001[Music] Here. [Music] Green. [Music] Hey. Hey. Hey. [Music] Don't know. [Music] I don't know. [Music] Hey. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Yeah, I would like to call the September 22nd 2025 board of education meeting to order. Uh before we do that, I'm sorry. May I have a motion to permit uh Miss Khan to attend the meeting remotely due to personal illness or disability? >> So moved. Second. >> Roll call. >> Member Kerr. >> Yes. >> Miss Martin? >> Yes. >> Miss Nolan. >> Miss Schwarz. >> Yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> Motion passes. >> Now, may I have the roll call, please? Miss Kirk >> here. >> Miss Khan, Miss Martin >> here, Miss Schwarz >> here, >> Miss Thomas >> here, >> President Owens >> here. May I have
002a motion to move into close session to discuss individual student disciplinary matters pending probable or imminent litigation, the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance or dismissal of specific employees, specific individuals who serve as independent contractors in a park, recreational or educational setting or specific volunteers of the public or legal council for the public body. The purchase or lease of real property for the use of the school board. The setting of a price or sale setting of a price for the sale or lease of real property owned by the school board. An internal audit control weakness. Identification of potential fraud risk areas. Known or suspected frauds and fraud interviews. Collective negotiating matters between the school board and its employees or their representatives or deliberations concerning salary schedules for one or more classes of employees. The review of
003close session minutes and individual student matters. >> So moved. Second. Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> We are in close session at 5:47 p.m. [Music] I'm getting [Music] Heat. [Music] Hey. Hey. [Music] feel. You [Music] Don't. [Music] Heat. [Music] Hey, Heat. [Music] being. [Music] Hey, [Music] hey, hey. [Music] Hey, [Music] hey, hey. [Music] Heat. [Music] Heat. [Music] Jimmy. [Music] Hey, make a [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Hello. Everyone [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Heat. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. Hey. [Music] Hey, hey, hey. [Music] Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Hey, Heat. Heat. Heat. [Music] Heat. Hey, Heat. [Music] You got heat. [Music] Hey, hey, hey. Hello. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Hey,
004hey, hey. I'll be [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Hey [Music] hey. [Music] Hey. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Hey, hey, hey. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music] Hey, If I could have everybody's attention real quick, we'll get started in just a few minutes. We're having a couple of technical delays. Um, but we'll get started as soon as we can. All right, good evening everyone and thank you for bearing with us as we work through some technical issues. I am going to resume the September 26, 2025 board of education meeting. If I could have everybody stand as they're able for the pledge of allegiance and remain standing for a moment of silence to the flag of the United States of America and to the standy. We'd like to take a moment of silence for a U46 employee who recently passed
005away. Tony Allen has been a teacher in U46 for 25 years, spending the last 15 years teaching history and social studies at South Elgen High School. Students remember the lasting connections he created with them and how he made his lessons fun and engaging through contests, decorations, and even dressing up as his favorite president. Tony dedicated his career to inspiring and supporting students, encouraging him, encouraging them to grow into the best versions of themselves. Tony passed away on August 29th. He is survived by his wife, Kelly, and his sons Joshua and Zachary. A funeral service was held at Resurrection Catholic Church in Woodstock on September 6th. We also remember Sebastian Flores who was a ninth grade student in the exceptional needs 2 program at Barlet High School. Sebastian passed away on September 3rd. Those who knew
006him say that although Sebastian struggled with many medical problems during his life, he radiated happiness, joy, and love. Sebastian is survived by his parents, Freddy and Valerie, and several siblings. Services were held on September 8th at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Elgen. We will keep the families and friends of both Tony and Sebastian in our thoughts and prayers. Thank you everyone. Okay, the first item we have on our agenda is uh accent on achievement. Dr. Johnson. >> Thank you, President Owens. Our first accent on achievement uh this evening is the U46 financial operations department certificate of excellence in financial reporting. As part of the board of education's accent on achievement, the board of education would like to honor school district U46's financial operations department for having been awarded a certificate of excellence in financial reporting
007by Asbo International. Robin Cornelison, executive director of finance and Trenet Gardner, financial controller, will accept the recognition from board secretary prom Michanda Schwarz on behalf of the district's financial operations department. Okay, I'm going to read the uh certificate of achievement. The board of education of school district U46 hereby recognizes the U46 finance department for being awarded a certificate of excellence in financial reporting for the fisc year 2024 annual comprehensive financial report from the Association of School Business Officials presented this 22nd day of September 20 presented this 22nd day of September 2025 and it's signed by board of education President Melissa Owens. and a superintendent, Dr. Suzanne Johnson. Congratulations. [Applause] All right. And now, while that is terribly exciting, we have a champion in the house this evening. Woohoo. So, our second accent on achievement is
008for the Illinois Special Olympics Summer Games winner. As part of our focus on accent on achievement, the board of education would like to honor Nathan Schaw of Bartlett High School for finishing first place in the 25 meter freestyle and the 25 meter backstroke during the Illinois Special Olympic Summer Games. and board member Kate Thomas is here to recognize Nathan. >> Okay, are you ready? I've got the certificate for you. >> It says, "Certificate of achievement. The board of education of school district U46 hereby recognizes Nathan Scho of Bartlett High School for earning gold in the 25meter freestyle and the 25 meter breaststroke for the school district U46 Blue Stars at the Illinois Special Olympics summer games. Presented this 22nd day of September 2025 and it's signed by Mrs. Owens the board president and Dr. Johnson
009the superintendent. [Music] Yeah. >> Do you I see your coaches are here too. >> Yeah. Do you want to say something to them or to anybody? >> Oh, nothing really. Just this is just fun and exciting. I've never been in a school board meeting like this before and it's just a it's just such an honor to be here. >> Awesome. Thank you, Nathan. Thanks, Mom and Dad. I want to show this. Congratulations. [Laughter] Okay, the next item on our agenda is strategic plan report. Dr. Johnson. >> Thank you, President Owens. Our first strategic plan report this evening, facility planning update. Brian Lindholm, chief of staff and Dr. Anne Williams, deputy superintendent of operations, will present to the board of education an update on facility planning. Okay, good evening and thank you for another opportunity to
010provide the education the board of education with the facilities update. Tonight's update includes several projects and really demonstrates the amount of work that is currently underway to update the facilities throughout the district. And we're going to start um by providing a monthly update on the projects that are currently under construction, starting with our middle schools. Our first update for this evening is at Kimble, which continues to be our most complex project with significant renovations to the existing building as well as a 50,000 square foot addition. After a very busy summer, we were able to complete the required work just in time for staff and students to return in August, and construction activity is now completely separate from the instructional areas. We've also had the pleasure of taking several board members out to see the progress
011firsthand. And as you can see here on the left, you can see part of the addition where masonary walls are rising and the scale of the new space is becoming clear. In the middle photo, we highlight one of our newly renovated specialized student service spaces. These areas are already in use and provide updated purpose-built environments to build to better support students. And then on the right, you can see what will become the new secure entrance, an important upgrade that will enhance safety and improve the overall flow of the building once complete. Now, on the next slide, you can see more of the Kimmel edition taking shape. The photos on the left and the far right highlight the new north stairwell, a major structural feature that will improve circulation and provide greater accessibility throughout the school.
