001Bonnie, could you call the roll, please? >> Here. Here. >> Here. Here. Thank you. I'd like to welcome you all. This is an unusual group for this this meeting, but I'm very pleased to see you here. It's a wonderful occasion and we're happy to be part of it. Having said that, the Pledge of Allegiance is next. The flag is right there and Stephanie will lead us in the pledge. >> I pledge 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. >> This is the regular meeting for Tuesday, May 26th of the Geneva 304 school board and there is an attendance sheet in the lobby. If you wish to register your attendance, please feel free to
002sign that. Uh next item on the agenda is the approval of minutes and for a couple of reasons, I'm going to break this into two groups. Uh the first two minutes are the regular session and the executive session for May 11th. We need uh Have you received any corrections, Bonnie, or anything like that? Does anyone have any at this time? >> Motion to approve the minutes for May 11th, 2026. >> Second. >> Molly I. >> I. >> Molly and Tory >> I. >> Stephanie Molina >> Abstain. >> Andrew >> I. >> Jackie Gordon >> I. >> Larry DeByne >> I. Next on this agenda is the board retreat minutes from May 16th, 2026. Do you have any corrections submitted or anything of that nature? Does anyone have any at this time? >> Motion to approve
003the minutes for the board retreat on May 16th. >> Second. >> I. >> Abstain. >> Item three is recognition awards presentations and public hearings. The first one is the recognition of district retirees and Dr. Law and Dr. Bennett will have something to say. >> Uh thank you, Larry, and thanks to all of you for being here this evening. Uh this year we have over not over, we have exactly 17 retirees and they include teachers, administrators, and support staff. And when I you know look at the list of those 17 retirees, many of whom are joining us tonight, there's literally hundreds of years of service that they have put in collectively towards the well-being of our students and their education. So, I want to just say thank you tonight for for being here. It's our chance
004to to honor them. You know, when I look around this room, I I I I see teachers that I've worked with directly in schools. I see teachers that I've interacted with on committees, etc. I've had some who actually had my own kids. So, I can tell you that this group here really does embody just the excellence of Geneva. So, thank you very much for being here and I'll turn it over to Andy first just for some logistics. Yeah. >> Thanks, Dr. Law. And I just want to echo everything that Adam said. I have the opportunity to talk specifically about two of our awesome retirees tonight. I'll kick off and then finish up here. But when you've all of a sudden it's like you've been around a long time and you're like, "Wow, we've been together
005for a long time." And that's real special and real hard to say goodbye. But also very excited and happy for folks for the opportunity that you have next. So, just as some quick logistics we'll start by we'd like the board to be able to shake everybody's hand and then we have a nice gift for you. But before we do that, here's what we'd like to do. We'll So, I'm going to start with bragging on Dr. Dye here for a minute. So when it's your turn, you'll just stand up and wave to everybody. So, everybody, this is Dr. Julie Dye. She's our first retiree that we're going to recognize tonight. And then once we've gotten through everybody the board will make their way around the table and Adam will invite you guys up one at a
006time to shake the board's hands and do an amazing photo op. So sound like a fair plan to everybody? Okay. So, I am honored to kick off and talk share some highlights about my good friend and long-time colleague, Dr. Julie Dye um who's retiring after a long and distinguished career in education and in Geneva 304. Julie is the longest-tenured principal in Geneva 304. Um having started back way way back in the 1900s. She started in the 1900s in our district. Um and seriously, being the longest-tenured principal here is saying something because as I think we've talked about many times and as people know, this is a place where people come and stay. So, we have a lot of people who have come and and worked here a long time. Um and Julie is um she's
007OG OG elementary principal. Um I know that I can speak uh I was I first came here as an elementary principal. That was my first job in Geneva and after that I was already here and serving as a mentor and a guide for me from the very beginning. Um and I know I can speak for all the elementary principals and members of Leadership Council that have worked with Julie over the years um to thank her for her support and guidance. Also, for we were just talking about this the other day, the institutional knowledge, the important institutional knowledge that you could always count on Julie. Just in the meeting the other day, we were talking and she's like, "I remember when you know, that's that's a key um factor. Um and when we need to make
008decisions, whether little or big, she always was able to bring that perspective. Julie started her career at the private with the private school background and was a school psychologist. Um I can tell you uh you can tell she was a school psychologist by her meticulous notes, her amazing handwriting still. Um yes, cursive. Don't get me uh-oh, Julie and I have gone round and round on cursive. Uh we'll leave that one for another day, but she still has perfect, beautiful cursive penmanship. Um but she started as a school psych and was in um the uh worked in the private school realm. A teacher and then a school psych. Um and you seriously, you can see that psych background in her analytical approach. I would say her meticulous nature. Um um and again, her always impeccable paperwork.
009Um uh Julie started as the psych at Cold Trap Elementary School back in the day and then became the principal of Cold Trap Elementary School and was there at Cold Trap. Transitioned to that building, moved that whole building over into the new Williamsburg Elementary School when it was new. And this is pretty cool. So, one of the things that Julie is going to leave at Williamsburg um she has the distinction of having hired every single teacher in that building. Um, and anybody who's been there knows what an amazingly strong staff that is. Um, and just that in and of itself is a pretty tremendous legacy to have hired every single staff member in that building. Um, that's pretty awesome. Um on the on the personal and fun side, I want to say thanks to Julie
010for taking me under her wing from the very beginning. Um, thank you for being an advocate for building and educator autonomy always. Julie is always that voice in our meetings. Um, an advocate for empowering educators to do their best in the classroom. Um, an advocate for all those things cuz she knows that students who have positive and supportive learning environments can thrive. Um, and I know the culture at Williamsburg is grateful for that. Julie and I also have some fun connections. Julie's going back to live in Monmouth, Illinois. Uh which is where I went to college. So, Julie and I have lots of Monmouth connections and fun things over the years. Julie has a love for animals and the chinchillas will be going with to to Monmouth and the cats. Um, she has a lot
011of talents, but because she doesn't you know, show them out there, you don't always get to see. Julie's a tremendous musician, right? Singer, piano player. She's amazing at crafts. Her cookies at the holiday season are the thing. Um and she's just always kind and patient and calm. And I know uh we're going to miss her, but she's going to be back in Monmouth spending some time with family. Um and we're very excited for you and wish you all the best. So, congratulations, Dr. Die. Who's next, Dr. Wall? >> Uh next we'll have Tom Rogers uh speaking about Alister and Paul Fill. >> Robin, just a heads-up, the red light's on. So, it's my pleasure this evening to introduce and honor two what I would call icons of Geneva Community High School. I'm going to start
