001Oh my god. It's This one's Awesome. It's We appreciate that the extra support. You are hereby notified that there will be a committee of the whole meeting of the board of education, school district number 40, at 6 p.m. Monday, January 12th at the Mullen Education Center, Molen, Illinois. um for opening of the meeting. Can I get a roll call, please? >> Carter Adamson >> here. >> Jed Smith >> here. >> Ramona Dixon >> here. >> Jason Frell >> here. >> Lindsay Hines >> here. >> Jeff Mayus >> here. >> Laura Severson >> here. >> Abigail Greenley >> here. >> Brun Mel >> here. >> Approval of the minutes. Uh we need to approve the minutes of the committee the whole meeting of December 8th, 2025. Can I get a motion? >> Second. >> Any discussion?
002All in favor? There we go. I this >> I >> uh public comment and participation is pushed back to our regular meeting which will be right after this meeting. Um so first up then we have our school spotlight um Lincoln Irving. Take it away. >> All right. Uh hi everybody. I'm Egan Colze. I'm the principal at Lincoln Irving. And I just I didn't know we were going to draw such a big crowd for this. We know we know that we're here. Uh first of all, before we begin, I know we got a time limit. I do want to take a minute to thank the board of education and the leadership here at uh Molen Co Valley School District for allowing me to be the principal of a fantastic school. I did not realize how blessed
003I was to be selected for that. And I want to thank you very very much. So, I appreciate you you letting us at this time to share the highlights of Lincoln Irving. Uh, also I want to apologize. Uh, I'm not the easiest to work with and these two, our assistant principal and our counselor, Miss Hillier, Mrs. Zamora, work with me more than most and they did volunteer to come to this when they knew I was presented. So, we want to thank you. So, tonight we'd like to highlight some of the key areas of growth and student centered practices at Lincoln Irving School. These initiatives reflect our school's commitment to academic excellence, student engagement, and inclusion in school culture. >> He's staying on a script because otherwise this could be 20 minutes long. So, um, we
004just kind of wanted to highlight since the district has the initiative of maroon show up, we have noticed that our Eagles have been showing up and this school year specifically, we've seen a pretty good increase in our attendance rates and we're hoping that that is due to some of the things that we've put in place either daily or for the school year. Um, not only is our average daily attendance rate up, but I think that our chronically truent students, their percentage is up about 12%. So, we're seeing good increases in both of those areas. And I think that that is truly due to some of the things that we're putting in place and that we're hoping to highlight to you guys tonight. So, as a dual language program school, we are committed to bilingualism, bi
005literacy, and cultural competence. Our students are developing academic skills in both English and Spanish while building pride in their linguistic and cultural identities. appreciate the flags a little bit. >> Yeah, >> we'll show the next slide in a minute. So, also we do have during our fifth grade wax museum, students highlighted influential Latino and Hispanic leaders. Uh the experience strengthens our students research, presentation, public speaking skills while celebrating the cultural compre contributions of their leadership. >> This school year we've also adopted a new Spanish English language arts curriculum and through that our teachers have been able to deep dive and look through the standards, unpack the standards to give our students the opportunity to succeed and also to strengthen their instructional strategies. So this is something new for our teachers. We haven't had a curriculum
006for the past few years for the dual side of things that's been aligned to each grade level. So they've had the opportunity to be able to sit down and collab have collaboration days where they are going grade level by grade level to make sure that they're all on the same page with assessments and their standards. >> Um we've also started doing what we call soar assemblies. So for context, uh we're Lincoln Irving Eagles, so we soar as high as we can. Soar is our acronym for positive behavior. It stands for being safe, on task, accountable, and respectful. Um students and staff are recognized for embodying one of these four characteristics. Uh we've seen some a lot of really positive feedback from both the students and the staff. I love how the kids get excited, not
007just for them to win awards, but they get excited when their peers win awards. So some of the other >> So some of the other things that we've been doing is highlighting students academic achievement and also just other successes that they are having within the building. So, we do weekly attendance awards for K2 and then also for 35 and they receive a plaque that's outside their classroom every single week. Here's some of them. And then they also receive a little treat for that week to boost them. And then we also do the exact same thing for our STMath winners. There's a K2 award and then a 35 award and they have a traveling GG. And then they also receive a little prize for their entire class. We also have um positive office referrals. We've had
008a lot of positive office referrals this year, which is awesome. And then we've also just started a new uh Wednesday where they come down with some type of goal that they've been working on that they can speak to and then they can kind of decide if they want a prize, if they want a positive phone call home. Um so just really highlighting a lot of successes that they're having within their classrooms. Um, we're also offering as much as we can. We're offering after school programs. Uh, these include the running club, which I'm actually a coach of, uh, chess club. We have student council, and we've recently just started a soccer club as well. These are great opportunities for the kids to play and interact with their peers more often, but also things where they can
009learn leadership and teamworking skills. Um, I love how much community partnerships we've been able to establish with these clubs as well. As far as the running club goes, we recently helped all of our students in the club get free shoes for them to run in. And likewise, they were able to participate in runs in the Quad Cities Marathon and the Blackhawk 5K. So here at pretty much at the end here, the idea that we really want to kind of leave you with is yes, we're a dual language school, which means that we're working on primarily two different languages for our students, but more than that, we're not just bridging languages, we're bridging cultures and the ideas that kind of incorporate those cultural backgrounds. You see here, our entire student body and our staff wearing their
010dito shirts, their day of the dead shirts. Because really what we understand is we have the unique opportunity not just to foster intelligent and capable citizens but also global citizens who can understand what it means to work with people with different backgrounds um and sort of appreciate the differences there. So in closing these initiatives reflect and share the focus of our students achievement people character development and cultural inclusiveness. Together we are creating a safe, engaging and academically rich environment where all students can thrive. Gracious. >> Anybody have any questions for them? >> The back up there. >> The adopted um Spanish English language arts curriculum. >> Yes. >> Um I noticed that we are exploring other curriculum. Is conversation in the works about you guys having access to that earlier now um that we're possibly
011adopting new curriculum? >> That's a great question. So we um adopted this curriculum specific to the dual program just because a lot of the other curriculums that they were looking at might not have had that Spanish component. Um so we adopted this la this past school year. Um, so I do believe that we will have a separate curriculum for that and then our monolingual sections will adopt the new curriculum that we're looking at. >> We use school improvement funds last year to fund that new dual language curriculum which is benchmark. >> So um, >> so I guess I guess a follow-up question is the students in the dual language program are exposed to the regular curriculum for most of the day and then they are this is kind of like a pullout program. How? >>
012No. >> How does that work? >> The dual language ELA curriculum that we purchased is a standalone for the dual language. >> So for only those students. >> Yeah. Those programs. >> That data would be interesting to see sidebyside comparison of students in the program versus not. >> Yeah. >> Thank you. >> Other questions? >> Thank you so much. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Next up, we have a special recognition. So in our midst we have the IPA elementary principal of the year uh Mr. Grant Putnham. So if you would come on up from Franklin Elementary School and Dr. Sav formal celebration with your actual fancy stuff. So, here's just some minor fancy stuff, but just to say a couple of words about Grant. Um, and then I know Dr. Prible has some background on
013the IPA, uh, uh, principal of the year process. Um, Grant is in his fourth year of principal at Franklin Elementary and has really made a tremendous impact. Um, I did a little homework and went back and had some historical views of Franklin. And in the four years that Grant has been at Franklin, he has managed to improve every single metric in that school from academic achievement to staffing to climate and culture. Every single metric has improved. I think Grant uh lives school improvement. He has a can do attitude and has just been an amazing addition to uh Franklin Elementary. He is now a mentor to one of our new principles, which is something that um principles are eligible to do once they hit year four. And I couldn't be more happy for the principal that
014has the opportunity to learn from Grant. Um just a couple of uh metrics, our ELA growth at Franklin is the highest it has been in five years. Math growth at Franklin is the highest it has been in five years. Uh participation across all assessments is the highest it has been. Um particularly in our Illinois five essentials which we know is really the glue and the mortar that holds all of the numbers and the and the math and the learning and the ELA together. He has taken that school in all five essentials from effective leaders, collaborative teachers, supportive environment, ambitious instruction, and involved families from average to below average. Every single metric was average to below a below average. It's all green. It's all this is a goal that we have for our district to be