012In the center photo, you can see that this space is reserved for the new cafeteria and serving lines, which is moving out of the basement and up to the main level. This will create a more welcoming, light field space for students while improving both accessibility and the overall student experience. Looking ahead, our upcoming work will include structural steel, additional loadbearing masonry, and completing the foundation for the addition. The schedule calls for the building to be completely under roof in January or no later than January, which will allow interior work to continue through the cold winter months. The project remains on track for completion in July 2026. Now, on to Kenyon Woods. At Kenyon Woods, we've made great progress over the summer, supported by favorable weather and an active job site each day. In the upper
013left photo, you can see the new addition taking shape with the brick work and windows now in place. The windows represent an important milestone, helping to fully enclose the building while also bringing abundant natural light into every classroom. Inside, you can see the stairwell construction underway in the center photo, which also includes an integrated accessibility ramp. This feature is an important part of ensuring that every student and staff member will be able to move comfortably and safely throughout the building. Masonary crews are also focused on the bathrooms where the glazed glazed block walls shown in the bottom right photo are being installed. These walls not only provide durability but also add a vibrant pop of color to the interior. And on the upper right, you can see that the duck work and insulation, which is
014very key, are being set in place, marking yet another critical step forward in the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems that will serve this building. And lastly, on the bottom left on the roof, you can see that the new mechanical units have been delivered and staged. And with the roofing work near completion, interior progress will also continue throughout the fall and the winter. And overall, this project is running very smoothly. And we are pleased to report that we are currently tracking slightly ahead of schedule. Now, let's talk about our middle our elementary schools. We'll start with Centry Oaks. We are making good progress on the planning and design for two of our elementary schools, Centry Oaks Elementary in Elgen and Glenn Brook Elementary in Streamwood. These schools were both built 50 years ago in the 1970s
015and they have similar layouts with a media center in the middle surrounded by connecting classrooms. And in most cases, students need to walk through one classroom to get to another. This presents safety, security, and learning challenges. In addition, the infrastructure systems in these buildings were not constructed to meet the learning and technology needs of students today. For these reasons, the Unite U46 recommendations in late 2022 prioritized updating or replacing these buildings as part of our facilities plan. On September 9th, we shared the construction phasing plan with staff and families. The plan will include the addition of six mobile classrooms for the 2627 school year to move students away from the active construction areas while the renovation is taking place. Staff were generally generally supportive of our plans and principal Frederickson and assistant principal Talip have
016been very engaged in the process. Our teams will work through many logistical details over the next coming weeks and months, but this is a plan that removes project risks and provides a safer and more conducive learning environment for our students during construction. This project is currently out to bid with a bid opening scheduled for tomorrow. Now, moving on to Glenbrook. On September 10th, we shared the construction phase phasing plan with staff and families. This plan is to actually move students and staff to the handover countryside building for the 2627 school year. Staff were generally generally supportive of our plans and principal Chararma has been a great partner to work with. We also met with the handover countryside staff to ensure that they are aware of the plans for the building next year. Again, we will
017continue to work through many logistical details, but this plan provides a more conducive learning environment for the students at this school. And just last week, we had a public bid opening. Um, that bid opening was held on September 18th and we received nearly 100 bids across 16 different bid packages. So, it was very competitive and we are very excited to see the results of that bidding process. Later on that same day, we ant we attended the village of Streamwoods board meeting to request approval of a special use permit for expansion of the site. And their board and the attendees of that meeting were very excited about the project as well. At a future update, we will share a more detailed project schedule for both sites, including when we anticipate breaking ground and starting work. And
018with that, I will turn it over to Mr. Lindholm to provide updates on the remaining Unite 46 projects as well as the Larkin Stadium. >> Uh thank you Dr. Williams. So construction at the new middle school in Elgen is coming along very nicely. Uh the team has taken advantage of the favorable weather and has made up a lot of ground uh after a late start um with some of the zoning and permitting process through the city of Elgen. Uh here you see a picture of stairwells on the right uh that have begun to take shape uh if you've driven by the site. And then on the left you see one of the geothermal drilling rigs. Um these rigs drill 500 ft into the ground and install a steel casing to create bore holes that will
019serve as a part of a highly efficient geothermal heating and cooling system. In total we'll have 120 of these wells across the site. The system then uses the steady temperature of the earth to uh heat and cool the building which dramatically reduces our energy consumption and supports our long-term sustainability goals. It's really an impressive process to watch. Um and it is an exciting step towards a greener future for our U46 schools. Other upcoming milestones are completion of the foundation and the storm trap system uh with its precast con concrete slabs that allow the system to detain storm water and control and direct uh the discharge of this water to prevent flooding. And we will continue to see more loadbearing walls go up along with steady progress on site utilities. So, in terms of naming the
020school, um, last Friday, the 19th of September, we closed, uh, a 30-day period for receiving nominations. Uh, the slide here says we received over 200 nominations. Actually, ended up being over 300. So, we had uh a big late uh rush of of entries from students, which was which was always uh which is always a good thing. Um, we had lots of interesting selections, I should say. Um we are working to compile the results now. Um and then the next steps would be board policy calls for administration to hold a town hall meeting which we're planning to hold at Hilltop Elementary on Wednesday, October 1st. So anyone who submitted nominations will get uh personal invitations to that. We'll also be sending word out um via social media and on our website. Uh we would then plan
021to bring recommendations to the board of education at the October 20th meeting um such that the board um would be in position to take to vote to take action at the November 3rd, 2025 meeting. So uh with any luck, we will have a a name for our new school here in in the notsodistant future. And then uh this slide is just to give you a preview of the wide range of nominations that we received. Uh the U46 community, I would say, offered very thoughtful suggestions uh to name our school after national some national figures. Uh some that highlight um local figures, some that highlight local geography, uh others that espouse values like unity, diversity, hope, or freedom. We also received many nominations in Spanish, uh which I love to see. And uh as I said,
