001It is seven o'clock and I'd like to call to order this meeting of the Summit Hill District 161 school board. Can I please have everybody rise for the pledge? Roll call. Melissa Ryan? Here. Joy Murphy? Here. Adrienne Chavez? Here. John Winter? Here. Amy Burke? Present. Patrick Oliphant? Here. And Ron Petrie? Here. At this time we get to do our favorite recognitions. Okay where's Mrs. Zinske? I know she's out there somewhere. Please come on up. We're going to talk about the Summit Hill School District Spelling Bee this evening. Hi there. We're here tonight to recognize our amazing, fantastic Summit Hill Spellers. The students here tonight participated in the Summit Hill School District Spelling Bee, but I just want to tell you a little bit about how they got there. Their first big achievement was winning their
002classroom Spelling Bee. So all of these students were the winners of their classroom Spelling Bee and ELA. After that they competed against the top spellers at their grade level and then the top three from each grade level came to the district. So that is a huge accomplishment just to be there. So that's fantastic. Brian Bruce, a sixth grader, won the district Spelling Bee. We are so proud of him. He participated in the Will County Spelling Bee for us last night and that was really fantastic. Trinh Phan, an eighth grader, was our runner-up at the at the district Spelling Bee. We also had many of our other spellers here. I want to recognize all of them. We have Eli Drozd. He was our eighth grade champ. Makena Buglio was our seventh grade winner. We have E.
003Ray Fidiji, who won in sixth grade, and Sarth Kaushik, our fifth grade winner. Our other participants are Bilal Mostafa, Kamil Ingarima, Ifemi Suleman, Avery Drummond, Samantha Stewart, Kate Thieland, Sophia Ava, Kayla Bray, and Isla Mangal. And we just want to congratulate everyone for helping, for participating. And I also want to thank Mrs. Hauerhan and Ms. Lox for helping me through the process. So thank you so much and we'd love to get the kids to come up and take a picture. From the front we also have the ability to see our audience and we have a lot of our teachers here tonight. And so when we heard your names being announced, looking at your teachers faces and they're like, oh I remember I had that student. That was pretty incredible. So students, if you haven't done
004it, take a look behind you because your elementary school teachers are back there rooting for you. Junior high, our intermediate teachers. Yeah, very proud of you. Great job. At this time we'd like to recognize our March Summit Award winners. Okay, we are excited to recognize two Summit Award winners again this month. Both II teacher Stephanie Studer and PE teacher Jim Welsh were nominated by parents Jim and Jennifer Kate, whose daughter Addison attends Dr. Julian Rogus Elementary School. First up is Ms. Studer, who has worked in our district since 2018. She started as a paraprofessional before getting hired as a special ed teacher in 2020. In their nomination, Kate wrote, We nominate Ms. Studer for this award in recognition of the extraordinary impact she has had on Addison over the past four years. Our daughter is
005a unique learner who thrives with patience, trust and thoughtful support. Finding someone who understands her and brings out the very best in her has been one of the greatest gifts our family could receive. Ms. Studer taught her in first grade, then again in second grade and now once more in fourth grade and each return to her classroom has felt like coming back to someone who truly gets her. The emotional, academic and social growth we have seen in her is directly connected to the safe and encouraging environment that Ms. Studer creates. She never focuses on limitations. Instead, she celebrates progress. She notices the smallest steps forward and continually finds ways to help her shine. As parents, watching your child thrive in a world not always designed for them in mind is profoundly meaningful. Ms. Studer has
006given our family peace of mind and a deep sense of partnership. Next year, Addison will move to a different school and while we are excited for her next chapter, it is incredibly difficult to say goodbye to someone who has played such a crucial role in her development. We will always carry immense gratitude for the impact Ms. Studer has had on Allison's life. Her dedication and belief in her students make her truly exceptional. Thank you, Stephanie. Would you please come forward and accept your summit award? We're gonna do a group picture once we get Mr. Welsh up here. Okay, next up is Mr. Welsh, who has taught P.E. in our district since 2015, teaching in many of our buildings, including Indian Trail, Hilda Walker, Arbery Hills and Dr. Julian Rogus, now for the second time. In