015all green by 2028. And so you have managed to achieve that in really a relatively short period of time considering coming out of the classroom during the pandemic and stepping into a leadership role. Um it's really a big deal. Um you have uh one of the best social media pages I have ever seen. Friend Franklin if you have not. Um it's really hard to not be positive and excited about what's happening in a school after you watch one of Grant's uh daily updates. He finds great and creative ways to give shoutouts to his staff and celebrate kids. Just all the daily small little stuff that you don't think is a big deal, but it is a big deal and you do a fantastic job. So, um, one more round of applause for the Illinois uh,
016principal association. They have 20 regions and we're in the Blackhawk region and um they hold uh nominations and those nominations come from peers throughout the region, not just within our district, but it actually they they look at the nominations from outside our district and then to be nominated and then considered is is not just a simple ballot. They um once you're you're nominated then they reach out to the nominations uh like or the nominees grant and then they ask for some background and then they get their board together and they go through. So the exciting thing about this is Grant is one of 20 principles in the state of Illinois and um he is up for principal of the year which they will announce in October uh later this year. So um again Grant congratulations
017and welcome been one of the honors of my life to be principal at Franklin and I couldn't be with all the people sitting back there right now. That's my staff that showed up here tonight. So, uh I just want to say thank you to you guys because about three and a half years ago, you looked at a 28-year-old kid that wanted to go make a difference and uh you all said yes, you guys said no. So, I just want to say thank you for having trust in me to go get the job done. And I couldn't have done it with uh without Bob and Stephen there back in the corner, Brian, Todd, Rachel, and Lindsay who's not here tonight, who are packed full of my awesome mentors. So, thank you for believing it. Well, so
018my son got to benefit from having Mr. Putton as a teacher. And so I know part of me was very sad when he moved on to become a principal because I knew students would not have him in the classroom the way my my childhood experienced it. But I am so amazed at the things you're doing at Franklin. So thank you. >> Yes. >> Um we have K8 ELA curriculum pilot and adoption update. Mr. Beam and Mr. Eridge, come on up. >> You make me about cry. I don't know. All righty. Up there. All right. So, uh, Stephen and I, you know, we've been piloting the new ELA curriculum K8 since September. Um, so today, Stephen and I just want to give you some updates, a little bit about the process that we followed, the progress,
019where we're at with it, and what our next steps are probably achieved. So, first, just go over the process a little bit. We had 47 teachers participate in the pilot this year. So that's a huge pilot, right? So there were 37 K5 teachers and then we had 10 middle school teachers that participated in the pilot as well. Um this was kind of our our overview and the timeline the process that we followed. So we began last spring um kind of with a consensus building activity. We had our elementary and secondary literacy committees uh meet, collaborate, talk about what are some of the things, what are some of the needs, the wants from a K8 ELA perspective that we would look for if in fact we were going to move forward and adopt a new ELA
020curriculum. From there, based on the outcome of of that collaboration activity, we built a list of vendors and products that we felt might meet the needs um and wants that we were looking for from an ELA program. Uh I think it was in April we had our product presentations. So we had in-person vendor presentations. They came down from the different uh companies that we chose um that we thought would meet our needs. They gave their pitch. We took a look. We asked questions. Um based on that using our plus delta uh committee created rubric. We narrowed it down and selected a few products that we thought might uh meet the needs that we we were looking for. Um we chose two products. the pilot. Uh there were two at the elementary but only one at
021the middle school based on again um the needs that we felt we wanted to meet. We provided some professional development in June and again in in um August uh to get the pilot teachers ready to pilot this program and then we implemented the pilot starting in September. Uh at the beginning I'm sorry in the middle of December right before winter break the pilot officially ended. So, we brought all our PE our folks together. Uh, we discussed the results of the pilot. We had a rubric that we um had created that I'll talk about a little bit later more in depth, but there was a rubric that we all used to kind of evaluate the different products based on what our priority needs for the uh ELA curriculum were. And that's kind of where we are
022right now. We're going to discuss the uh results of the pilot tonight a little bit. And right now or not right now this week we will have those things ready to display uh so that people uh can come in the community can come in and take a look and then the next steps would be we are hopefully going to make a final presentation to you um with some teachers and more information um so that we can recommend potentially a district purchase uh federally. >> So rewinding back a little bit to last spring, Bob um talked about our literacy committees. Um so we had a literacy committee that um they went through and you know we looked at district data. We we determined if there was a need and that's what determined us bringing in vendors
023for presentations. Um part of that process was also a discussion on how would we determine which vendors to bring in. Um through those discussions we decided to use Ed reports as a resource. And for anybody that's not um familiar with Ed reports um ed reports is a group of expert teachers that they vet curriculum and they provide two different scores. A score on standards alignment and then also a score on usability. Um so we felt very confident in using ed reports. It seems like a common um resource that's that's used at other districts as well um to look through curricula. So with um our ed report scores we came as Bob said we piloted um two products but these were all of the products that we looked like that we looked at. Um my view
024was the current product that we use. Um they had some updates um to their program and we wanted to make sure that we gave that company a chance as well because we used them for the last six years. So we did look at the new updates from that program. Um but then ultimately um decided to look at uh the remaining four that are up there now. Arts and letters and witten wisdom those are the same product. Arts and letters is just the updated product of Witten Wisdom. Um so the way that the lit the ELA block is set up is a little bit different from Arts and Letters um with with the new update. So um that was one of the products that the elementary ultimately decided to pilot. Um the other uh which was
025piloted in both the middle school and the elementary uh was amplify 68 and then amplify CQLA for the K5 students. And then um for uh just you know throughout this process as Bob said um I thought we had really good teacher representation um across the board. Um, at the elementary level, um, we had 30, uh, teachers participating, um, excuse me, with with Amplify. At the elementary and the six through eight level, we had 30 teachers that participated in Amplify. We had 18 teachers participate um, with arts and letters. Um, the cool thing at the at the elementary that um, teachers were able to do is if Bob and I were both first grade teachers, he would do the amplify, I would pilot the arts and letters, and then we could have conversations on what we
026liked and disliked about both programs. We had collaboration days where the teachers compared different pieces of assessment or um you know uh teachers manuals, student books, those types of things. So we had some really in-depth discussions throughout this process which was pretty cool. Um teachers used a mix of digital resources and print resources throughout the pro throughout the pilot. Um and then administrators and instructional coaches also played a pivotal role because we wanted their feedback as well. Um so we made sure to include them on as many meetings as we could um as possible um and and took their feedback as well throughout the process. Um, and then finally, um, just that ongoing PD piece, um, and and support were available from all of our companies that we used to pilot. Um, so that part
027was pretty cool because we had different site visits for both groups and the arts and letters team and the amplified team brought in a team of their staff and went through the schools, got into all the classrooms and had some good discussions with teachers. Oh, the feedback then. So, um after the the the pilot um concluded in December, um we had the teachers fill out these rubrics. Now, these rubrics were based on the knowledge matters rubric, which is a uh rubric that's out there, knowledgebased curriculum for ELA. Um we took that rubric as our foundation and then we met with our teachers and we sort of tweaked it. We made uh some adaptations to make it ours a little bit. Um but you can see there were some areas that kind of the important areas
028that we looked at. We were looking at the instructional design, the technology resources that were available with the product. Um reading comprehension, textbased instruction, which was especially important at the middle level because comprehension was kind of what it's about. uh academic vocabulary, writing, text selection, uh student engagement, supports for our special needs learners, assessments, and then they had some uh areas where they could just give some uh narratives feedback that way. Um so we felt like we were taking a pretty comprehensive look at each of these curricula and um everybody rated on all of those things and this is just a summary chart um of all of the responses. So you can see the first column is the middle school average and it was a four-point scale. So if somebody rated something a four, uh