022we'll be directly contacting everyone who submitted a nomination to both thank them for participating and also to invite them to attend the town hall meeting on October 1st where they can provide uh additional context for why they submitted uh the name they submitted. Our next project is Illinois Park um which as you know will be converted from an early childhood center to an elementary school. Uh this both allows us to move more prek sections into our elementary schools across U46. Uh it also provides us uh much needed capacity in the K through five grade levels uh as we will be closing two of our oldest elementary schools uh Lowry and Washington on the west side of Elgen. This rendering is from the northeast looking back uh at the new multi-purpose room which will be located
023in the small addition that's being planned uh to provide a a more appropriate um type of space for elementary age students. And then this is a view from inside the that multi-purpose room. Um note the large windows uh the uh introduction of color and other design elements both in the floor and in the ceiling. um we feel like this is going to be a really welcoming um space that our our students and our staff are going to love. And then we also felt it was important uh to share some of the details of the site work that is being planned at Illinois Park. So our partners at HLR are leading this work. Um we had a very good meeting with the city of Elgen recently um to slightly adjust our plan to meet some of
024fully meet some of their requirements. But the few points that I wanted to call out here um and and they're numbered with the the one, two, and three red circles there. Um the first one is to line up our access drive, uh to the east to to line up with Weston Avenue, um which approaches uh from from the south. Uh that the city felt like this was important to reduce the um congestion around um potential left turns um going in both directions around this area. Um, traffic around Illinois Park has has always been a challenge. So, anything that we can do to help to help reduce that. Um, so that drive will be adjusted such that it'll be more of a straight shot uh lined up with Weston um Weston Avenue from the south. Then
025this drive will uh continue around the back of the building kind of down the hill um and around the back of the building kind of marked with the two near near where the uh the playground is currently. This becomes an extended drop off and pickup area for parents. um capable of holding up to 60 vehicles and is really an important component of our of our plan to get waiting cars off of Wing Street. And then finally, the bus drop off and the staff parking areas in front of the building will now be a single combined area uh that will be accessible only from the west end of the property aligned with MLAN Boulevard. So, the the current access drive marked with the three uh will go away and there will just now be the the
026two access drives at the far east and the far west um side of our property. So, we're confident that these changes will help to resolve um really what have been some long-standing vehicular access issues with the site given its challenging location uh at the intersection of these two busy roads in Elgen. Our next update is uh for the new middle school um in Elgen that will be built on the former David C. Cook site on North Grove Avenue in Elgen. Here we're providing a first look at uh some of the renderings of the current design uh based on concepts um that will be part of our first submitt to the city of Elgen. Uh the team at DLA has done a really nice job of uh designing a modern elementary school with large open spaces,
027plenty of windows to provide natural light, uh but also introducing materials, colors, and other design elements that honor the historical significance uh of the former DC Cook property as well as the surrounding homes in the neighborhood. As part of the project, uh we have uh been working closely with the Northeast Neighborhood Association of Elgen or Nenah. Uh we met with their uh entire uh membership on August 7th at the Gail Bordon Library. Um they had a great turnout. They said they had more people at that meeting than they'd had in in quite some time. Um I would say at least 40 people probably. Um, and while there is excitement about the project, um, we do have to to acknowledge there are questions and concerns uh, especially around traffic um, and parking um, particularly around arrival
028and dismissal time. So, we shared with Nina leadership um and they actually have been been great collaborative partners um and and we expect it to continue to be that way that we would like to come back with the results of a recently completed traffic study um that we will also be sharing with the city of Elgen as as part of our initial submission. Um we're working to schedule that meeting now, but we expect it will happen in the next few weeks. We are committed to keeping this group informed throughout the process and ensuring that U46 is a good neighbor uh in this unique and historic neighborhood in Elgen. We will have more detailed updates on this project in the coming weeks as we work to submit uh preliminary documents to the city of Elgen uh
029to start the zoning and permitting process. The first major phase of construction will be to demolish the current building, but we don't anticipate that this would happen until at least next spring. Uh but as I said, we'll continue to provide regular updates on this exciting project in the coming weeks. And then finally, uh our our last update is not a project that was funded uh from UniteU46, our referendum bonds, per se, uh but it's an important one nonetheless. So, as we previously shared, we are working to build a new athletic complex at Larkin High School. The plan calls for a turf field with a surrounding track, seating for over 2,000 spectators, and an adjacent building with locker rooms, concessions, and restrooms, an outdoor picnic area, as well as updated lighting, sound system, and scoreboard. Larkin
030High School has long been the only U46 high school without its own stadium, so we're excited to bring this well-deserved opportunity to our students and the Larkin High School community. On September 8th, uh the same night as our last board meeting, um the Elgen's um city of Elgen's planning and zoning commission voted to recommend approval of the project to the to its full city council. City staff had also issued a report recommending approval of the project um along with code variances that we'll need for the building scoreboard and fencing um that will be part of the project. Another noted concern is parking and traffic for potential rivalry games or other events with high attendance. So, as part of our submission, the district uh did provide a plan to to provide satellite parking at neighboring schools
031with shuttle service if if it was needed for these special events. However, we feel we're confident that for a typical varsity football game, we would have enough parking on site. The project will likely be scheduled for city council consideration uh at their meeting on Wednesday, October 8th. Uh our team will not present at this meeting, but we will be there in case there are any questions from the city council. Then if all goes well, the final zoning approval would be scheduled for the city council meeting on October 22nd, and then we would be able to schedule work shortly after um to commence. So please stay tuned. And that uh concludes tonight's updates. Are there any questions? >> Thank you for the presentation. Do board members have any questions, Don? >> So, I don't have a