012with Paul Fill, a GHS English teacher who has been teaching at GHS since 1994. If you do the math, that's 32 years. But he's been teaching there for 31 because in 1999 he had the itch to become an administrator, which I think uh rightfully so, and he would have made a good one, but he decided that was not for him. And fortunately at that time, when he decided and when I say administrator, it was an administrator in another district. So, we lost Paul Fill altogether. But fortunately 1 year later, he said, "Can I come back?" And we had an opportunity to bring him back, and thank goodness we did, because he has been an absolute um uh anchor in our English Department. Um he started out having a tremendous impact on seniors. We had a
013very popular structure of the English language course um that has now uh we've shifted gears and and basically it was teaching grammar and structuring sentences, um dissecting sentences. Uh that has since moved to a different part of the curriculum, but Paul also was part of the team taught world studies curriculum. But my point is during that early during those early years, maybe the first half, would you say Paul, you were having a tremendous impact on our upperclassmen preparing them for the next step in their education or and and right and also in their lives. But he has recently shifted down to English one in fact this year teaching all English one classes. Which means he's preparing our freshmen for the next three years of their high school career and well prepared they are. Um I
014have to say one of Paul's I think all of Paul's students if you ask them, what do you remember most about Mr. Thill? And I suspect they would all say Wordy Gurdy. It was a a word game that he invented. Did you stole or whatever. Nonetheless, it's a game I never learned how to play, but I know that our students loved it. Every single day they were looking forward to it. Um And as I was um trying to learn a little bit more about what I could say and doing some research for tonight, I went through his personnel file and I found a couple of things that really truly sum up Paul Thill. And one is from the University of Chicago back in 2006. It states that we have just welcomed and this is from
015an administrator at the University of Chicago. We've just welcomed a new class into the university. These students are unusually intelligent, highly motivated and committed to using their gifts for serious academic work. We are dedicated to excellence in teaching just as you are and we know as you do that true learning is a collaborative experience which depends as much on the dedication of the teacher as it does on the motivation of the student. Our students frequently tell us that they were influenced by a particular high school teacher. Someone who opened new vistas and realms of discovery, challenged them intellectually for the first time, or channeled their private interests into productive paths for intellectual growth. Contributions to the academic and personal development of young people rarely receive the recognition they deserve. The University of Chicago has for
016the past 30 years asked its entering students to help us identify and commend outstanding high school teachers. Back in 2006, this letter says, "I'm pleased to inform you that you have been nominated by a former student who entered the University of Chicago this autumn for our outstanding teacher award." And that sums up what Paul Thill did for the thousands of students that he taught day in and day out. I also came across Paul's second teacher evaluation conducted by none other than Tina Fluke, Paul. Tina Fluke talked about and shared a number of the quotes that she um experienced when she was in his classroom. None other than {quote} "I'm a professional, trust me." And by the way, before she started naming these uh um um recording these quotes, she noted that Mr. Thill had a
017tremendous sense of humor that he used to his advantage in the classroom. Another favorite, "I am the best expert on Neil Young in the Midwest." Um I'm pretty sure I've heard him say this type of phrase many other times when I've been walking by his classroom or sat in. Alliteration for $500. Nonetheless, Mis- Mrs. Fluke stated that the climate created in both uh excuse me, in Paul's classes is relaxed. However, expectations are high and there are clear class routines. Time on task is very high. Monitoring of students does occur to make sure make sure students are following instructions or to answer questions. However, because of the variety and interest level of assignments and activities, the need to apply student pressure to complete work is at a minimum. And this really sums up Paul Phil. Mr.
018Phil projects an enthusiasm for his work and an acceptance of and respect for young people. And I could not agree more. Paul has had a tremendous impact on his students day in and day out and for that Paul, Geneva High School says thank you very, very much. Al Aschner has been an an art teacher at GHS since 2006. Al has also Oh, yeah. Al has also made a tremendous tremendous impact on his students. Um his his artwork can be seen all over the building and almost probably every t-shirt. Uh you've probably been doing homecoming logos for probably all those 20 years. If anyone has ever attended post prom or had a child attend post prom, um there's a good chance that they came home much later than other kids at post prom because they were
019waiting in line for Mr. O as he is affectionately known to draw their caricature. And just a few weeks ago as we were cleaning up at 2:30 a.m. the end of post prom, there was a line down the hallway with kids waiting to have their caricature done. They were not going anywhere until they had the opportunity to have Mr. O draw that beautiful picture. So, I suspect Mr. O, how long were you there? That's what I thought and I suspect that's not a record. You're probably there longer other years. Um so, Mr. O's um impact on his students, impact on our school as a result of his talents uh is tremendous in the art department. But I also uh remembered that there was a parent who felt very, very um uh compelled to share with
020me the type of impact that Al had had on their child. And I just want to read this to you, and this sums up um first and foremost, what type of person Al is, but quite honestly, it's what we would hope that all educators would do for their students. It says, "The reason for this email is to recognize one of your outstanding teachers. Mr. Ochsner has influenced my daughter like no other teacher. School has never been easy for her. Her struggles originated in grade school and followed her throughout high school. She had difficulty concentrating and comprehending course material, which led to low self-confidence and depression due to her grades. It only worsened in high school when she experienced the loss of her father 2 years ago. Her grief therapist suggested she put her grief onto
021paper. She began to draw, write, paint, and eventually she signed up for her first art class. Throughout her struggles, there was one positive influence that changed her life. His name is Mr. O. Mr. O brought happiness to my daughter by devoting his talent, skills, and by teaching a subject that has impacted her life tremendously. There is not a day that goes by that she doesn't come home and talks talk about something new she has learned in his class. Little does he know, his positive effect has led her to wanting to be an art teacher herself. She often mentions how she hopes to one day impact a student's life the way he has impacted hers. This email is in hopes that Mr. O receives some type of recognition, even if simply even if it's simply a
022thank you for a job well done. Tonight is the night when we say thank you, Mr. O, for a job well done. Congratulations. Um Andy, I can't remember how you phrased it, but one really neat thing about this experience for me is my grown, married children had each of these gentlemen uh for a teacher, and they were thrilled. In fact, what I'd like to close with tonight is that each year at this time each of my adult children always asks me, "So, Dad, who's retiring this year?" When I told them Paul and Al, they said, "Oh, no. What a huge loss." And I completely agree. You will both be sorely missed, but congratulations and enjoy retirement, gentlemen. You've earned it. >> Next up, we'll have Terry Blue from the middle school campus. >> Special mic.