029it exceeded their expectations. Um it was excellent. Uh three was a strong and met expectations. Two we might have needed some support and one it was absent. We didn't have any evidence of it. And you can see the scores are pretty strong for the middle school. Uh everything was meeting expectations or above. And when you see a score that's a 3.5 and above, that means it was primarily excellent. It exceeded our expectations. It's, you know, a balance of kind of meeting and exceeding. One of the things with the middle school uh scores that we talked about that we were very impressed with. Again, comprehension is pretty important at the middle school is kind of what it's about. And that was the highest score uh from the middle school ratings. The elementary, you can see again
030this is the uh amplify ELA, so it was threes threes and up all the way down. And then this was the arts and letter. And you can see that they were pretty high, too. Um but the uh amplify sort of edged out in most of those areas. So if uh some considerations that we did talk about or that we have been talking about if in fact we move forward with amplify which is we met with our committee uh last week um with all the pilot teachers went over all the data with them um and ultimately I think all of the teachers said yes amplify is is kind of a direction that we feel we should be going as a district. Now, if we do move forward with that, it would be the first time ever
031that we have a K8 aligned ELA curriculum in our district. We've been using teacher created curriculum. We've been using uh peacemail curriculum. It would be the first time that we have a comprehensive articulated curriculum, KA, which would be lovely. Um, it is a knowledgebased curriculum and that was something that was really important to our teachers. Uh, the differentiated instruction and resources for student support. Um I didn't highlight that really on the but those were strong uh some of the most strong scores with the amplify. Um and those are some areas that we focus on in our district when we take a look at designations and things like that. Those are some areas that we need to shore up a little bit. Uh there's a lot of resources for whole and small group it and the
032feedback we consistently get with amplify is the rigor is increased. It is a rigorous curriculum. It is a writing intensive curriculum and the teachers when they come next month and talk to you we'll talk about how they are seeing growth quicker than they have seen in the past with our students uh and it is aligned to our pace goals um our achievement pace goals when we talk about lap growth when we talk about I grow >> I mean there's there's a lot of excitement behind this pilot and behind this process um I think Bob mentioned you know Bob mentioned the writing piece of it you know for us looking at state testing standpoint over 30% % of the scoring on the ono assessment of readiness that's the is the writing piece. So we're excited because
033you know with all of the curricula that we that we looked at um the writing is far and above anything that we've ever done before in this district. So we really really excited about that. We're really excited to um to see where that takes our students and also how it pushes our teachers to become better writing instructors. Um so the remaining the remainder of the process. Okay. we kind of outline um our timeline here and obviously tonight we're here for our presentation. Um public display uh the curriculum is outside this office out here and we just had some examples of different grade levels from the primary levels up into the intermediate grades. Um we hope to come back in February with some teachers for you know for a p pilot possible adoption um presentation and
034then February March um current pilot teachers um this is this is one cool thing that we're really excited about. We want to allow them to continue to use the product throughout the school year. We think that's very important. We have a lot of excitement, a lot of momentum behind this decision. Um, so that's one thing that Brian, Bob, and I are currently working through with our with our Amplify rep to get not only the teachers that piloted Amplify materials for the remainder of the school year, but also give the option to those teachers that piloted arts and letters to come on board as well, so that we can have all of our pilot teachers use that product. So that will help with that onboarding process next year when we bring on all of our teachers
035across the district. So we're really excited about that. And then in May, um this is a a lofty goal, but a necessary one. We're hoping that our halfday school improvement day, that'll be our first professional development. So not just our pilot teachers, but all of our teachers will get that initial PD um for Amplify if it is um if it is ex, you know, adopted. Um, and we think that's important to get materials in teachers hands early before the summer so that way we can kick the kick the new school year off next year. Um, you know, be ready to roll. Um, the other thing from from a PD perspective is we feel like if we give that initial PD in May, all those pilot teachers will get a different PD. So then that way
036they're still step ahead because we know teachers are going to need support. And then maybe mid year or mid first quarter to the end of end of first quarter, they'll get that second PD. um just so then that way they've taught the curriculum for a number of weeks and if they have any questions or difficulties that'll be that first um line of support you know probably mid first quarter to the end of first quarter um that's so that's it any questions for us update >> this program you guys are are looking at the only thing I wrote down was like the online access for teachers for maybe even parents for you know during Christmas break or summer break how does that does this program have those resources what does that look like >> yeah there's
037many different online tools for the teacher teachers to use all of their lesson plans, um, all of their lesson resources, all of the printables, all of that stuff can be found online in the in the teacher portal. As far as parents are concerned, I don't know what right at off the top of my head what's available for parents from the online platform. Um, but I'm sure teachers can assign specific things and send those out to families or pets. Thank you. um with the sort of digital and the print sort of things for them from the students perspective. What is sort of the breakdown of how much of the materials they're engaging with are in print format versus digital format? >> Um at the elementary level um most of what they do during the day would
038be on on print. They all have readers that they go through. So all of the um all of the topics, all of the modules are focused on those readers. So the kids will have a text in their hand and they won't be doing um very much at all digital reading if unless it's like a video or something like that. the assessments can be taken online. That part's kind of cool because then the kids can practice typing in to, you know, certain text boxes and those types of things. But we look forward to in February getting some teachers in and they can show you guys some of these online tools and things that they're using for assessment and and student resources. >> Yeah, it's very much the same with the middle and there are options. You
039know, when it is something that's a print, it can also be digital as well. >> Thank you. And since our students have access to the Chromebooks and that that's the way that we've been going, is it our goal to have more of that stuff accessible to students on the on online version versus purchasing uh workbooks and things like that every year. >> Um yeah, like in terms of this program and I don't know all the details, but I know that teachers can differentiate out the text right by inside the teacher portal. So they can actually push out digital variations of the same text at different levels. So there I mean there it's kind of there there is a in in your hands component to this that I think that's the research behind um but along
040with the digital piece. So it's it's kind of I don't want to say it all. It'll be one or the other, but it'll it has the capability of of digital. Everything in in print can be digital as well. If >> that grades too, I think we want to keep text in hand as much as we as much as we possibly can and then as they progress through the grade levels, we have flexibility and options to do more digital. >> I think it's really about balance and I think that's really what the teachers are looking for too. So you have a you you have options where you can make things a lot of digital, a lot of print. But I think it's finding that balance and I really think that's what the teachers are looking for
041and what they appreciate about it is they have that flexibility. >> I think one other key piece to this too um both products that we had the teachers all felt whether you know because when Bob and I gave this final presentation we knew there was going to be some disappointment the teachers that were the arts and letters teachers versus the amplify. But the the cool thing about it was that everybody in the room knows that we're in a we're in a better place than what we have been with previous products. So regardless if their product didn't get choke wasn't wasn't picked, um, everybody's excited about the products the product that we have that we're going to have hopefully um and and excited for what's to come. >> Questions? >> Thank you so much. want to
042say just not at the I don't know if any of the teachers are here in the room tonight or any of the pilot are there any pilot teachers in the room. Awesome. So to those I know that is a a leap into something and so thank you for you and everybody else that's uh were pilot teachers in a program because that is a taking on something that you're not sure what you're walking into. So thank you. Um next up we have student congress update. So, our own Abigail Greenley uh to give us a a thing with some of the We have lots of great t-shirts happening in the crowd tonight between >> Hi, for those of you who don't know me, my name is Abby Greenley. I am a senior um at Molen High School