032question. So, thank you for the presentation and I just wanted to continue to thank um our staff and our communities and our families. I know construction is very messy and it can be very frustrating. Um but I would say that the end result that we're looking for with our new schools and our updated schools, like just all of these projects is going to be just a big win for all of our community. So, just continue to say thank you and bear with us while we do all the construction over the next several years. >> Anyone else? And I just want to add um I know some of us board members have been out now to to Kenyon Woods and um to uh Kimell in the last couple weeks. Um and just thank you to the
033staff and and everybody at the the schools and administration as you you know walk around the schools with us to show us what's happening. Um, it's really important us for us to get into those schools so that we know firsthand what, you know, what the construction process is, what challenges are happening, what, you know, what progress is being made. Um, so thank you to everybody that's allowing for that to to happen. >> Thank you. >> Next item. Thank you, President Owens. Our next item this evening is the postsecary success update. Uh we have Michelle Chapman, director of post-secondary success, Micah Kennedy, assistant director of early college and career pathways. Emilena Nelkovich, assistant director of gifted accelerated and magnetmies, as well as Beth McKini, coordinator of AVID, Apex and summer connections to present to the board
034of education with a postsecary success update. Good evening, Dr. Johnson and board of education members. Uh, my name is Michelle Chapman and I'm excited to share the work of our post-secary success department. Here are tonight's presenters as Dr. Johnson mentioned and here's the rest of them that are cheering us on from home. All right. Uh the post-secondary team is very supportive of the updated U46 strategic plan, especially goal number four, ready to embrace a diverse and changing world. The statement in goal number four, every student will develop skills and interests for successful post-secary transitions through life, college, and or career is the mission of our department. The impact of our work reflects the strategic plan as we want a 100% of our students to graduate with a viable post-secary plan and have an early college
035experience during their time in U46. Those early college experiences include advanced placement, international balorate and dual credit classes, the state seal of biiteracy, industry recognized credentials, internships and college and career pathway endorsements. Our work with the counseling and post-secary teams, AVID and Apex credit recovery, freshman seminar and middle school advisory, the magnetmies, gifted programs and accelerated placement, educational pathways and early college experiences and summer programming are intertwined with the U46 strategic plan. Goal number two, safety and sense of belonging. Goal number three, academic growth and mastery. And again, goal number four, which we're most excited about, ready to embrace a diverse and changing world. >> Good evening. Um, I am Micah Kennedy, assistant director of post-secondary success, overseeing early college programming and career pathways. I'm going to start tonight by talking about the post-secary and
036career expectations or the PACE framework. This is a framework that identifies activities that are completed by our middle school and high school students to help them prepare for their post-secary adventures. Whether this is enrollment, enlistment, or employment. You've probably heard about the PACE framework already because it's been integrated into many of the new curricula that have come forward for your review. Activities for PACE are embedded into English classes, social studies, PE and health through counselor activities, post-secary teams, AVID, middle school advisory, advisory, and freshman seminar curriculum. Moving forward, we are excited to expand our college and career pathway endorsements or our CCP opportunities for our students this year. Again, to have a CCP, students need to complete a sequence of coursework that includes two years or four semesters of coursework directly related to the course
037of study, six hours of early college coursework, be college ready in math and English, participate in various career experiences, and complete an intensive 60-hour internship experience. Currently we have approved CCPEs in precision manufacturing and certified nursing assistant and we are actively working towards um approval in engineering and healthcare science utilizing our project lead theway curriculum welding and our newly created fire science partnership with Elgen Community College. In school year 23 24, we had one conditionally approved plan in our certified nursing assistant program and we had 22 students who were able to earn that endorsement. Last year we had 43 students earn endorsements. All of those were also in the certified nursing assistant program. We look forward to creating more opportunities for our students to earn these certifications. For school year 2627, we're also going to
038be adding multiple new dual credit courses. These include another partnership with ECC for criminal justice which will be very similar in nature to our fire science program. We'll also be modifying the dual credit in our automotive courses. ECC has changed the courses aligned to their automotive degree program and these options align better with that program and also with our curriculum. We'll also be adding dual credit to ourmies as well with uh introduction to videography in the beacon academy and introduction to business in the lead academy. On this slide, you can see the enrollment for our uh full-time dual credit program with ECC. We've had over 150 students earning an associates degree since this program's inception. And we're excited to continue this partnership and continue to see an increase in the number of students earning in
039an associates degree. And on my final slide here, you can see that we continue to grow our dual credit program. Even with changes made to programs of study at ECC and additional prerequisites being added, we have been able to grow this number every year and we have on average 79% of our students earning a C or better in these courses. Hello, my name is Beth McKenna and I'll be speaking about our AVID program. The EV elective helps students expand their vision for their future and is one way we are meeting the equity commitment of the strategic plan goal four providing every student with quality experiences and supports to identify their passions and pursue success at the next level. This year there are 1795 students who are taking the AVID elective. Those AVID students explore college
040and career options as part of their curriculum and visit one or two college and or universities each school year. Last year, middle school students taking the AVID elective visited a total of 24 different post-secondary institutions including highly selective schools such as Northwestern University, Notre Dame, Purdue, and the University of Wisconsin Madison. Other highlights this last year include the pilot of an AVID elective at the Dream Academy, the utilization of AVID practices and strategies in the revised curriculum for the freshman seminar. And we are also excited to share that two of our high school AVID teachers have been selected to present at AVID's national conference this December. The title of their presentation is AVID Student Leadership Summit: Amplifying Student Voice, Strengthening Student Agency. I can't turn my paper. There we go. We are also proud to