023I like it. I like it. I like board meetings cuz you learn new things. Like, I never knew that red light was bad. Uh I think last year or the year before a promotion, uh our mic went out, but I'm pretty sure it was red all day, and I'm like, "Red means good." Yeah. So, what do I know? All right. Well, thank you for giving me time to honor uh not only our retirees from South, but also one of our North colleagues. So, if I can, I I'm going to speak on Mr. Carli's behalf. Uh so, Kevin Kevin Hendrickson, is that Hi, Kevin. Um so, Mr. Carli was unable to be here tonight and has asked me to share some information about Mr. Hendrickson on his behalf. I've known Kevin ever since we hired him
024uh back uh in hired him in Geneva back in the day when he used to teach general music in a mobile classroom. Uh so, not many of you know that we even had mobile classrooms back then, but we did. Um and so, I'm happy to be a part of this recognition tonight. This year marks Kevin's 40th year in education. Wow, Kevin. Wow. Uh that that's that's unbelievable. Uh he spent 18 years teaching in Kentucky, began his career during the 1980-81 school year at a private school. I remember 1980 and 81. Uh it was a great first grade year for me, I think. Uh there he taught uh K through 5 general music and 6 through 12 choral music. He concluded his time in Kentucky uh with 13 years at Model uh Laboratory School on the
025campus of Eastern Kentucky University, teaching uh K-5 general music and 5-12 choral music. Uh during this time, he also coached uh middle school basketball and assisted with the varsity program as well. Notably, uh Model Laboratory School is also where he attended school from kindergarten through 12th grade. So, that's like 26 solid years in one place. Uh I could see why. Oh, wow. So, uh so, you're being honored there later today? Uh that seems like a lot for one guy. Um then Kevin began his final chapter of his teaching career here in Geneva at Geneva Middle School in 2004, where he spent the last 22 years on our campus, primarily 6th grade general music, along with teaching careers and entrepreneurship, and also an 8th grade uh digital music class. Um he also coached 8th grade basketball
026for us at South. And Kevin and I have had uh we were just reminiscing the other day, we We a few years on the court against each other when we used to uh had the ability to run up and down the court and uh we'd play in a faculty basketball game on Friday mornings. But Yeah, I understand. I wouldn't let me win, too. That's why I appreciate you let me get like 12 rebounds each time down the court as I rebound my own shot. Uh that's awful gracious of you, Kevin. Um for the past 4 years, Kevin has served as a choral director for the 7th and 8th grade musical, as well. If you uh have ever uh worked with Kevin, you know he is someone who likes to bring a little creativity with him
027into the classroom, which is probably one of the things the kids like about him most. Uh so, thank you, Kevin, for your years of service to the students in Geneva. All right. Uh Mr. Ken Chaplin. Hello, Mr. Chaplin. All right. Uh so, Mr. Chaplin might be the Geneva staff member I have known the longest. Uh beating beating out Miss Bayer by maybe a week or two. Um because uh when I was hired as administrator, I it was the same year both of them were hired, okay? Mr. Chaplin had already been hired when I got hired, and he poked his head in the principal's office as like I think it was like my first day being there and and said, "Hey, he was interested in in in a coaching gig that had opened up." And this
028is, you know, really represents a lot about Mr. Chaplin because, you know, being involved in the school is something he values. And so, it was like immediately the first thing I learned about him. Uh after teaching for in DeKalb for years, he came to us and spent the last 24 years making connections with kids by coaching different sports, volleyball, track, basketball, and football. Uh he has led our variety show troop for many years, and I know this is a performance that, you know, is a highlight for our singers, our dancers, even on occasion our local mayor. Uh he shows up and does a performance. Uh and Usually I cringe at the at the moment he touches the microphone, but you know, it usually goes okay. Yeah, yeah, turns on immediately. I think if I ask
029kids what they like most about Mr. Chaplin, it would probably include that he is always there to listen to them. He is one of those teachers that kids really open up to and share their perspectives on the world in which they live. I'm also sure that if I asked them they would also include how many different avenues they are given to demonstrate their understanding of the material. And it allows them to optimize their creativity in his social studies class. Mr. Chaplin is not the only South is not only a South teacher, but he is part South as a parent as well as long along with his wife. They had sent all three kids all three girls to our part of our school community or were school community were old now. And let's see and one
030of his plans of course is to visit some of those who are still in college cuz going visit your kid in college is fun. It's one of the places you want to visit. That's the key thing. Luckily none of my kids are going to University of Hawaii cuz that would have been too much, but it would have been a great idea for the visiting part, right? For retirement he plans on maybe like stereotypically working on his golf game. I guess that's what you do, right? But you know, fitting in the stereotype is not really what Ken does well cuz in the last 24 years he's just one of those outside of the box kind of teachers. So Ken, thank you for all your years of service to the kids of Geneva. Miss Julie Bayer. Hi
031Julie. All right, Miss Bayer holds the distinction of being one of the first people I ever interviewed here in Geneva during my probably second week of work. Even though she was new to me back then, she was far from being new to Geneva. Julie grew up in Geneva and is a local who would have tales to tell about her glory years as a Viking. Tom Sheburn, probably has tales to tell about her glory years as a Viking. As you guys were colleagues, I believe. Um She tried many different career choices after college and none of them seemed to connect with that give back that philanthropic nature that is Julie until she decided to sub a little bit. Where is that camera? By the way, you too can sub and have it impact your life in
032a meaningful way. Sign up today. Contact Adam Law at central office. All right. So, this decision to sub caused her to realize that working in the schools was her destiny. She finished off her teaching certification while being instructional assistant at GMS. The following year, she was hired to be for the coveted teaching position of sixth grade science teacher, sixth grade social studies teacher, sixth grade LA1 teacher, and sixth grade LA2 teacher all in four different classrooms. So, she had to beat out a whole line of people to get that gig. Eventually, when the building split, Miss Bayer landed in sixth grade social studies for a while before moving to seventh grade language arts for a while and then back to sixth grade social studies, which is the glorious part about having multiple certifications is if
033you ever get bored, you just get a different gig in the same building. So, that's kind of nice. At South, she currently runs our Leo's program, a Leo's club as part of FAC, plays the producer role in the spring musical, and at um, different times was uh, leading social studies club, our club was part of our tops program, yearbook, and even back in the day helped to organize our cultural fair activities. In her retirement, she plans to continue being involved in the Geneva community uh, through her work with the Lions as well as subbing for us because it's impactful, people. Um, Ms. Bayer also plans to help um, emotionally support her daughter, Jamie, who's sitting right by her. Hi, Jamie. You didn't think I'd talk about you up here, did you? Uh, I also plans
034to support her daughter Jamie who just landed her first teaching gig as well. Uh, Jamie's a product of North, but we love her like she's a Southerner. Ms. Bayer is also involved in other organizations like Johnny and Friends which runs uh, retreats for families of people with disabilities. Uh, as I said earlier, that give back philanthropic nature of her uh, and hopefully has uh, uh, is a pervasive part of her actions and hopefully through either osmosis or direct teaching will have rubbed off over the on the students over the last few years or over all the years. Uh, so thank you, Ms. Bayer, for all your service to the uh, families of Geneva. All right. Um, and Lisa Hawks. Hi, Lisa. >> Hi, Terry. >> Hi. Got some good stuff. Okay. All right, Ms. Hawks