043and I have some members of MHS's student congress with me tonight to present just some updates about activities they're doing in the school and things that they're putting on. They're definitely one of our largest and most impactful clubs. So with that, I will let them introduce themselves and take over. >> Hi everyone. I'm Anelie Kumar. I'm the president uh I'm the president of student congress at MHS. >> My name is Isaia Martinez. I'm the vice president. >> I'm Anukica Kumar. I'm the treasurer. I'm Charlie Moore. I'm the secretary. I'm Axida Kumar and I'm fundraising chair. >> Today we are missing Isabel Graten, our social media manager and a Peterson, our community outreach, our community outreach coordinator coordinator. And then in the audience, we also have Miss Peterson, our adviser. Also, before getting started, I'd like
044to thank the school board for giving us the opportunity to present our club. Going into a little bit of who we are, we're our club has over 50 members that are passionate young leaders. We um work alongside the parent teacher student association organization to lead school events. So our mission and goals can really be summarized in just three words. We want to learn, serve, and grow. As the term is that we every event that our ho or club hosts and takes part of, it's not like only benefit each club member individually. We kind of want to serve as a bridge between the student body, our staff, and the community around us. So going into one of our biggest events of the year is our homecoming week. One thing we do is spirit week. This year
045we wanted to get more engagement from the elementary. So we had spirit week with them as well. We went to five elementary schools and handed out little goodies to them. Another big part of homecoming week is float building in which each grade takes one week to design and build a float which is later presented in the homecoming parade and football game. Another event that takes place during that week is our uh coronation ceremony which honors the homecoming court and crowns the king and queen. This year we had 500 attendees and uh multiple performances. So pretty successful. Uh what is perhaps tied as one of the biggest events during the week is our homecoming parade. Um, as many of you know, the route changed from Avenue of the City to Behind the School, and that hosted
046a lot of uh logistical concerns uh with moving 800 members throughout that, but overall was pretty successful with many of our club members stepping up and staff collaboration. We had a very successful parade with a lot of positive feedback. Another large event is the homecoming dance which was moved to the PEC this year mainly because it provided air conditioning and I I worked with seven other students and Mrs. House to set up the decorations for the dance which took about 20 hours in total of decorations and setting up. and the dance makes up most of our yearly budget with over 1,000 attendees. Um, this year we decided to bring back the hoown which is basically a country style dance that took place in the VPAC parking lot. Uh we hired profession uh experienced line dancers
047to teach attendees line dances throughout the whole dance and we also had a confessions table served by >> Yeah. So outside of homecoming we also have sades and prom. Sades is typically held in the east gym and it's usually geared more towards underassmen. So we had around 300 attendees for that. This year prom is being held at the university club and usually juniors and seniors are in the committee and they take responsibility in decorations and other prom and stuff like that. This year I worked alongside Mr. Moore and Miss Peterson in planning senior sunrise and we helped plan the logistics of the event like the we held it on the soccer field and Mr. Moore shop owned it and we had donuts and drinks for all the seniors to have at the event and yeah
048a lot of people showed up and it was fun. >> Uh so this year we hosted our second annual pumpkin carving contest. So clubs were asked to take part and carve two pumpkins. Um 13 clubs participated and students were allowed to vote on them and each club received fundings that or the two clubs that won sorry uh the clubs that won receive funding. Um what also takes place annually is our blood drive. So every fall and spring blood drive takes place. Ever since co 19 our participation has kind of plummeted. So this year we really wanted to make it one of our goals to increase student participation. Um so we really put out an effort to advertise and this year we had our largest blood drive to date with over 40 units collected. Um and
049we also worked this year on the teacher appreciation week. So we wanted to welcome new incoming teachers with like kind of a welcoming gift. So we put together baskets with like snacks and school supplies just to help them feel warmed or feel at home at school. And we also worked in with PTSO which donated school food that our student congress members served to over 95 staff members. >> Going into another big event is Sher Joys. So this year we worked with NHS to host the donut eating contest. We had 19 teams which was amazing and we made over 10k. And then as well as Sher joys on that Thursday and Friday we PTSO hosted a bingo room in which we had over 300 students participate and win prizes. And then every year we love to
050go help out with elementary schools and whatever event they're hosting. Last year was a dodgeball tournament and then this year was an ice cream party at Logan. >> You go back. Sorry. Um another big part of ShareJoy is on that Thursday and Friday during lunch we run the grill. We have over 45 student congress members running it. Here are a few things that we sell at the grill and then we also this is for our students and teachers. Um this year we got to attend over the last two years actually we got to attend two leadership exchanges. One was at Bentonor student was one was Bentonor student council exchange which was student led and we got to learn about their student councils and other and meet with other student council members as well as the
051Illinois association of student council leadership workshop in which we got to learn how to become a more effective leader and step out your com comfort zone. Okay, so this is our third year hosting Kids Against Hunger and basically we collaborated and planned and we hosted it along with Roosevelt and um yeah uh student council and over a 100 students and MH's parents helped package 12,000 meals as well as we participated in team building activities building off the elementary outreach goal. We volunteered and outreached to a couple of elementary schools, mainly volunteering with their carnivals and field days. And for Bsentennial, we helped plan their community service project with their student council. For Roosevelt, we helped execute their community service project. And since they're so close to school, we also work with them for Earth Day
052grounds cleanup. and we're really looking forward to having more elementary um collaboration. Um just some stuff that we as student council are really excited for. We have the class of 2027 gift that we have already planned and began funding for. And we also um more emphasis on elementary and outreach with clubs and elementary schools and just being really involved in our community. I know all of student council was really looking forward to a schoolwide pickle ball tournament. As student congress president, one of my favorite parts is working along with all these passionate people to organize events for all the students. We get to host them all year long. So, you know, every student enjoys it and seeing that impact really um is one of my favorite things. >> Uh yeah, the biggest reason I do
053it is to see like the events that we hold like homecoming and chair joys. I really like to see uh just a greater atmosphere for me and my or my me and my fellow students. Uh that's the biggest reason I do it. Um, I really enjoy student congress because I love the um like the creative aspects that you can take with the dances or you know I designed like the club shirts and I I love like the freedom you get with that and how it affects so many people who really appreciate it. I'm passionate about serving my community and meeting new people. Um, I really love student congress because I get to help out and bring like feedback for as an underassman and I really love helping the company. >> Does anyone have any questions
054for us? >> Yeah. >> Do you reach out to the elementary to offer to come help for events or can they reach out to you if they have an event that they would like you to attend? >> Um, it really goes either way. A lot of the times like the person who organizes or um leads the student congress at the elementary school will typically reach out to our club advisor and then from there we'll let the rest of the club know and organize that all >> right. What types of activities then do you help with for the elementary? >> So for bsentennial we went and helped um them like plan community service projects and then at Roosevelt usually we go just like help them actually do their community service project. So, just coming up in
055a few weeks, we're going to go there and help them tag our nonations for others. >> Questions? >> I just say as a board of education member, it's it's just wonderful to see that the future's bright with leadership in our community. And uh I'd be remiss to say if you know, someday we want you sitting in the these seats right here. For sure. >> Keep up the great work. It's inspirational. >> Oh, and thank you for the time you give to this. I know we've been I mean 20 hours of helping Mrs. House probably do balloon. That's a that's an intense activity. Um and so but thank you because it does you have to prioritize this over other things. And so we we really appreciate that you're doing that to to help make the high
056school community um and the overall school district community stronger. Thank you. >> Can I say something? As a former student congress adviser, you guys are creating an impact uh that is making connections. you're getting kids involved outside of just academics and um you're really creating a true sense of community and it is so awesome to see all those activities um here today and where we are and then knowing that it takes a strong adviser and and uh Mrs. Peterson, I I think you should stand up because it was an incredible presentation. >> Work beyond the day you spend in getting this done. We appreciate it. Thank you. >> Questions? >> Thank you so much. All right. >> Move to ajourn. >> Second. >> Okay. >> All I can say all in favor. All in favor?