007their nomination, the Cates wrote, Physical education can be a challenging environment for many students. Yet Mr. Welsh has always created a space where Addison feels supported, included and encouraged to do her very best. His patience, kindness and genuine care have made an extraordinary difference in her experience at school. Four years ago, when he first had Addison in his P.E. class, Mr. Welsh showed a remarkable ability to understand her needs and meet her where she is. He takes the time to adapt activities, provide reassurance and guide her through moments that might feel overwhelming. When she becomes upset, he has been steady, a calming presence she can rely on. When she succeeds, no matter how big or small the accomplishment, he celebrates with her with sincere enthusiasm. His belief in her has helped build her confidence and
008make P.E. a place where she feels safe and capable. Seeing someone show such dedication to helping our child succeed means so much to our family. Mr. Welsh has gone above and beyond to ensure that she feels understood every time she walks into his gym. His influence on our Addison's confidence and overall school experience has been truly meaningful, and we will always appreciate the positive impact he has had on her. Thank you, Jim, and congratulations on your Summit Award, and you can check this off your bucket list now. I heard that tonight also. Please come forward. And then our last recognitions of the evening are the Illinois State Board of Education, Those Who Excell, and Teacher of the Year. Okay, this year four Summit Hill School District 161 staff members have earned awards in the Illinois
009State Board of Education 2026 Those Who Excell and Teacher of the Year awards. Summit Hill Junior High School Principal Laura Goble, First Grade Indian Trail Elementary School Christy Doody, Hilda Walker Intermediate School and Summit Hill Junior High Strings Teacher Katie Goddard, and our Mary Jew Early Learning Center OT Dr. Jackie Rosa. These hardworking individuals were recognized for their work in our schools and the impact they make on students and their fellow staff members each day. Just to give you just a little bit more, Laura Goble, Administrator Award of Excellence Category 25 Years of Service to Summit Hill School District 161. Christy Doody, Award of Meritorious Service in the Classroom Teacher Category 8 Years of Service to Summit Hill School District 161. Katie Goddard, Award of Meritorious Service in the Classroom Teacher Category 18 Years of
010Service to Summit Hill. And Dr. Jackie Rozek, Award of Special Recognition in the Student Support Personnel Category, and she has been with us for four years. Since 1970, ISBE has sponsored those who excel in Teacher of the Year program to honor educators who have made significant contributions to our state's public and nonpublic elementary and secondary schools. More than 400 educators, administrators, and other school staff were honored this year for their dedication, innovation, and impact in schools across Illinois. Summit Hill School District 161 has four of those winners here with us this evening. Congratulations to Laura, Christy, Katie, and Jackie for your contributions to the students and staff of 161. We appreciate you. Please come forward. We have certificates for you and a photo out. So, please come forward. With that, if all of the recognized
011or those supporting those in recognition, if you would like to sneak out, we will not fault you at all. So, thank you again for coming. Great job, everyone. Thank you. All right, we're gonna keep rolling with the 4B, Freedom of Information Act. Okay, so we had two FOIA requests that were fulfilled this month. They were made by Sunlight and the Data Branch Team, more commercial in nature, and both were completed. Okay, for C, our Student Board of Education Report, Leah. Good evening, board members. This month, students across District 161 have taken and finished their IAR state testing. The teachers across the district have been helping students practice for these exams for months, so I would say that we were more than prepared for these tests. I am more than confident that the students did a
012very good job and the students across the districts are very excited to see how we have grown academically. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you so much. And by the way, can I just say we have some very talented student board and junior board members. I had the honor of seeing them all at the fish fry at Lincoln Way representing Summit Hill 161, whether it was in the band or the performance for Aladdin. I mean, top-notch. We were one of the best groups there all around, so I just want to congratulate them and their teachers and their fellow students. Way to represent. Public comments, do we want to start? Good evening, everyone. The three student board members are trying to push for a suggestion box at Hilda Walker. We all believe that Hilda Walker has the