041share that six of our U46 AVID students were selected to to participate in the AVID Chicago summer institute as student leaders. As leaders, they visited the classrooms where adults were learning and talked with them about what they have learned through their AVID class. I also wanted to share with you a small change we are making in our online credit recovery program. Our current program Apex is updating to courseware. Courseware offers a larger catalog of online courses as well as customizable options. Student students and teachers will continue will be using courseware for the first time in high school summer school 2026. We're excited for the opportunity to explore additional digital course content for our students and to use this new technology. Good evening, Milano, assistant director uh overseeing all of gifted accelerated and magnet programs. As
042a continued reminder, we're gradually raising the GPA requirements over the course of three years. We're in year two for the 2526 school year. The minimum GPA requirement is 2.5. Seventh grade students will need to meet the GPA to apply as eighth graders. For the eighth grade students who have already been accepted, it is going to be important to maintain or ideally improve their GPA through 8th grade in order to secure their seat. In addition to the GPA changes, we've also updated our application requirements. We have removed the two letters of recommendation pre for preferences. student in project access continue to receive automatic acceptance if they meet minimum minimum qualifications and siblings were removed from this category. We also stretched prior priorities to allow students to earn additional entrance into the lottery. Factors include geographic location,
043program participation, free reduced lunch as well as two new recognitions which were um created based on the feedback from the families and students. students earning a 3.7 GPA or higher in seventh grade and students with 95% or higher attendance also in seventh grade. This allows us to recognize academic effort and strong attendance while still maintaining a fair lottery process. Turning to the IB program at Elgen High School, we had 13 seniors participate in the IB diploma program last year with 12 successfully earning the full diploma. That's a remarkable success rate and reflects the hard work of our students and staff. And then looking more closely at exam performance, our students achieved strong results across multiple subjects such as English literature, French, Spanish, politics, and physics. We had another successful summer with our students. We had
044record attendance at our summer high school with over a thousand students each semester. We successfully implemented an online registration for our ESY families. Students had fun and attended their brothers rise up in IM lead programs at Ellis. And all of our transitioning students prepared to enter enter their new schools through kinder camp, middle school experience, freshman connection, and college jumpart. In partnership with the alignment collabor alignment collaboration for education, we had 124 students participate in summer internships this year. Our largest summer graduating class participated in graduation this year. We had 153 graduates, which is amazing. The post-secondary success department is looking forward to continuing to offer programs and experiences for our students. And we want to make sure you save the date for next year's summer school. Thank you so much. >> Thank you for
045the presentation. And do board members have any questions? Doug, >> thank you for the presentation. So the um Academy IB program slide 24, some of those percent of passings are phenomenal. So for the couple of courses where they're um significantly lower, are we offering different supports to the staff moving forward? I I know this is all very new, right? These classes are new, being taught this way is different. So have we looked at the courses where um less students pass to see if there's additional supports we can provide? >> Absolutely. So it is my mission right to always be in schools. So I meet with administrators frequently and we really been working on how to get u teachers involved in a frequent meetings to get that feedback and to also kind of look into like
046what we can do differently. We are also looking at professional development as administrators but also for our staff so we can continue to support them in the way that meets their needs. >> Thank you. Sue >> and to f and to follow up on that the IB test in each one of these subject areas we it's not developed locally it's a national test given the same throughout the country >> it's actual international >> international very much >> our kids did very well if they do a a four or better that's when they get credit in college >> okay great thank you any other questions thank Okay, the next item on the agenda is comments from the audience. And this evening we do have one public comment. Opening the public comment portion of the board of
047education meeting. Those who completed a request to speak card will be called to provide comments in the order in which the cards were received. Online participants have been provided meeting access via Zoom. Written comments emailed to board-46.org have been posted to the agenda for public viewing. To ensure that all comments are heard, speakers must comply with the following procedures. Individual comments are less than three minutes and comments may not mention the name or personal information of any student other than the speaker's own child. Please note that while board members listen to speakers, they do not respond to comments or answer questions. Thank you. particip. board. Our speaker this evening is Jose Perez. Hello. I should get a punch credit for speaking. Maybe at number five, I can get a free pizza. Hello everyone. As you
048can tell, I'm in great spirits. I am here as an individual not only to recognize our amazing DUI leadership, but to also commend school district U46 for being on the right side of labor and bargaining a just contract that has been very long overdue. Not only am I proud to say that I am a 46 employee and alumni, but I'm also proud to stand alongside colleagues and district leaders who are committed to advancing equity, opportunity, and respect for every student and every educator. I am deeply grateful for the collaborative spirit that Duya and U46 have shown throughout this process and I look forward to the continuing important work of uplifting our schools and strengthening our shared mission of ensuring that all children and staff in U46 thrive. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Okay, the
049next item on our agenda is other business board member and superintendent update. Do board members have any updates to share, >> Dr. Johnson? >> Uh, I do have a an update. So, in perfect timing with our postsecondary update, uh, it is explore time of year. So, I want to highlight the exciting explore event that takes place next week. Uh, Wednesday evening is actually the explore family night at the now arena. So, an opportunity from 6:00 to 7:30 to have our middle school families come out, check out uh all that explore has to offer, our pathways, see our magnet schools, talk to U46 students and U46 team members, and of course, our collaboration with the alignment collaborative for education and so many of our community partners who supported internships and support externships and career uh opportunities.