035just finished her eight 19th year in Geneva and has her bags packed and ready to go to the western skies of the Quad Cities. Uh, she is excited to start a new life with her significant other, Tom, as they have get to end years of a commuter relationship, which is good timing with gas prices as they are. She will have free time to do her gardening, play with her dog Tucker, volunteering for her causes, and do a little creative writing. I'm assuming all the stories are about on the a principal who is the hero. Yeah, I will. Uh like most of our conversations, I they I imagine I turned out the way I wanted them to. I remember interviewing Ms. Hawks all those years ago. As she was describing her background, all of a sudden
036it got a little strange. So, she first told me about how she was you know her first gigs were in like student life section of college administration. All right, that's pretty normal. Then she talked about teaching a small town with some small school in California. All right, still kind of normal. Then as though it was like a normal thing, she described her responsibilities responsibilities related to bear watch. Now, Ms. Byer, that's not like Chicago bear watch. Uh it's like bear watch, which I think meant that at different times they would watch for bears and do bear drills like we would do tornado drills. And so they'd ring a bell and all the kids would have to run back in cuz there was a bear sighting. I was like, "Man, I got to keep talking to
037this lady some more." Uh so, I hired her and I think it is safe to say that on average per year, I have more minutes of conversation with Ms. Hawks than any other person at South or maybe even member of my family. This is because Ms. Hawks cares about people. She is the first one to try and dig into conversation with a new staff member and make them feel welcomed. With with parents, she is a small talk queen who is always interested in finding out more about the students' life. This is just the way she's built. When it comes to her teaching, she has taught sixth grade language arts, seventh grade language arts, eighth grade language arts, 7th grade social studies. I had to ask her last year about like maybe February or something like
038that to switch from 7th grade social studies, which she loved and had like been begging me for years later to do. And then I let her do it for many years. I had to ask her to go back to 7th grade language or go to 7th grade language arts because in my long-range plan after she retired, that made more sense to me. And rather than give me any grief about this change, she understood the purpose of the move and that was the purpose was to support a different colleague and she 100% supported the change without another question asked because she knew in the long run it was best for the kids. And that's an example that is the kind of example she tries to set as a staff member. Miss Hawks also helped us get
039our after-school study hall program off the ground many years ago and has done it ever since. We used to run a summer reading camp that was inspired by one of our many conversations and she was an integral part of that the whole time. She has even was the important part of important part of our first reading lab group in her first year with us. When when we talked when we talked she said she will of course miss the kids and the staff. And Lisa, I of course will miss the rainforest in your classroom because that's supplying most of the oxygen here in Geneva. Thank you, Miss Hawks, for all of your conversations over the years and all of your hard work for the kids of Geneva. >> Uh next up we'll have Michelle Hirsch from
040Harrison. >> That's a very hard act to follow. I'm not that funny. But, um I do have the honor to honor Bridget Wachter. Um and it has truly been an honor to know Bridget for the last 6 years, which is just the tip of her 34-year iceberg. Um she is a dedicated educator who has dedicated her life to education, to students, to families, and to staff. Um I know we're all here talking about how dedicated our teachers are to our students, but Bridget really supports the entire community. She represents the best, the very best of what it means to be a husky. She is steady, she is compassionate, and she is relentlessly focused on helping every single student succeed. Up until this conversation that she had with me in the chairs as she sat down
041about how we can best support students. Um but her impact extends far beyond her classroom. She is deeply committed to strengthening the profession and supporting both current and new staff by sharing her insight, offering her thoughtful ideas, and helping teachers grow in their practice, all while fostering that strong community of collaboration. Her dedication of time is unmatched. She is a very hard woman to get a hold of. When you try to find her, she's either at eating lunch at her table with a student, um she's on the phone with a parent, or she's got parents in her room on her prep. Um she is filled to the brim of supporting where support is needed. Um she truly goes above and beyond to ensure that students, parents, and colleagues all receive the support they need to
042be successful. And time and time again, Bridget creates space for those meaningful conversations, whether it's here with me in the board room, um or um throughout the halls of Harrison. um, there's a colleague who lovingly has named her time with Bridget as wisdom with Walkter or bites with Bridget. Um, and these moments reflect her generosity, her deep, deep expertise, and her unwavering commitment to others. At Harrison, we take pride in our Husky spirit, being kind, being responsible and safe, and Bridget truly embodies that every single day. She delves into the Harrison community, she brings in the outside community, um, she works closely with the preschool down the street to bring our students to the preschool to read, and bringing our preschools to Harrison. And she does whatever it takes to reach our students and our
043parents and our staff. Thank you, Bridget, for your incredible service and your lasting impact that will continue to serve Harrison. >> Uh, next we'll have Mike Wilks. Well, it's been 11 years in this role, and this is my first, uh, honor to, uh, to honor a retiree. And, uh, Robin Butler, if you, uh, could from behind the board back there. Where you'll usually find her on board nights. Um, I'm honored to be able to do this, uh, for Robin, uh, today. Uh, when I think about, uh, Harrison Street, it's hard to think about Harrison Street without thinking about Robin. She's been there for, uh, just over 30 years. Um, and she has been a consistent face in that school for technology support over those years. Reliable, dedicated, thoughtful, supportive, caring, and trusted. Those are the
044words that come to mind when I think about Robin. Uh, over the course of her 30-year career, Robin supported the staff and students at Harrison Street School and more recently Western Avenue School. Uh throughout much of that time she's also been a steady presence here at the board meetings um making sure that technology worked. Batteries are changed, things like that. Meetings are recorded uh and everyone had what they needed. Robin's quite literally grown alongside the district's technology. From supporting one of our very first computer labs in the district to now an environment where every student and staff member has a device. Robin's been there every step of the way helping others to adapt learn and move forward. And as technology evolved, so too did Robin. Uh she continuously learned new skills, took on expanded responsibilities,
045and earned credentials to formalize the expertise that she had already built through years of hands-on experience. In just the past 10 years alone, Robin's responded to more than 6,000 formal requests for help. And anyone that has worked in a school knows uh that only tells part of the story. That doesn't account for all of the hallways and classrooms and offices, "Hey, can you help me with?" And each time Robin has said, "Yes." One of the things I personally appreciate most about Robin is her honesty. She tells it like it is. If I really wanted to know how you know, something was going I knew that Robin was someone I could turn to and get the honest answer. I'm not the only one, I'm sure that benefited from those conversations. Thank you. At her core, Robin's
046work has always been about students. That was her why. She wanted to make sure that every student had what they needed to be successful. And she worked every day to remove the barriers that stood in their way. I In the technology support profession, we often meet people when they're stuck. When something's not working and frustration is high. Robin's impact is measured in those moments. She helped someone get unstuck, find a solution, and move forward. And over 30 years, those moments add up to a truly meaningful legacy. As Robin begins her next chapter, she does so knowing that her work has made a difference. Not just in systems or devices, but in people. Robin, I hope the road ahead is filled with calm seas, blue skies, and many opportunities to explore and enjoy what comes next.