057No. Okay. Take a little break. >> Do we need a break or one minute? >> Okay. I'm just gonna wait. >> They're clapping out there and stuff. >> That was the behind the scenes of like situation. I can see his face. >> I forgot to mention how it happened. >> I think it's his his elbow is coming down. >> Let's call the order of the regular meeting of the board of education school district number 40 immediately following the committee of the whole meeting at 6:48 p.m. on Monday, January 12th, 2026. as a Molen Education Center, 190052nd Avenue in Molen, Illinois. And I have a roll call, please. >> Audrey Adamson >> here. >> Jen Smith >> here. >> Ramona Dixon >> here. >> Jason Frell >> here. >> Lindseay Hines >> here. >> Jeff Mayus
058>> here. Laura Severson >> here. >> Abigail Greenley >> here. >> Ruin Mel >> here. >> All right. The pledge of allegiance 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. >> Okay, moving on. Number three, approval of minutes. Uh, can I have a motion to approve the minutes of the regular meeting of the board of education of December 8th, 2025? Some >> second. >> Okay. Any discussion? >> Hearing none. All in favor? >> I. >> Okay. Uh, can I have a motion to approve the minutes of the closed session of the regular meeting of the board of education of December 8th, 2025? >> So moved. >> Second. >> All right. Any discussion on that? Hearing
059none. All in favor? >> I I >> Okay. communications, public comment, and participation. I believe we have one, Tom Schwarz. >> Uh so, uh get five minutes on your topic. Um we don't respond to any questions directly. Uh but somebody will reach out to you sometime. >> Okay. >> Think there's Good evening members of the board. Thank you for the opportunity to speak with you tonight. My name is Tom Schwarz. I'm a proud graduate of Mol High School 1989. Joining me tonight, Andrea Shoemaker, class of 96. Amy Trimble, 1994. Uh we're here to respectfully request the approval to use the Mulling High School auditorium during Thanksgiving week of 2026 for a special theatrical production titled The Final Curtain and to request that all auditorium rental and associated facility fees be fully waved for this event.
060And we are working closely with Sue Wignel. Sue is a former Moline High School teacher, longtime theater director, and a member of the MHS class of 1965, who will be directing the production. This project is deeply personal to all of us and to many in this community. Miss Wel began teaching at Mulling High School in 1983, where she went on to direct plays, musicals, ADC, and Operation Prom Night. Over the course of her 29-year career in the district, she directly she directed nearly 100 productions before retiring in 2003. Her workshaped generations of students not only as performers but as confident, collaborative and creative young people. The legacy of Mullen High School Theater today is inseparable from her in influence. The final curtain is envisioned as a celebratory community- centered performance honoring Miss Wiggle's extraordinary impact
061on generations of mulling students. One of the most meaningful aspects of this production is that it will feature past, present, and future mulling students, creating a truly intergenerational experience that reflects the legacy and continuity of the Mullen High School theater program. Our production team is committed to being financially responsible and self- sustaining. We will be conducting targeted fundraising efforts specifically to cover all production related expenses including sets, costumes, technical needs, and other operational costs. These fundraising efforts will ensure that the district incurs no financial burden related to the producing of the show while allowing the event to be presented at a high standard worthy of the Mullen High School theater tradition. We're fully prepared to meet all district requirements including providing providing appropriate insurance coverage and any nec necessary documentation. We've been in ongoing communication
062with Mullen High School leadership throughout the planning process and we're grateful to have their full support for this project. We will continue to coordinate closely with administration to ensure that all district policies, facility use guidelines, and operational considerations are fully respected. All proceeds from the ticket sales beyond the production expenses will be don donated directly to the Susan Wignel Legacy Performing Arts Scholarship, a newly established fund dedicated to supporting Mulling High School theater students for years to come. By waving all auditorium rental fees, usage fees, and related facility costs, the district would be covering those fees directly into student support, the equivalent of eight $500 scholarships that could immediately benefit Mullen High School students. Because this Benton event is educational, charitable, and non-commercial in nature. And because every dollar raised ultimately returns to benefit students
063in the district, we respectfully request that all auditorium rental and associated facility fees be fully waved. holding this production at Mulling High School, the place where Miss Wiggnel inspired countless young performers and where so many of us found our voices, we would be both fitting and deeply meaningful. It would allow us to celebrate not just one educator, but the lasting impact of arts education within the district. Thank you for your time, your consideration, for your continued support of the arts and the students at Mulling High School. Without your support, we will not be able to proceed with this production. >> Thank you, Tom. >> Thank Thank you very much. Do you have any questions? >> Any questions? >> We don't do questions during the session, but uh we will definitely I'm sure I'll talk about
064>> very soon. Thank you. Thanks. Thank you. I'll take that. Thank you. So, >> okay. Moving on to number five on the consent agenda. Uh the recommended motion the board of education approve the actions contained in the consent agenda as presented. >> Second. >> Any discussion? Hearing none. Can I have a roll call vote, please? Lindy Hines. >> I. >> Jeff Mayus. Hi >> Laura Severson. >> Hi >> Audrey Adamson. >> Hi >> Ramona Dixon. >> Hi >> Jason Perrell. >> Hi >> Jen Smith. >> Hi. >> Okay. Number six. Approval of location change for the board of education meeting for March 9th, 2026. Uh recommend a motion the board of education approve the location change of the board of education meeting for March 9th, 2026 from the Mullen Education Center to Bsentennial Elementary School.
065moved. >> Any discussion? Mind just a little bit quick context on this one? >> Sure. Um I think I mentioned before that the state board of education chose Molen to uh take uh to host their um their school board meeting, their state board of education meeting. and that is a two-day event taking place on the 10th and the 11th, but their team is arriving on the 9th and will be setting up here in this room beginning that afternoon. And so initially we thought that we could possibly just move our meeting to a different day, but thought that since March is also the meeting, excuse me, March is the month where we have spring break and we only have one month, it would be easier to just move the location and keep the date the same
066and allow the ISBY team to be here on the 9th and and to be able to set up and us to be able to keep our our date of March 9th and just in just have our meeting in a different location. Thank you. Um, nothing else. Can I have a roll call, please? >> Yes. Jeff Mayus, >> I. >> Laura Severson. >> Hi. >> Audrey Adamson. >> Hi. >> Ramona Dixon. >> I. >> Jason Ferrell. >> Hi. >> Jed Smith. >> Hi. >> Hey. Number seven, award of bid 2026 Mulling High School cafeteria improvements. Recommend a motion. The board of education award the bid for the 2026 Mulling High School cafeteria improvements to CNT Design and Equipment Company, Inc. Indianapolis, Indiana in the amount of $2,2272.64. I think Vince wants to say something real quick.