050they will all be there as well next week. So, such a great opportunity Wednesday night for the families to come out. And then on Thursday, we have the actual explore event where we have all of our middle school students have this opportunity. So, I want to certainly um just showcase that, celebrate the work. This has been an ongoing effort in U46. I have a tremendous thank you to our board of education for your ongoing support uh as seen tonight through goal four four of our strategic plan uh to really lead this work. I cannot say thank you enough to our team members that take this effort on every single year um through their curriculum through their leadership supporting our students supporting our teachers administrators from all of our schools to be there our operations team.
051This is really a tremendous uh effort across the district because we want all middle schoolers to be there and that means everybody has a hand in in making this happen from transportation uh communication certainly our classroom assistants, our teachers, our secretaries, um safety and security, you name it. Everybody turns out to make this opportunity for our students. So, I look forward uh to learning with our students, to celebrating our programs, and a huge thank you to our partners from the vast 90 square miles that U46 covers and some even beyond that for making this possible for our students. Thank you so much, and thank you for your ongoing commitment to our post-secary efforts in school district 46. >> Thank you. Okay, the next item on the agenda is consent agenda. Thank you, President Owens. Uh,
052tonight under consent agenda, we have personnel report and workers compensation cases, minutes of board meetings, termination of Guadalupe D. In ingu Cardinus, food service technician, termination of Marilina C. Schold, food service technician, termination of Charles N. Smith, Assistant Principal, Middle School. Resolution for the disposal of surplus personal property dust collector. Resolution for the disposal of surplus personal property damaged furniture. Bid procurement Kimell Middle School Furniture. Proposal. Office of Schools Upstate 8 Athletic Conference Dues. Proposal. Operations Construction Management Services. Contract renewal plant operations video and access control maintenance agreement contract office of schools athletics huddle all school package and occupancy permit one Elgen High School pavement reconstruction of parking lot permit number 31-1588. >> Are there any items that board members would like remove from the consent agenda? Hearing none. May I have a motion to
053approve the consent agenda as read into the uh read into the agenda? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Khan, Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> Motion carried. Next item is discussion action. Dr. Johnson, >> our first item, itemized bills September 22nd, 2025. Robin Cornelison, executive director of financial services will respond to questions from the board of education regarding the attached bills. Administration recommends the board of education approve the list of bills in the amount of 34,164,81125. May I have a motion to approve the list of bills in the amount of $34,164,81125? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Any questions? >> Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Martin?
054>> Yes. >> Miss Schwarz? >> Yes. >> Miss Thomas? >> Yes. >> President Owens? >> Yes. >> Motion carried. Our next item, middle school elective, sixth grade Spanish language arts curriculum and resource proposal. Coming forward, Celia Banks, director of curriculum and instruction. And I do see Mario Pastana, coordinator of multilingual, multicultural education. Also, you can't hide Mario when you're when you're here. We're going to call you out and honor the work that you are you are contributing. So, thank you. Uh they are here for questions relating to the sixth grade Spanish language arts curriculum and resource proposal. Administration recommends approval of the sixth grade Spanish language arts curriculum proposal in the amount of $57,4461 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost
055is included in the budget for the fiscal year. May I have a motion to approve the sixth grade Spanish language arts curriculum proposal in the amount of $57,4461 and give authorization for district administration to execute related documents? >> So move. >> Second. >> Any questions for our panelists? >> Okay. Roll call, please. Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> Motion carried. Next item, middle school elective, career and technical education, business, culinary arts, and healthc care science curriculum proposals. Celia Banks uh continues to be available to respond to questions. Administration recommends approval of the career technical education, business, culinary arts, and healthcare science curriculum proposal in the total amount of $320,77245 and requests authorization for district administration to
056execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal year. May I have a motion to approve the career and technical education, business, culinary arts, and healthcare science curriculum proposal in the total amount of 320,7207245 and grant authorization for district administration to execute related documents. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Any questions for the panel? >> Thank call, please. Miss Kerr, >> yes. Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> Motion carried. >> Our next item, middle school elective, fine arts, art, choir, dance, and theater curriculum proposals. Celia Banks is still available to respond to questions and administration recommends approval of the fine arts, art, choir, dance, and theater
057curriculum proposal in the amount of $316,11744. requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal year. >> May I have a motion to approve the fine arts, art, choir, dance, and theater curriculum proposal in the amount of $315,11744 and grant authorization for district administration to execute related documents. >> So moved. second. >> I'm gonna um amend my my motion and read it again because I read the wrong dollar amount. So, uh may I have a motion to approve the fine arts art, choir, dance, and theater curriculum proposal in the amount of $316,000 $111744 and grant authorization for district administration to execute related documents. >> So moved. Second. >> Do we have questions for Miss
058Banks? >> Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr? >> Yes. >> Miss Martin? >> Yes. >> Miss uh Miss Schwarz? >> Yes. >> Miss Thomas? >> Yes. >> President Owens? >> Yes. >> Motion carried. >> Next, we have middle school elective rotations. Explore Justice, Design, and Enterprise, and Explore Voices, Vision, and Vocation curriculum proposals. Administration recommends approval of the rotations explore justice design and enterprise electives curriculum proposal in the amount of $286,865.95 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal year. May I have a motion to approve the rotations explore justice design and enterprise elective curriculum proposal in the amount of $286,865.95 and grant authorization for district administration to execute related documents. >>