047Thank you for everything you've done to support students, staff, families, board members, and the entire District 304 community. >> And we will come full circle with Dr. Beritgen. >> Th- thanks so much. Um Already. Already. Sorry, it's Yeah. It's going to be a hard one. I also know Shaunette hates this so much. So, I'm going to do my best to keep it brief. I want to talk about Shaunette and um a little bit about her career and also then about everything she has meant both to the the district and to me. Um you know, I started like Mr. Rogers shared, went to her personnel file to find some good nuggets, but of course there were no good nuggets because it was just, you know, perfect letters of recommendation and perfect transcripts and perfect evaluations, everything.
048And there was no good nuggets for fun that I could find. Um, but uh so some of Shawnet's past Shawnet started her career as a self-contained special education teacher um working with students who had uh emotional and behavior challenges. Um and I think you can if you spent time with Shawnet you can tell cuz she just has that calm demeanor and she's a person who was helping kids going through some really hard stuff. Early in her career she served uh in that capacity in three different small districts uh southwest of here in DePue, Stark County, and Bureau Valley, right? And then you and your family decided to move up this way to the suburbs and she became a special education resource teacher uh in Glenbard and served in that capacity for a while before uh
049coming here as a dean at Geneva High School. Um then over the next two decades Shawnet uh just quietly climbed the ranks uh serving kids, serving administrators, serving parents, serving our community, helping teachers, just doing all the things that needed to be done and having a bigger impact from dean to assistant principal, associate principal, then a principal, then the director, and uh the assistant superintendent. Um I I was trying to think of uh what the right words were for me to share. Um well, actually also let me say this first. I I think uh it's going to be hard to be here for me personally without Shawnet. Um but boy, this is happening at a perfect time for her for her next adventure. Um they have a new home on the lake in the same
050neighborhood as their son and their soon-to-be grand baby. Um and that all just sounds like the perfect thing in the world and the perfect thing for Shawnette who I know someone who has always modeled the importance of family and I know how special this time is going to be. Um, I was really trying to think about uh how I could kind of frame what I think Shawnette, what I know Shawnette has meant to me personally and what she has meant to our district. And actually the perfect analogy came up that really represents what all of our teachers bring. Um, and uh what I really thought of with Shawnette, I was sitting there trying to decide what to say and I looked over and you know, on my shelf is my original copy from when I
051was 1 year old of The Giving Tree. Um, and I'm not going to I'd love to read it to you, but we won't we won't do that. But those of you uh who aren't familiar with The Giving Tree, it's a classic by Shel Silverstein. And um it's just about uh the tree is the tree is always giving, giving of herself, selfless and sacrificing um and sometimes uh ignoring her best interests so that other people can thrive and grow and bloom. Um, and from working with kids who have significant challenges to supporting educators, supporting teachers, that's what Shawnette is and and was and has been. She, when somebody needed her apples, she gave them. When somebody needed the leaves, she gave them. Um, and didn't ask questions. Um, she just there uh to help and sometimes
052I again, I think sacrificing and even ignoring her best interests to make sure others could thrive. Um, and I know I wouldn't be where I am today without her doing that for me. Um, and I know it's a quick tangent that everyone here has someone who would say that about you. Um, so thank you, Shonnah. Um, and thank you thank you, everyone, for all you've done for our school community. So, here here's what we're going to do, right? Adam will have the board come around. And then Adam will invite you up. And you can all pose together in front of our lovely banner. >> Yes. So, uh retirees, after you've shaken uh the board members' hands, if you just want and received your uh gift, if you just want to stay standing uh till the
053end and we'll get a a group photo. So, uh we'll start with uh Dr. Julie Day. Uh next, Al Elsner. >> I uh I I >> It's fitting that >> Paul circles the bases. >> All right. Paul Phil. Julie Byer. Ken Jablon. Lisa Hawks. Kevin Hendrickson. >> That one bedtime I'm going to make it to >> Bridget Walker Robin Butler and Shonette Sims >> So, somebody must have told you all that you don't have to stay for the whole meeting. Well, for the massive audience which we have remaining, thank you all for sticking around. Seriously, Todd will present the preliminary education fund budget. We're giving it a second here, Todd. It may have been off too long. Oh, no, here we go. It's coming. Uh-huh, it's faintly coming into view. >> Okay, can't top that,
054but I'll try. All right, just kidding. All right, uh tonight I had a chance to present this to the finance committee earlier. This is our 2026-2027 preliminary education fund budget. Uh essentially it runs from July 1st of '26 through June 30th of '27. This is the first uh four budgets that will be presented at the Board of Education and the finance committee. And so this is the most basic form of the education fund with the most information we have on hand. Okay, so looking at um some of the assumptions that we have for the revenues, our equalized assessed valuation did go up, so that results to an increase in local taxes. And so we see that value in that funding at $73,731,373. Our other revenue for the local level comes from other things such as
055our interest income, our personal property replacement tax, which is a tax um that's on businesses. Our registration and our fees, other fees include things like athletics or other events that we have. And lastly, it includes our food service $6,009,854. Our state revenue comes from typically grants and categoricals. Those are things that flow to us for reimbursement purposes from the state. We estimate $1,074,220. And we have kept the evidence-based funding the same at $2,144,000. Typically it does go up a little bit each year, but typically no more than, you know, five or six thousand dollars, so I've kept that flat. And lastly, our federal revenue, which is basically funded through our grants, our title two, three, and four, Medicaid, Medicaid fee for service, $1,874,000. So, at this point uh we estimate next year's budget revenue is
056looking at 84 million, 833,447 dollars. To offset that, we have the expenditures. Our salaries are based upon our collective bargaining agreements and our working agreements. They anticipate full staffing for the district for next year. That cost is 61 million, 459,285 dollars. Our benefits did see an increase this year. Our PPO went up 6%, our HMO 10%, and our dental went up 3%, just about an average of about 7.9 or 8%. And that's going to come in at 10 million, 904,634 dollars. Looking at our purchased services, those are services we go outside the district to procure. Those are coming in at 7 million, 303,390 dollars. A lot of those are the same costs that we would have in doing business, they pass on to us the same. And so you'll see what that's changed from the
057prior year. Our supplies and materials are those things that we typically have that we get to operate off of basic things such as paper, those kinds of things. They are impacted by inflation, so if inflation does go up, those costs go up as well. That's 1 million, 105,380 dollars. Our capital costs are equipment costs that exceed a threshold that we have that's set by board policy. That's 1 million, 205,183 dollars. And then our other expenses, those are dues, fees, and contingencies. So you think about our Mid-Valley tuition, you think about our Fox Valley Career Services. Those are the two largest ones that we have in that particular category. 4 million, 760,001 dollar. And lastly is our non-capital equipment costs. Those are costs that are below the threshold for basic things that we need for equipment
058purposes. They could be anything from a mouse to the computer to some other item that we need in our in our workspace. So 153,802 dollars. The estimated expenditures at this point are 86 million, 891,675 dollars or a deficit between the two um for revenue to expenses. Here's a little bit about our um historicals for the last 5 years. Um just to kind of summarize our local taxes, you see that every year that we've seen an increase um in our local taxation, which means that we broaden our tax base and it increases in value every year. And so this year we're looking at $73,731,373. Uh our local fees tend to go up and down. A lot of times those are affected either by um participants or by registration. And so you can see they're typically in
