls playing and so it's a great opportunity for our kids to get uh that exposure to lacrosse and then we also had two boys and so it's a it's a joint effort. Um there are six middlei schools or I'm sorry five metali schools in Eureka uh that are part of that co-op. Uh the second thing is the school maintenance project grant. Um Lisa does a great job applying for that. That's like free money, right? Uh it's up to $50,000 5 and it's a matching. It's a dollar for dollar. So if we do a project and and that is for the MHS MJHS STEM labs and summer work that is going to be abatement asbestous abatement related. So we'll probably get to the

125$100,000 mark. So, we're getting 50% off on that. Um, and then the last thing, we did have a donation, uh, three donations. And so, the Morton Opportunity Club, uh, made a $500 donation to the girls basketball program. Howard and Howard Law Office um, made a $500 donation to the Lety or excuse me, Lincoln School Trunk or Treat, which I heard was a huge success. Um, and so we thank them for uh, and it was $500 for for candy. And I know at the homecoming parade, I got sticker shock at how expensive [laughter] candy is nowadays. And then, uh, last but not least, um, we had a $30,000 donation to Jefferson from an anonymous donor. Um, we had something similar a couple years ago and uh the donation went to the establishment of the outdoor learning

126space which is phenomenal. We are blessed, literally blessed to have people within our community that are so uh gracious and giving. Um they they make a difference and so um I I just want to recognize our appreciation to this donor uh for making a difference at Jefferson. worthy cause. >> Yep. Okay. >> Okay. And then do I have a motion to enter close session for the purpose of student discipline and litigation? >> I move that the board enter to the close session for the purpose of student discipline and litigation. Support, please call. >> Yes, [clears throat] sir. Mr. Red, >> yes. >> Mr. Onus, >> yes. >> Dr. Cross, >> yes. >> Dr. Crawl, >> yes. >> Mrs. Layman, >> yes. >> Mrs. Curtie, >> yes. and Mr. Drock. >> Yes. Before you head home,

127let's recognize our board and come up and enjoy these wonderful um treats that Valerie