067So, this is another exciting thing that is happening within our district. Um, we have been working on this for probably about two years now and looking at the the high school cafeteria and, you know, what's not working and how we can improve that student experience. So, um, first, you know, we started off with our research. We wanted to make sure that we got with the high school administration, talked to them about, you know, their needs, their wants, what isn't working, um, and how we can improve on that cafeteria space. Um, then we worked with Chartwells uh to pick a design firm. So, we ended up going with Palmer Hamilton Designs. They really worked well with uh myself, with facilities, the high school administration, and also working with other stakeholders like um students, staff members, um
068our security team to kind of come up with a a really well-rounded product that um gives, you know, the the efficiencies of the high school cafeteria as well as options for our students in terms of seating uh and just general aesthetics. Um, so then tonight, uh, we're requesting board approval to begin this construction in the summer of 2026. Um, so you can see here, here's a bird's eye view, uh, of the total layout. Um, we really changed up our serving lines. Um, making it more efficient for those students to go in and out of those lines. You know, we serve 2,200 students within an 85 minute period. Um, so we really want to get them through those lunch lines, give them time to eat, um, and allow them to, uh, you know, converse with their
069friends and not sit standing in line trying to get their food. Um, so furniture selection, this was a big uh, part of our design process. Uh, right now a lot of the seating is, you know, multiple, you know, large table style seating. Um, and we wanted to give uh we wanted to kind of mix it up, allow students to have, you know, four tops, two tops, um, just a lot of different types of seating because not everybody wants to sit in one big group, uh, like the football team does. So, giving, you know, each student that ability to kind of pick and choose where they want to, uh, sit um, just allows us to utilize the space better as well. go back. >> Um, so color palette right now the high school cafeteria has a
070lot going on. Uh, there's blues, there's yellows, there's maroon, there's whites, there's grays. Just doesn't really go well together. So I think over the course of years they've kind of mismatched and piece meal the cafeteria together and we really wanted to just start over come up with a you know general pal color palette that's um incorporated throughout the entire space. Um so these are just examples of the different um types of wood tones and colors that we decided on. Um and then this is just the general picture. So in the top left here, that's those atrium windows. Uh and you have that hallway going into the PE center. Um so we incorporated um the structural elements within uh the cafeteria and made it part of the seating and really um you know tried to make
071sure that we're um making it cohesive throughout. So the um top right that is over by where the nacho bars. Um so that is all seating. Um we took those serving lines and kind of condensed them into the center of the cafeteria. Uh where you see like kind of the river wall there. Um that's back where our graband go is right now. And then uh in the bottom uh right that's the center. Um, so that Molen Market there, that's your grab and go. Now, that's right in the center. Kids can go right up there, grab it, and um, just turn right around into the seating there. Um, and then lastly, the food lab down here. Um, this is where our pizza's going to be. So, this is in um, the top left corner of the
072cafeteria now. So, it really makes a lot better flow for these students and gives them the time to sit down and eat instead of standing in line. Um, that was our our biggest concern uh going into this and it creates just a a sense of pride and ownership uh within that space for our students and staff. So, um we're really excited about this project. really think that it's going to be um a much better space for our students and I think it's going to be a safer space um with with the ability to kind of uh position our security team our princ or administration within that space uh to watch that over the launch period. So um thank you. Any questions? >> Um so this is the the first approval and then there will be
073more. Um, so this one is going to be all of the serving lines, the furniture, the wall graphics, painting, and then we're going to come back in February in the second meeting in February and approve the electrical, plumbing, and flooring. So, we had to do two different bid packages because uh Palmer Hamilton Design does not do flooring uh or uh mechanical, electrical, and plumbing. So, uh, for you, for all those that are worried about the green walls that have been back there since 1958, we will take them down, but we're going to put little smaller ones on the south wall so it doesn't go completely away from all the graduates. So, I know that's an important feature for you guys. You don't want to get rid of >> So, the uh the note that you
074have in the U memorandum about legged, is that what? >> Yeah. So, so Le, yeah, Leed had to do that design for that uh electrical and plumbing um and the flooring there. So, we're working with them. It's going to be part of the the bid package that we have with Butterworth, Logan, and Washington. So, it's going to be one um one main package for all of those buildings. So, >> one main package for electrical, plumbing, and >> Yes. Yeah. That'll be all part of that package. as part of this are we looking at the food service piece of it as well in terms of the actual food for the students or is that assuming staying the same? >> Um so we will have the ability to to provide a little bit more variety within this.
075Um so I'll be working with Chartwells. Uh I know we we we're trying a few different things here and there um since we went out to bid and selected them again um last year. So, it's just trial and error with that one and seeing what the students are enjoying and what they aren't. Um, we also have a student advisory uh committee that meets about food service that's ran by u Mr. Aers. So, um they give that feedback for our Chartwell staff to differentiate that food. Um I guess a question just off my head is that the space gets used a lot for other events like you know all the sports teams and other people have they have their banquetss and stuff there. How do you expect any sort of I guess the layout of that
076looks a little bit different or conversations I guess with all of those entities about how they're using the space and also treating it nicely as a a new new space. >> So we did have that conversation with the high school administration. So we're going to add uh we're going to move where the current projector is. We're going to add two of them uh on either side of the cafeteria. Um, and then they might have to change spaces depending on what um, what group is going to be in there because right now it's really easy to set up and be right in the center there. But with the new serving lines being in the center, you kind of have to move your groups a little differently within the space. So he uh, Mr. trailers was aware
077of this um and he uh did express that maybe they'll use BPAC a little bit more often or or the blackbox or some other spaces within the high school. >> Thanks. >> To answer some of your question, all the serving line is new, but we made it very flexible to provide a lot of different choices for charcoals to offer the kids by doing so. But the but the different serving line could be all heat, could be all cool, can mix and match, whatever you need. So it really gives an opportunity to give a much bigger choice of food selection. >> Makes sense. Thank you. >> When was the last time a renovation of this nature was performed? >> So my knowledge we added the atrium was about 2006. In 1972 we added air conditioning. In
0781958 we opened the building. So that's about the only phases I know of in that building yet. some painting and some flooring updates >> a little bit. >> 92 input carpet. >> And I guess to that point in terms of just the the overall infrastructure of the the actual kitchen aspects of it, I I'm curious if that has maybe grown antiquated as well. And since it's kind of while the district is at it, examine that >> kitchen in the last seven years, we've replaced almost all the equipment. >> Um they don't cook the way they used to. They reheat a lot or heat a lot. So the com the combi ovens are used a lot more. So it has sped up production but it also gives them more choices uh for the products that they