059the mid to high $5 million range. This year, $6,009,854. Uh for our local sources, um overall, we've seen that increase of growth uh from '22-'23 to $66,000 I'm sorry, $66 million to $72 million to $74 to $77. And at this point in our budget estimations, we anticipate our local sources being at $79,741,277 um for our local sources for next year. Our state sources, as you can see, somewhat fluctuate as well, um but somewhat consistent. Um a lot of those are reimbursements that we get from the state. Uh it also includes our evidence-based funding. And so we're looking at $3,218,220. And lastly, you can see the biggest area that we've seen decreases in our federal sources uh from year to year from uh the high of $3 million $3.3 million in '22-'23 all the way down
060to what we anticipate here in '26-'27 of $1,874,000. So, overall, you look at our totals, in '23, uh $72 million, year '24, $77 million, '25, $79 million, in year '25-'26, $82 million, and what we project for next year in '26-'27, $84,833,447. So, you can see we still have an increase in our total revenue, which is good. We would like to see it that we don't want to see it the other way. So, this is good for the district. When we look at some of our costs, the the two biggest factors are always our salary and our benefits. You can see our salaries have gone up from 51 million to 52 million to 55 million to 58 million. And this year and the next year we expect 61 million 459,285 dollars for our salaries. And that's
061just reflective of our agreements that we have for our employees and keeping up with the cost of living plus increases. The area that we've seen some larger changes as well, not by dollar but by percentage, over time has been our employee benefits. 9.3 million, 10 million, 10.3 million, 10.7. Now, we're almost up to 10 million 904,634 dollars. So, again, we see that increase in the cost of health costs that are being paid by the district. Purchased services, we see those grow as well from a low of 5.4 in 22-23 all the way up to over seen now next year of 7.3 million. And again, those are the costs that we have when we go externally to get services that we need. They could be anything from a nursing service that we require that we need
062to bring in and they have costs as well they pass on to us. Our materials have been very stable as you can see. For the most part, it's been a small area for us to absorb in our budget. Next year, 1 million 105,380 dollars. Our capital outlay also has been very stable as well and um it's always in that typical range that we would like for it to be in, which means that we've had slow steady capital needs. Next year, we're looking at 1 million 205,183 dollars. And lastly, other objects, keep in mind that that's those tuition fees that we pay. We're looking at 4 million 760,001 dollar next year. The cap non-capital equipment is equipment that's under that threshold. And again, that's that's a small part of this overall budget, but next year $153,802.
063So, overall that we've seen our expenses increase from '23 uh '22-'23 to 74 million, 75 million, 79 million, to 84 million, to 86 million $891,675. So, we still see that growth as well. Um, the comments that we had in conversation with the finance committee is this it's always time to go back and sharpen our pencil and see where we can make those adjustments to our expenditures to try to pull them in line with our revenue. Uh, this year has been a very difficult budget, but nonetheless, we'll come back over the phases of the budget process and see how we can close some of those gaps. And those are conversations that we can either have with our departments and our uh building levels or areas that we may find that we can just reduce some costs
064and maybe do something next year or find a cheaper alternative. So, here are some of the assumptions that we have that uh we'll continue to provide competitive wages and benefits for our employees, that we'll project full staffing in our budget estimations, that we will uh even though it's been challenging, we will still continue to find ways to invest and use our interest income to counter inflation, uh that we'll maintain fund balances in case of overages or need, that we'll invest in a learning environment as the board has planned, and that we'll plan our capital projects. I will point out when we see that $2 million deficit for the board that does not include the three or four million dollars that we may have to transfer to fund 60 for capital projects, and we take additional
065dollars out of the operations and maintenance fund to make that happen. Here are some of my areas of concern. Uh, can't control the economy. Um, we're very exposed to external factors, um but nonetheless, we have to respond to those and figure out how to operate. Uh, if inflation exceeds that three to 3.5 range, then that becomes a concern of mine as well as our department, of how we can meet those challenges of rising costs. We will see uh reduced investments. We've seen that steadily over the last couple years. Um so, not only have we had our fund balance reduced, we've had our ability to invest and get a better return reduced. And so, those are challenges that we've used to offset some of this the the items that we've seen in the past that we
066try to struggle with and bring back in balance. Uh legislation that impacts the funding, uh as you know, there's lots of bills out there. Uh Ms. Ford is really good about bringing those to our attention and talking about how that might impact the district. And those are all things that we still have to uh watch and be mindful of. Uh changes at the state and federal levels that will impact education, everything from funding to use of funds. And any delays or reduced categorical payments that uh may disrupt the timing that we have in a budget cycle. So, our next steps are to monitor uh the end-of-year revenues and expenses. And so, um when we come back in June, we have a short time frame to come back with a a larger draft budget for the
067board. Uh we'll be really looking at how we ended May, cuz that just leaves us one more month to project out as we forecast where we will end the year. I'll bring that projection back to the board. Uh we'll also look at uh receiving um you know, earlier better grant financials. So, working with our other departments, as I mentioned earlier, student services and learning teaching to figure out what we might have for grant funds that will carry over to the next year. Those have not been added into the budget. The budget just simply assumes we'll have our typical uh grant revenue and our typical grant expenditures. Uh those could be adjusted as well. Uh we're going to monitor uh health benefit elections. So, sometimes we have people change between a single and a family, which
068is a cost for us. Uh we also have people such as the retirees, I believe, that may be replaced by a less expensive teacher as less expensive benefits. They come in as a single uh benefit that may over time turn to a family, but nonetheless, we have some cost savings at the beginning if that's the case. Um we'll be looking at our of enrollment. So, enrollment goes all the way through the beginning of school. Um, sometimes we have to adjust classes or we have to hire another teacher. We'll uh estimate our transfer amounts as we come back in other budgets what we think we'd have to move to fund our capital. Then we'll review our revenue sources for any changes and then again we'll continue to monitor that spending. So, in conclusion, uh revenue is
069$84,833,447 and that will be used to pay against our expenses of $86,891,675 or at this point in time education fund deficit of $2,058,228. All right, questions from the board or comments? >> Um, thank you for the the bad news, I guess. Um, but it's it's just uh something different than we've had in years past, so we can adjust. Could you talk a little bit about um, our funding that we're getting in from property taxes? I know earlier we talked a little bit about people um, who were protesting their assessments and and those changes. Could you talk about that they're residential or commercial or and how that's affecting us this year? >> Yeah, sure. Thank you for the question. So, every year we do have a a a in the past a small amount of uh
070whether they be uh residential or commercial businesses that will appeal their taxes have them reduced in some form. Uh, in the past maybe we've had eight or 10. I think this last year we've had 22 26 properties that have protested their taxes and consequently they had a couple things. So, that will reduce our overall equalized value because it reduces some of the value. Um, we've seen some reduction I think in what we estimated for construction growth. Uh, in the past years we probably had 12 to 15 million. We had just almost seven this year which has slowed growth for the community. That could change with some of the other developments and agreements we have pending. And really that just reduces the dollars that we bring in um, through the levy process. There is some recapture