059So moved. >> Second. >> Any questions for Miss Banks? Roll call, please. >> Miss Kurt, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. Miss Thomas. >> Yes. >> President Owens. >> Yes. Motion carried. >> And middle school elective sixth grade AVID curriculum proposal. Administration recommends approval of the sixth grade AVID curriculum proposal and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. Beth Kin McKini has joined um Celia Banks to address any questions. As the district pays for AVID subscriptions per building, there is no additional cost for sixth grade teachers and staff to access our existing AVID resources. May I have approval to for the sixth grade AVID curriculum proposal at no additional cost and grant authorization for district administration to execute related documents. >> Some moved. >> Second. >> Any
060questions for our panelists? Okay. Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> Motion carried. >> Our next item, resolution adopting school districts U46 budget July 1, 2025 to June 30th, 2026. Drs. Anne Williams, Dr. Kyle Vanesy, deputy superintendence of operations and Robin Cornelison, executive director of finance are available for questions from the board of education. Administration recommends the board of education approve the resolution adopting the school district U46 budget July 1, 2025 to June 30th, 2026. May I have a motion to approve the resolution adopting the school district U46 budget from July 1st, 2025 through June 30th, 2026. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Any questions for our panelists? I just want to thank
061you all for the work that I know the budget process is an extraordinarily long and arduous amount of work. Um, and thank you to the three of you and your entire team for for putting it together and making revisions and then making revisions again. Um, so thank you for the work that's been put into this. >> Thank you. >> Okay. Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, yes. Motion carried. >> Thank you. Our next item is a resolution authorizing a transfer to school district U46 of subdividers or developers cash contribution in lie of school sites and cash donation at time of occupancy permit. Dr. Anne Williams, deputy superintendent of operations is available for questions from the
062board of education. Administration recommends the board of education approve the resolution authorizing a transfer to school district U46 of subdividers or developers cash contribution in lie of school sites and cash donation at time of occupancy permit. May I have a motion to approve the resolution authorizing a transfer to school district U46 of subdividers or developers cash contribution in lie of school sites and cash donation at time of occupancy permits. >> So moved second. >> Any questions for Dr. Williams? >> Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, yes. >> President Owens, yes. Motion carried. >> Thank you. Our next item, I think we have a few people who are particularly interested in this item tonight. It's the approval of the DUIA tentative
063agreement. Trisha Olsen, chief legal officer and Lala Msurovich, deputy superintendent of instruction, will present a proposed 2025 2029 tentative agreement with the district U46 Duya Association. administration recommends the board of education approve the agreement board policy 2 col 20 powers and duties of board of education indemnification. >> May I have a motion to approve the 2025 through 2029 tentative agreement with the district U46 educational assistance known as DUIA as presented and and to authorize the president of the board of education and the superintendent to sign the tentative agreement. >> So moved. Second. >> Any questions or comments? Again, I just want to thank administration for all the work that you've done on this contract. I want to thank Duya for all of the work that you all have done to to get us to this
064point. Um, I know the contract negotiations also are very time, you know, time consuming and very uh it's a lot of work that to get us to this point. So, thank you for the efforts for um for all of you to get us to this point. We'll take a vote. >> Miss Kirk, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> Motion carried. Thank you very much. Okay. Next item, uh, contract specialized student services, speech and language therapy services. Amanda Leatherby, director of specialized student services, and Melissa Robersonson. Get that correct? I know I have these flashbacks every once in a while, and I want to make sure I have everything correct. So, I appreciate it. Um, Melissa and I worked
065together for a long time and it's great to have you back in 46. Uh, are here to present the attached proposal and respond to questions from the board of education. Administration recommends approval of the contract with a list of agencies and independent contractors below not to exceed the amount of $3,84,840 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. I'm going to read each one of these providers. Bilingual Speech Solutions, $299,232. Communicate Therapy LLC, $138,600. Cheryl Lipkkey Hula, $18,240. Quantame Speech and Language Services LLC $135,960. Epic Special Education Staffing $252,120 Katherine Burgess KB Bilingual Services $151,800. Maria T. Rodriguez, $132,000. Solient Health LLC, $545,160. The Stepping Stones Group LLC, $739,200. Tanama Speech and Language LLC, $151,800. Therapy Care, $18,240. Emergous, $128,700. 360 Therapy, $86,580. Parallel Learning, $27,648. And Sage Connections LLC, $79,560. >> May
066I have a motion? >> Hold on. We've got a mistake. >> Sorry. >> No, but that was a pre middle school. Oh, for middle school. Okay. >> This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal year. Okay. May I have a motion to approve the list um approval of the contract with the list of agencies and independent contractors as read into the record not to exceed the amount of $3,84,840 and requ and grant authorization for district administration to execute related documents. >> So move second. >> Any questions for our panelists? >> Roll call, please. >> Miss Kurt, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> Motion carried. Can I
067just Can we just ask >> Yeah, >> Miss Kerr, can you can we we we um we've identified potentially an error with item 14E. So, I'm just asking Miss Kerr to give us her explanation here as to what she believes we made an error. >> Recommendation read into the record references the first rotation, the explore justice, design, and enterprise elective. It doesn't rec reference the second one explore voices vision and vocation but I believe the total amount is for both of them. Does that make sense? So we didn't read the second half about explore voices vision and vocation >> right >> and >> but the total amount is for both >> that's what I the quick ad I did that it was yeah >> this is 14 >> it's 14e so the title when I
068read it middle school elective rotations explore justice design and enterprise and explore voices vision and vocation curriculum proposals was actually included in the title title. But when I when I got down then to administration recommends approval of the rotation, it seems as though we only included the first half in that statement. Explore justice design enterprise electives curriculum proposal. >> Is that accurate? >> That's right. And I don't know if that's important or not, whether we have to revote or >> So the board could do um multiple things here. If the board wishes to ratify its vote and clarify um the decision um or the wording rather to include both the explore justice design enterprise curriculum and the explore voices vision and vocation curriculum um we could amend the agenda to do that today. Um, it