079buy and bring in. So we we've hit the kitchen part now we're hitting the serving. >> Thank you. Does this also um kind of move to when you said safer? I thought mainly thought larger groups were kind of dissipating large groups of students together and were we thinking that's going to reduce conflict at lunch and maybe some of those issues that can rise up or was that part of the conversation or >> Yeah, a little bit. I mean, it's more of, you know, you can kind of move throughout the space a little better uh and be able to kind of watch the lunch service and and and watch the students uh a little easier within the space. um you're kind of eliminating some of those sight lines um that are obstructing that view currently. So,
080thanks. >> Yes. Can you talk a little bit about the allowable use of funds? I see you transferring some funds from source fund one to >> operation. Um so all of your food service revenue um that you receive goes into the education fund but that um those funds are restricted to only be used for food service. So, right now the district um has allocated a little a little less than $7 million within the education fund over the lifespan of the um of the food service program. So, now we're able to utilize some of that to go pour back into our cafeteria spaces. So, this is just the start of what I'm going to be looking at within districtwide or um to upgrade those those spaces. So, in like layman's people's terms, um, is that like
081a surplus or a profit because of how we're choosing to do food services that we could use for that? >> Um, yes, it is it is a surplus. Um, but that that surplus was in place when I got here. We've we've kind of operated between 20 to 30,000 in the last couple years and surpluses into that fund. Um, so we're we're evening it out a little bit more um instead of of taking in such such high surpluses. >> Thank you. >> Two more quick ones. From from demolition to completion, how long do the contractors anticipate this project taking >> uh over the summer months? Yep. We're we're hopeful that it'll be completed by uh start of school next Is there programming that happens during the summer months that um some of these programs might get
082displaced because of the construction happening? Yes. >> In the cafeteria. >> Um so we do do a summer food service program. So that'll move to one of the um middle schools. >> Okay. >> Um we'll either select Wilson or John Deere. And then um we do have some summer school that may need to be shifted uh to the middle school depending. Um, we usually like to keep that with the summer food service so those students can still eat. >> Sure. >> Makes sense. >> Anything else? >> It's exciting. >> Thank you so very much. >> Okay. Now, I will um entertain a motion. >> Second. >> All right. Any other discussion? >> Hearing none. Can I have a roll call, please? >> Laura Severson. >> Hi. Audrey Adamson. >> Hi, >> Ramona Dixon. >> Hi,
083>> Jason Ferrell. >> Hi, >> Lindsay Hines. >> Hi, >> Jeff Mayus. >> Hi, >> Chad Smith. >> Hi. >> Okay. Number eight, approval of first reading of updated board of education policies. Recommended a motion that the board of education accepts for first reading the updated board of education policies as presented. >> So move. >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> Yes. Um, so we talked about a new process and I love the layout of the new U table, but my question is, are we then just blanketly approving with the updated >> designation language that the cabinet has given us or are we still going um policy by policy? So we um we are going through uh all of the uh revisions and all the updates and this new system is we go through we scan
084it we enter it we enter it in to our spreadsheet and then we decide based on the updates um and I guess to give you some context of this we we we did some research cabinet did some research on what some uh other districts were doing um with this um so we're still reviewing it with each one of the policies with the um with the same level of of scrutiny and going through it. Um, we just basically are putting everything into one memo um to speed up uh efficiencies because we were doing individual memos for all of those and they were all minor changes or footnote changes or the policy uh depending on what it says for each one uh is how we were designating them. I don't know if that >> really really just
085to piggyback on that the changes from the last adaptation to this one really happened on the back end on how we put it together um by putting them in one motion. You still have the ability to pull out any single um policy that you want. Um, we tried to bundle those that have no change or only a footnote change and then separate out any and there were two this time that were a major change or a new policy. Um, just sort of taking into consideration what your practices have been for the last several press updates. But you have full autonomy obviously to hold any how you wish. Um, we're just trying to always figure out new ways to be efficient and how we organize it for you. But you still have the choice to >>
086vote however you want. >> It acts like a consent agenda for our press updates, >> right? >> Just so you know, same with consent where we don't >> go through every single motion. So, >> um, >> but we would read our blanket statement. We could read our statement. So, should no one pull something off, we could just read the statement. and to be inclusive of all of the press policies as presented tonight. >> But like you said, I went through and I don't know what you all how you all approached it. I just went through and I looked for anything that was a true policy change and I just kind of highlighted the questions if I had them about those and that would be what I would make a motion to when we do discussion
087to pull off. Are we are we on different pages with that or are we similar in our thinking as >> and I I think that if you see something as you're going through we could get it ahead of time so it can be pulled and put >> um >> yeah but otherwise you know same that we do with consent >> but yeah otherwise we could take this one it would be a candidate for with minor changes just doing the waving of the first reading or waving of the second reading. I >> So we've got a motion and a second. We have any other discussion? >> Um yes. Um for the um policy 7 colon 150 I I mean this is um a new one. And so I just kind of wanted to hear from the
088cabinet member that may be responsible for it, how the SRO does this and with everything that we know about, you know, students and immigrants and refugees and know your rights. Um, how have we had conversation about the SRO's and how, you know, their roles and responsibilities, what they are according to this policy versus what our school administrators are are doing as it relates to this. We're in the process of kind of putting together our own sort of guidance that we're going to roll out uh to principles in January and then also we'll make sure that our school resource officers have that information. There were some law changes um that turned over January 1. Um so we're in the process of putting that together. Admin comes together I think on the 22nd. And so that is
089our plan to roll out um after these approvals. Then we'll put together the guidance and the the PD so to speak and make sure that everybody is brought up to speed on what those expectations are. Um that's a normal process and and sorry and just to follow up to that. So then an administrator administrative procedure will be attached to this board policy. >> Then the admin procedures will be updated as well and then those get updated internally. So we get them updated online internally on the internet as well as we have one hard copy book that is kept updated in the district as well. So APS and exhibits get updated and approved at cabinet um and then the policies of course by you all and then those get reviewed uh with principles as well whenever
090those are when there are law changes. Um and we do have um those reviews coming up. It sounds like July, right? July 1st is the date that's supposed to be updated by. So, there's some time there. >> Yeah, I'll do it. >> We got some more coming up. >> Okay. Uh, no other discussion. Can I have a roll call, please? >> Audrey Adamson. >> Hi, >> Ramona Dixon. >> Hi, >> Jason Frell. >> Hi, >> Lindsay Hines. >> Hi, >> Jeff Mayus. >> Hi, >> Laura Severson. >> Hi, >> Chad Smith. >> Hi. We didn't. Sorry. We didn't make We didn't >> We did. We got to do >> I would like to wave the second reading. >> We had a We had a motion in a second on that. >> Okay. We did, but
091we didn't. >> So, it'll come back. >> Yeah. So, it'll come back next meeting. >> Yeah. >> Okay. So, we don't need the this today and it won't be a part of the process. >> But it could be >> number nine. >> Yeah. That >> So, typically every most of the everything that was in number eight would have been a waving of the second reading. We just condensed it all, but since we had a motion in a second, we will push that through to the next meeting for final approval. >> Um, can can I make a recommendation, Chad? Um, since there are so many other ones that we it's a lot of them on here, can we just pull those that one or two that are policy changes and then just approve the other ones?