071means that's kind of made up. It won't be this year, it'll be next year. We have no idea what that amount would be. But every year in the levy, we do have some recapture that brings the most dollars back to us. So, yes, that is of concern. We've had a lot of properties that have had their value reduced, which means their tax contributions that the district have been reviews reduced and we continue to have several of those that we're processing and are still under appeal. >> And Todd, I think you made a good point in there that's worth acknowledging that not only first off as I think Jackie was referencing many of those appeals are some big like commercial properties which has a more can have a more significant impact. But then the other thing
072I think that you noted well is not just that it reduces the the tax revenue per se that you might get from an individual property, but it also reduces the overall EAV, which is what is used to calculate what we get, right? And so that's that's the other part of it's like a a two-pronged piece to that puzzle that's important to remember. >> Yeah. So, after all the good news, sorry to bring you bad news, but we will work and see how we can close some of that gap. >> You are clearly right about it. Any other questions? Thank you, Todd. Next item is public comments. Bonnie, did you receive any request for public comment? Anybody want to comment at this point? Okay. Ms. Fuller says no. Item five, legislative updates, Jackie. >> Yeah, I
073don't have a full report tonight. I have not been following the Bears saga. I just looked very quickly. Doesn't look like anything's been settled yet, but the General Assembly is still in session through Sunday, so I'm sure there's something that will be announced before then. Last time we were together, I did talk about House Bill 4416 that had to do with unemployment for certain employees over the summer. That has not changed. I did check that one, so no movement on that particular bill. And I didn't really have anything else to update this time. The next time we meet, it'll be the end of the session and we'll probably have some summary reports, so I'll report out at that time in June. Thank you. >> Thank you, Jackie. Superintendent's report, Dr. Garrett. >> Thanks, Larry. Just
074a few quick things as we uh end the year, I our 25-26 school year, which the theme was all together now. I can't believe this is our last meeting uh before the school year ends. Um and everybody heads out. It goes Every year it goes faster. Every year goes faster, for sure. Um so, just a few quick updates for you. First, um just important for us to know, and I think for the public to know, that we do have an update on the Lefox of Campton Hills development. Um the Village of Campton Hills did the board did formally approve the formation of the TIF TIF district for that property at a meeting since we last um since we last met. So, it's important to know that and important to know um again, this is as
075far as anything out there has ever gotten, and the TIF being established, I think, tells us that um it's pretty likely this thing's going to keep going. That being said, there are a lot of additional steps remaining regarding the planned unit development and all the infrastructure for the project. I think important for us to always remember, our developer donation agreement that we negotiated remains in place, um and I think as a board, I know that was a lot of work uh last summer, um but it's it's really good that we did that work because it puts the district in uh uh you know solid footing given you know the changes that could be coming. So, we'll just keep you posted on that. Also important to know, you know we've been talking we talk about this
076a lot both through uh um you know the finance committee and through meetings here across the year, but you know we have the unique challenge in schools of when work needs to get done and capital work needs to get done, we have that finite window from when kids and teachers leave till when kids and teachers get back to get all that work done. So, lots of planning and prep and work goes into that and thanks to the facilities task force members for you know all the guidance and leadership on that. So, the projects for the summer as you know we uh um made an intentional effort to start working much further ahead on these projects and get all this stuff bid out early so we knew exactly what we would be doing and you know
077this summer we're really looking to address some necessary core infrastructure needs and some of that work is already underway. Um so our operations department and Mr. Peterson has worked with our principals and our building leaders and everybody to uh start getting some of that done. So, you see some tennis courts, some mechanical spaces here, a generator, the greenhouse, some health life safety work that needed to be done. So, they're getting after it already so we can make sure we're done in enough time for uh our teachers and students to return in August which will be here before we know it. Also of course this is just that time of year where there are I mean just so many end of year activities. Oh, who's that? Oh, it's our esteemed board president Larry who uh flew
078the uh western kindergarteners to Hawaii for uh a fun exciting activity. Um but as you know, there are just so many things happening all year long, but at the end of the year like this, it is just a flurry of stuff. Every night, awards and honors and celebrations and kids are taking culminating trips and events and there's a lot of transition activities and there's uh promotions and graduation. Um you know, there's just so much happening at this time of year. It's uh so busy for everyone, but also you know, very exciting, I know. Um and last, you know, I like to do this at our our last meeting and we're closing up our theme of all together now and want to just do a little foreshadowing as we're looking ahead to 2026-2027. Um because uh
079here in uh sweet home Geneva we're going to be uh doing some reminders about how we're on a mission for kids here. Um and we're going to feature our our great educators throughout the year. As we begin next year, we're really going to think about what it's like to be here in Geneva, uh sweet home Geneva. Um and seek out reminders of all the great ways we work together on that mission for kids. Um what we're going to try to do is feature our educators and strive to remember that when times get tough that's when family comes together for each other. Um and when the pre-previous generation comes together to help the next one and I think we're going to see a lot of uh lot of reminders and um have some fun fun experiences
080reminding us about that. So again, just a little foreshadowing. We'll share some more information with you uh on our plans for next year uh soon, but wanted to do that as we ended the year. That's all I have for you, Larry. >> Well, thank you very much. That's uh quite a uh remarkable report. Thank you. Uh item seven, there's nothing on that particular item. Item eight, work study topics and future action considerations. Policy updates, uh first reading, I believe we should have a policy person to tell us about that, Stephanie. >> Sure. So, just one policy that we had held over from our last meeting, and this one was because we were working on the specific language with our lawyers to make sure that we covered this correctly um to encompass the right employees that
081we're targeting with our drug and alcohol-free workplace policy. So, you can see the language change, and we just want really want to make sure we are clarifying um and defining what an on-call employee is, since some of our um administrators are always available in case of emergency, and then there's other um employees that we have that might be on call for a specific event, such as like a snow storm or something like that. So, we wanted to define that, and that's what we did in this policy with the language. So, just let me know if there's any questions on it. >> Anyone? Thank you. Information item nine, number one, a board meeting presentation schedule. Number two, FOIA requests and board correspondence. And number three, suspension reports. That's for information only, unless there are any questions
082or anything like that. >> Yes, go ahead. >> Um the issue about the I I know we have what, one more official board meeting before we get into next year. Um with the board meeting and presentation schedule, can we roll the next year on, so that we can start seeing what's coming and when? >> Yeah, and one of our summer projects is um to just kind of revamp how that looks in general. >> Thanks, Paul. Anything else? Okay, um my favorite, the consent agenda. Item one, personnel report, resignations, retirements, leave requests, changes in assignment, full-time equivalent, new hires. Item two, a monthly financials for April Unless there are any questions, a motion to approve would be fine. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Aye. >> Next item is board member comments and reports. Dan, would