013responsibility to make decisions for our school district, too. Olivia and I have been working harder to keep the suggestion box running. We are trying to get a normal routine with it. Next year, we would like to plan to have the suggestion box at Hilda Walker. Have a great night, and thank you for listening. Thank you so much. All right, Lisa Brace. My name is Lisa Brace, and I'm a Summit Hill parent and community member. And today, first thing I want to say is thank you guys for following up on the storm construction. I think the community's been asking for that for a while, so giving a little more forceful communication to the state about getting some action on that is really positive move for us as a district. The other thing I want to talk
014about is hiring. Right now, we're doing, I'm seeing some ads for us hiring, and we're filling some positions, and I know we try to do some hiring within, and either promote within or hiring people either who came from the community or are residing in the community. So it would be really great if we could compile some numbers to share with the community about how many of our hires are either internal promotions or hiring from within the community. I think we'd really like to see those numbers, because you guys are doing a good job trying to do that and keep us the tight-knit community that we want to be. So thank you. Thank you so much. Letters and communications are in the back of the board book. Moving on to 5A consent agenda. I move that
015we approve the items on the consent agenda for this meeting as presented, including 5A1A regular session meeting minutes of February 18, 2026, 5A1B closed session meeting minutes of February 18, 2026, 5A1C special meeting minutes of February 21, 2026, board planning meeting, 5A2 approval of Bill's list of March 18, 2026, 5A3 approval of resignation or retirement of staff, resignation Marissa Papps effective at the end of the 25-26 school year, Kim Ward effective date to be determined, retirement of staff Kathy McNeil effective at the end of the 25-26 school year, 5A4 approval of family medical leave, none at this time, 5A5 approval of employment of staff, lots of new welcomes, Jamie Sierra custodian at Summit Hill Junior High, Tara Guerrero night custodian at DJR, Jeremy Slirsleg district-wide night custodian, Kim Ward payroll specialist at Mary Drew, Katie
016Sullivan enrichment camp coordinator substitute teacher, Vivian Botros, Ken Cronin, Rebecca Smith, Jody Reyes, Joy Reno, Katie Meacher, Kristi Balza, Eric Donovan, Daniel Capps, Stacey Freschel, Tara Russell, Marni Dabash as enrichment camp teachers, Katie Sullivan summer academic bridge teacher slash substitute teacher, Vivian Botros, Aya Kanan, Ed Kanat, Agnes Soch, Amanda Zalewski, Katherine O'Rourke, Christina Gonzalez, Karina Wise, Megan Grissenbach, Jessica Howard, Kristen Jesrab, Julie Kane, Tara Russell, and Tara Boudreau as summer academic bridge teachers, Jennifer Wall enrichment camp nurse summer academic bridge and ESY nurse, Lauren Neubauer and Amanda Wernick ESY coordinators, Kelsey Fitzgerald and Ann Jenkins ESY early childhood teachers, Tina Delfano and Lisa Hyde ESY special education teachers two days a week, Angela Carlton, Eric Donovan, Michael Gage, Megan Gallagher, Megan Grissenbach, Taylor Page, Michelle Miesch, Megan Mestrata, Anna Reyes, Stephanie Studer, Tina Walker, Wendy
017Webster ESY special education teachers, Kristen Bowen, Marty DeFeng, Carla Murray ESY speech language pathologist, Amanda Sabo ESY speech language pathologist one day a week, Maureen Paul ESY social worker, Kelly Robinson and Laura Rodriguez ESY social worker one day per week, Margo Powell ESY occupational therapist Monica Ruiz ESY BCBA, Danine Coluba ESY RBT, Amanda Allen Teresa Barron, Davian Bennett, Kaitlyn Cardamone, Kailin Cooney, Daniel Grissenbach, Diane Kluwitz, Marcia Kemet, Fatima Lee, Brittany Vegas, Adriana Acevedo, Amy Angus, Marisa Corona, Debra Dautry, Jodie Faulkner, Steve Gibson, Kelly Jordan, Renee Pinkston, Nicole Sager, Jocelyn Shelby, Pam Winterfield, Melanie Berger, Wendy Carey, Lisa Parks, Laura Carlson, Jean Costigan, Jamie Grant, Stephanie Norell, Colleen Medina and Karen Stanky as ESY pair of professionals. 5 a 6 approval of payroll support continuation and renewal. I am pulling item 7. So do I have
018a motion to approve 5 a 1 through 6? Motion. So moved. John Winter? Aye. Patrick Oliphant? Aye. Adrian Chavez? Aye. Ron Petrie? Aye. Amy Burke? Aye. Melissa Ryan? Aye. Joy Murphy? Aye. Somebody get Amy some water. Motion carries. Okay can I have a motion to table item 7 preliminary information purchasing new laptops for staff informational only so you're getting information we still have access to the information but at this time we have other agenda items can I have a motion to table? Motion. John Winter? Aye. Joy Murphy? Aye. Adrian Chavez? Aye. Melissa Ryan? Aye. Ron Petrie? Aye. Patrick Oliphant? Aye. Amy Burke? Aye. Motion carries and that will be talked about at a later date. All right moving on to 5b old business adoption of the science programs grade 1 through 4. All right good