069would take uh a vote of the board to amend the agenda, include a new item, a ratification of the previous decision for 14E. Alternatively, the board could choose to do that at a future meeting if the board wishes to ratify at a future meeting. >> I think we could get it done today. That's Yes. >> And I apologize for making this problem. >> No, thank you for catching it. >> So, Mr. Olsson, what do we need to do? >> Yeah. So, we'll have a motion. >> Would you want me to do this? >> Um, if with the board president's um agreement, um, if I could please have a motion to amend the agenda to include a an item to ratify the language on vote 14E for middle school electives. So move. Second. >> Second. >>
070And the second was from Miss Kurt. Thank you. And I will conduct a roll call. Miss Kurt. >> Yes. >> Miss Martin? >> Yes. >> Miss Schwarz? >> Yes. >> Miss Thomas? >> Yes. >> President Owens? >> Yes. >> Okay. Motion carried. >> And now, if I could please have a motion or I could please ask that we reread item 14E. in its entirety, including the explore voices vision vocation curriculum, and that we call for a motion to ratify the vote. >> So, I'm going to make a motion to state the entire curriculum in its entirety. Correct? >> Yes. We'll read this. >> Okay. So may I have a motion for the approval of the rotations for explore justice design and enterprise electives curriculum proposal and the explore voices vision and vocation curriculum and resources
071proposal in the amount of $286,600 I'm sorry 286,865.95 and grant authorization for district administration to execute related documents. >> So moved. Second. >> Any questions on that? Okay. Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> Thank you very much. >> Thank you, Miss Kurt, for catching that. >> Thank you all. Okay. So that brings us now to work session. Dr. Johnson, our first item, proposal, school safety central schools dream academy radio replacements. Richard Bosch, Richard Bosch, director of school safety and Kevin McKenzie, security operations manager will present the attached proposal summary and respond to questions from the board of education. Administration recommends approval of the proposal from Alpha Prime Communications in the amount of
072$80,64.76 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the Department of School Safety. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal year. >> Do board members have any questions? >> Thank you. Next item, a proposal, specialized student services, purchase of student iPads. Amanda Leatherbe, director of specialized student services and Melissa Robersonson, assistant director of specialized student services operations, will present the attached proposal summary and respond to questions from the board of education. Administration recommends approval of the proposal from Apple Education in the amount of $125,150 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost is included in the budget for the fiscal year. Do board members have any questions? Thank you.
073Next is a proposal transportation student transportation routing software upgrade. Sheila DS, assistant superintendent of operations and Mercy Murphy, director of transportation will present the attached proposal summary and respond to questions from the board of education. Administration recommends approval of the proposal from Tyler Technologies in the amount of $939,696 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the operations fund. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal year. >> Do board members have any questions? >> Sue, ju just one question. And I know this is the same company that we have have been using. Do they foresee any difficulties going from this older system to this newer one? >> No, only improvements. >> Okay. So, it should be pretty >> They provide robust training
074and support during the transition and so um it should be as smooth as possible. Obviously, it is a huge integration. Um but we're we have a ton of her support and the rep actually flew in. So, she came here just for today and so they've already started supporting us. >> Thank you. Any other questions? Shondaanda, >> I don't have a question. I just have a comment. I'm very excited about this. Um, where I live, I see a lot of you 46 buses and the onboard um GPS tablets are going to be great to not see bus drivers holding stacks of paper trying to figure out their route. And then as a parent using the app, I'm very excited to see the improvement. So, thank you so much. >> Thank you. Thank you. >> Anyone else?
075>> Okay, thank you. Awesome. Thank you. >> That moves us to work session contracts over 35,000. Our first item, contract renewal, curriculum and instruction, career and technical education project lead the way PLTW participation fee. Celia Banks, director of curriculum and con and instructions and Dorene Roberts, coordinator of career and technical education will present the attached proposal and respond to questions from the board of education. Administration recommends approval of the contract renewal with project lead the way in the amount of $35,550 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal year. >> Do board members have any questions? >> Thank you. Next item, contract renewal plant operations, Streamwood Park District Intergovernmental Agreement. Sheila DS,
076assistant superintendent of operations, and Ashley McKini, assistant director of plan operations, will present the attached proposal and respond to questions from the board of education. Administration recommends approval of the contract renewal with the Streamwood Park District and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. >> Do board members have any questions? >> Thank you. Our next item, contract, equity and innovation, historically black college and universities H.B.CU's tour. Dr. Latrice Satderwite, assistant superintendent of equity and innovation, will present the attached proposal and respond to questions from the board of education. Administration recommends approval of the contract with World Strides in the amount of $79,800 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal
077year. >> Do board members have any questions? Uh, Kate, >> I I don't actually have a question, but I'm looking at the tours that you get in New Orleans, and they look really, really awesome. So, come back with your stories if nothing else. >> They look pretty cool. >> Yeah. >> Anyone else? >> Next item. >> Our next item, Contract, Equity, and Innovation, Hispanic Serving Institutions, HSI's Student Tour. Dr. Satwhite continues to be available to uh to present the attached proposal and respond to questions from the board of education. Administration recommends approval of the contract with World Strides in the amount of $91,800 and requests authorization for district administration to execute related documents. This expenditure will be charged to the education fund. The cost is included in the budget for the 2025 2026 fiscal year.
078Do board members have any questions? >> Thank you. >> That is the last item on our agenda. I will take a motion to adjurnn. >> So moved. >> Second. >> Roll call, please. >> Miss Kerr, >> yes. >> Miss Martin, >> yes. >> Miss Schwarz, >> yes. >> Miss Thomas, >> yes. >> President Owens, >> yes. >> We are journed at 8:20 p.m. >> Thank you, everyone. [Music] Heat. Heat. [Music]