083you like to start? >> Sure. Yeah, so um I think um I think everyone will chime in on this one, but uh love the tonight's meeting and one of one of at least my personal favorites. I'm sure it's for a lot of my board colleagues it is when we when we congratulate our retirees and so congratulations to them and and best wishes in the next chapter of life for them. Um I'll like like Dr. Barrett mentioned in regard to a lot of year-end things with concerts and athletics um wrapping up. So was able to go out to several of those activities and it's always fun to to see see the progression from um especially in the concerts from early in the year to the to the end. So and how how well the students have
084really gained in their whether it's their instruments or in their vocal progression. So very fun to see. Um finally, you know, good luck with finals this week to all our students and yeah, looking forward to graduation next next week. >> Great. All right. >> Um I had the opportunity to attend the Fabian Elementary School's PTO. Um of what it couple weeks ago already? Feels like it. Time is just strange right now this time of year. But it was really great. Dr. Barrett and I attended and they have such a wonderful turnout there of parents that support that school and their students and faculty. It was noted in the meeting that over the over the year 40% of the parents had volunteered for something, which I think is really remarkable and the events that they spoke
085of that they had a done throughout the year, ideas for next year, the PTO over there from last year installed new furniture in the library and then this year they were able to put in a climbing wall. So I think it's really amazing to see what a PTO organization can do and the actual effect that it has on on the community at Fabian. So just big kudos to everybody over at Fabian. As Dan said, I know everybody's going to likely talk about our retirees this evening. My family and I moved to Geneva six years ago and we moved we had we have no connection here other than when we looked at the schools. That was the whole reason. It was a destination for us because of the schools. And my oldest is in third grade
086so they haven't had an opportunity to be touched by all of the retirees this evening. But if it's any indication of the education and community that they will have I think that we made the right choice. So I really am just so privileged to hear of all of the amazing stories from our retirees tonight and I look forward to learning more about the educators as my kids grow up. So thank you to everyone. All the best in the next chapters and to our students and faculty as they close out the year. Good luck with all of the end of the year celebrations and I hope everybody has a wonderful summer. >> Yes, I'd also like to thank and congratulate our our folks that are retiring. I can tell you from personal experience that retirement is
087great. You're going to love it. Trust me. Trust me. >> So, they're going to join the board then? >> Maybe. Always find something to do. Please. It is their chance to Exactly. And also, I'd like to you know, I know as we're rushing toward the end of the year and I know that everything's going so fast. Congratulate or good luck to everybody who's taking their finals. But also, good luck to our graduates as we as we'll be with them next Monday, right? So, yeah, that's always a big time and it's it's great to see and it's great to hear the commencement speeches. So, I'm looking forward to that. >> Jackie. >> Thanks. Yeah, I also want to echo the congratulations to our retirees for the ones who were able to make it tonight and then
088those that could not, we are thinking of you as well. I really enjoy the stories. I think that you put a lot of time and effort into finding fun little nuggets about people or just those moving messages that some of them received whether it was from a university or a parent. I think those are great stories and really show how devoted our educators are to our students and everybody else who supports them. So, thank you to them. Excited for graduation next week. Good luck on finals all you friends in high school and then to our eighth graders who are going to go through promotion and get to the high school finally and all of our younger students who are just probably bursting at the seams can't wait to have summer start. So, winding down now
089of what I called last time May-cember. We're almost done. We got one week left. I wanted to just mention a few things. I was able to attend um of the girls soccer regional games. That was really exciting. And all of our teams have performed really well. In spring, I know a lot of them had some games today. Hopefully they're successful tonight. I did get to attend my favorite jazz dinner. Uh that was a lot of fun. Dr. Barrett was there, too. And I also was able to pop in to the transportation department's luncheon that they had last week. I couldn't stay for all the good food that they always have. But I did on behalf of the board thank them for all the work that they do, not only just getting our school students to
090and from school, but all the extra activities. And like I had pointed out the last minute, "Oh my gosh, we made it to state. Who's going to drive them?" And you know, that day they step in do that for us. So I did get to say that to them. And I think that's it. >> Thank you, Jackie. >> So I did think long and hard about how best to describe the retirees. And even though I've played many rounds of Mr. Thill's Wordy Gurdy, I did not come up with a better phrase than thank you. Because I think there's nothing more than I can say to these teachers who have dedicated their lives to educating myself, my siblings, and all of our kids. But thank you. I know it's such a big job, and it's more
091than just showing up. There's so much of it every single day. And even though we think, "Oh, teachers get the summer off." It never really leaves, and you're just spending your whole life working. Um and contributing to these kids' education and their lives. So thank you to all of our reti- retirees. So many faces that I've known either from my kids, my siblings, or myself. So I don't know if that just means I'm getting older, but it did Almost everybody I think I knew tonight. So thank you to all of our educators. Congrats to all of our seniors. Excited to see everybody off next week at graduation. Such a bittersweet time of year. Excited for everyone in their future endeavors, but also sad to see everybody go. And then good luck to everybody finishing finals
092and just the end of the year. I've been to so many activities this past these past few weeks. I can't even keep count, but I know that just not only means a lot of fun for our kids and a lot of end-of-year wrap-up, but so much work on the part of staff and educators and parents. So, thank you to everyone for, you know, really ending May strongly and hope everyone has a wonderful summer. >> Thank you. I um reiterate and restate everything that you all have said, and certainly with regard to the retirees, an amazing group of educators that we're very, very pleased to have had working here in Geneva and helping many, many children. Um all of the other things you said, graduation is approaching, people people are are doing wonderful things. I think
093I adopted Western Avenue School between reading a book to a third grade class and and sending probably the most excited manifest of kids that I'd ever seen. On their way to a simulated Hawaii and and then Western Walks, where I met Dr. Barrett among other people who passed along a proper hint which I'll use in the future. So, all in all, it's been a wonderful and enjoyable period of time in the school district and and for me. So, thank you all for all of the good things you do. That should take care of that. There isn't any notice or announcements. The next thing, I get to read this, but I've edited because they were only doing a specific bit. We're up for executive session now, and and executive session to consider matters pertaining to appointment,
094employment, compensation, or discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific individuals who serve as independent contractors in a legal counsel or the public body and all the way to increase a meeting to consider an increase in compensation for a specific employee that is subject to the local government rate wage increase transparency act may not be closed and must be open to the public and posted and held in accordance with the act. So, we're going to go into executive session. We have to have a motion to do so. And so, if >> Motion to go into executive session. >> Second. >> I.