092Because it's like >> um at this point, >> yeah, >> it's only two that we're not really saying that we approve, right? >> Well, it's it's everything that was in that attachment, >> right? So, >> so we either do a second reading of them or we don't for any of them since we didn't pull anything because we didn't pull anything like consent agenda ahead of time. >> Correct. >> Right. We didn't >> But there are two policies that are in the next agenda item. Maybe that's what you're talking about. Those are the ones that we that are being separated because they're more substantive changes, right? >> Yes. >> Yeah. So, I think >> the ones that you're asking about are in next agenda item that we will talk more about. These were the ones that
093were minor, you know, wording >> I believe. I think is so >> yeah but because this will come back because we didn't do the not doing in a second then we can have further discussion about it next time as well before we vote on it if we want to about any of the specific ones within >> correct that's okay we just I mean it can be within any of them >> just saves a lot of the repetitiveness going through >> trying to race through >> however many there were um all right so moving on to number nine approval of the first reading of the updated board of education policies 480 accounting and audit and 4140 waiver of student fees. Recommend a motion the board of education accepts the first reading of the updated board of
094education policies as presented. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Okay, got a motion to second. Any discussion hearing? None. Can I have a roll call, please? >> Ramona Dixon. >> I. >> Jason Ferrell. >> Hi. Lindsay Hines. >> Hi, >> Jeff Mayus. >> Hi. >> Laura Severson. >> Hi. >> Audrey Adamson. >> Hi. >> Sh Smith. >> Hi. >> Okay. Moving on to reports, requests, and open discussions. Superintendent report. >> Hey, just a couple of things. Um, we had a really great keynote speaker um last Monday for all staff institute. Um, this was our next installment of our climate and culture speaker series. We had we welcomed Mr. Adam Welcome who uh did two keynote addresses, one for elementary and one for secondary. His message encouraged all of us, all of our staff to adapt
095and innovate and make sure that our lessons are equal parts content delivery and also skill building. My favorite suggestion of his was for teachers to check out the most sought-after, highest paying positions on LinkedIn and read the skills required and reflect on our teaching practices and and determine where are those skills taught in our schools. And so I thought that was really interesting. He not only challenged us but also brought everything back to relationships because we know that's where everything starts in terms of success for our students. So that was a positive kickoff and really set our minds right uh to be able to welcome the kids back last Tuesday. Uh congratulations to Verun Mala and Aneli Kumar who spoke a little bit ago uh for being selected to be a part of this spring's
096annual Illinois State Board of Education student summit. They applied to be on the state superintendent's advisory council earlier in the year and were not selected, but now have received a special invitation to be a part of this special student summit event on March 13th. Uh we're excited to have them represent our district and use their voices to advocate for students not only in Molen but across the state. Um and Dr. Pribble and I are looking forward to be able to escort them at this special event. Um you have in front of you a very interesting top 100 jobs report document. You may have already seen this across many different entities. Uh this has been put forth by Grow Quad Cities. Um I placed a table uh placed a copy at your station just really for
097your reference. This is a resource that has been reviewed um at the United Way Education Council as well as uh most recently at our Blackhawk region superintendence meeting. It provides very interesting and critical insights for our region which will be very useful in long-term planning for our district regarding work-based learning and career pathway development. Um that has some really phenomenal data about um employment opportunities and job markets and career pathways that are um growing in our Quad Cities. And uh something that I just thought you would find useful if you've not already seen it. And speaking of career pathways, I also put a copy of our new um career pathway um really fantastic uh marketing flyer. A big shout out to Jeff Whitaker and Bob Beam and also uh Brian Candace Santress who is not
098able to be with us tonight who worked with uh the new graphic designer that we have contracted with to really um modernize the strategies that we utilize to engage our middle schoolers to get them ready for high school. This really has a lot to do with our pay school P for people uh our ascend goal. We really have taken to heart a lot of the feedback um that uh Abby and a lot of others put forth in in really causing us to reflect on how can we prepare students better for high school. How can we help not only our students who need assistance and intervention and help but our high achieving students uh and we just know that we need to engage them much sooner in middle school rather than waiting till sophomore year, freshman
099year, junior year. Um they have done uh the secondary team have done a great job revamping the previously known curriculum night, course curriculum night to really become a pathway uh uh night and that's actually happening tomorrow night. Uh we've got middle school kids coming to the high school and we're looking forward to re-engaging kids with uh planning, four-year planning, um doing some goal setting, engaging parents, and doing a better job making sure parents know all of the different opportunities that we have available at Molen High School and throughout our partnerships in the community such as the area career center and other opportunities. So, this was just one of the great products that have come out of our pay school and I'm really proud of the work that the secondary team has done. Um, save the
100date. Um, mark your calendars uh for March 25th at 2:15 p.m. We have set this tenative date for an official groundbreaking ceremony at Lincoln Irving in anticipation for the official start of the construction project in April. Stay tuned to receive more details and an official invitation coming soon. Uh this is a Wednesday particularly a Wednesday uh when our students are released early so that students can participate the staff at Lincoln Irving and Willard can participate uh members of the community board of education. This allows our stakeholders to uh be involved in that process. We're just in the process of getting information together and we'll look forward to bringing that to you uh more in the future. And lastly, it's incredibly hard to believe that the first semester ends this Friday. Are you guys ready? No.
101Abby says yes. Bar says no. Okay. >> Uh students and staff are finishing strong and we are looking forward to a fresh start of semester 2 this coming Tuesday after being closed on Monday on Monday in honor and recognition of Martin Luther King Jr. That's all I have. >> Thank you. Uh, now we'll go to student board of education member report. >> Um, so not much to report on since we've only been back in school for a few days. Um, we're already getting ready for finals, but I'd like to give a special shout out to girls wrestling. Um, it's a new team at our high school this year and they have done such an amazing job and I know they've been really active on social media. So, if you want to go follow them to
102hear more about their meets, they had five girls placed in an invitational this weekend. So, huge shout out to them. very proud of them and the work that they're doing and putting in. And then basketball also had a win last Friday over Gailsburg. It was a great game. There was high attendance. And I'd also like to give a shout out to um the staff and our police liaison officers who come and monitor those games, making sure everybody's safe, the parents who volunteer through the booster club to run our concessions, all the behind the scenes work that gets hundreds and hundreds of people into Wharton safely and efficiently. So, thank you to all of them. >> Yeah. First off, I wanted to though don't I don't think any of them are here anymore. I wanted to
103thank student congress not only for their amazing presentation, but they just so many projects around the community and they're making such a genuine impact. And then after that sort of elephant in the room, the semester is almost ending. Feel like I just blinked and it just ended. Um but yeah, good luck to anyone taking finals and good luck for the next semester. >> I think it's just you. because it's like a good time to just like reflect, make adjustments, improvements, and just make the second semester better than the first. Okay, now we will move to board of education member open discussion. Does anybody have anything? >> I have one quick thing. >> Yes. >> Uh just want to give a a quick uh praise and thank you to Aaron Turstrip and and Brian Prible. uh
104they provided me a tour uh this afternoon of the um Aspire program. Um obviously as as unique situations get brought forward to us, I wanted to gain more understanding of that program and um the tour undoubtedly provided that. I left with a very crystallized understanding of what um is is going on um and and most certainly inspired uh the tour exceeded my expectations. So, thank you both for uh carving time out of your busy schedules to to walk me through that that that part of the of the facility. Thank you. And I I'll say for that, you know, for any board members that weren't around when we approved that and when it was completed and when we did the walkthrough in the open house, I would highly recommend maybe reaching out for the same because
105it's a really neat program and if you know what the program used to be, you know, being able to see what's what's there and what they're able to do and, you know, just the just the general feel of the of the program now. I definitely recommend it. There's one quick thing. I know you Vince and Keith, you guys mentioned go to see the other schools and some improvement projects. Uh those are the schools that I'm usually helping out in and I've heard nothing but excited feedback just on what are some small improvements are just making huge huge waves with teachers and things like that. So I want to pass along. There's there's legitimate excitement about just even some small improvements in the cafeterias. So just kind of cool to hear that. Anybody else? Okay. Uh,
106now I get a motion to move into close session to consider the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees. >> So move. >> Second. Any discussion on that? All in favor? >> I Okay. Yes. I will entertain a motion to return to open session. >> Any discussion? Hearing none. All in favor? I. >> Okay. Now, the recommended motion that the board of education approve Jeff Whitaker as the Mullen High School principal for the 2026 2027 school year. >> Second. >> All right. Any discussion hearing? None. Can I have a roll call, please? >> Jeff Mayus. >> I. >> Laura Stevenson. >> Hi. >> Arrey Adamson. >> I. >> Ramona Dixon. >> I abstain. >> Jason Perrell. >> Hi. >> Lindsay Hines. I >> Cha Smith. I >> motion carries. >> Okay. Now
107a motion to move. >> Second. >> Any discussion? >> None. All in favor? I >> I j