019evening today we're going to talk about our elementary science program we piloted and we just want to explain the whole process to you guys and in hopes of approval for a new program for our one for students. So today we're going to just kind of talk about I first want to start out by thanking our pilot team it was composed of teachers Katie Sullivan and Pam Wonderson are in the audience today and they are the coordinators who helped lead this new program as well helping get materials and supporting teachers. I'd like to thank all those pilot members because it's a lot of work to be on a pilot team you're using two different programs learning them going to training continuous feedback back and forth and meetings so I appreciate all the efforts that all those
020teachers put into the program. Nomina based so there's a lot of inquiry going on for our students they're not just reading about science they're not just observing science they're actually hands-on in using science engaging with science so that was something that our teachers really enjoyed in our more importantly our students enjoyed so I just want to show you real quick just what phenomena could look like. You can learn so much just by paying attention to what you see and hear lights and sounds give us clues about what is around us and what could be coming around the corner watch and listen closely how are people using clues from life and sound what do you see what do you think. So phenomena's are quick that was a 20-second video it's real world it's things the kids
021engage with every day in their lives but what the teachers are doing with these videos is they play them and then they prompt those questions like what did you hear why do you think there's so much noise what does that noise mean you know and then they get engaged in these conversations with the students and are really bringing them into life for our kids which we really wanted to do for science. So the program has some resources within it hands-on being our most important there's also library books in there for the kids to read the phenomena's that come it's like the beginning of every lesson it hooks the kids and gets them excited and then there's vocabulary cards that the teachers can have and use with the kids as well as science in the world
022which was something I really found interesting as someone who has a child who's close to going to college now and starting to pick a career there's all these careers out there that the kids don't always hear about so this science program integrates some of those cool jobs that maybe kids haven't been exposed to very often like a toy engineer or an intelligence analysis analysis so those are kind of cool new jobs and this is a 1-4 program so those are some very interesting jobs to get them exposed to early. Another great thing about the program was the differentiation piece that's important for us it had something for students who needed a challenge students who were struggling and even our multilingual learners each lesson has strategies and skills embedded in them to help support those students
023so if a teacher just needed a quick strategy on how they can differentiate for their multilingual students it was in the program for them which is something very useful for us more I'm gonna go back real quick so I was able to go in the classrooms and watch this in action because that's the best part right seeing the kids actually engage with the material so I composed a little video for you guys there's a video in there so I think that's really important when it comes to science those questions that What do you think you saw, Alex? A ruler. A bookmark and an eraser for that one. What do you guys think you saw over there? A car. An eraser. Go! Whoa! Better! Way better! Let's see yours, Diva. Let's see it! And then you
024just watch what happens. Now we swing it. Alright, here's the wind-up toys. Alright, our staff feedback. So they love the real-world connections. They love the hands-on experiments. I won't read them all to you but that book was really important for them. Being student-centered was huge. And then of course our learners are the heart of everything we do. So we even got feedback from our students. So our students enjoyed the fun experiments. When we were piloting it was close to parent-teacher conference time and a lot of the teachers reported that parents actually shared like my child is like hurry up I gotta get in the car because I gotta get to science. So that's exactly what we want to hear from our students. So these videos were really helpful for the kids. Kind of build that
025curious learning and exploratory kind of science. What we're asking for with the materials is the digital portal and the teacher editions. As well as the vocabulary cards and the student books. So after a little negotiations and some fun times there. We were able to bring the price to as you see up there $101,490 for six years. So that would be a six-year program. It's one time you pay which comes out to be about $19 per student. It's not far from what we were paying now for a science program and we don't have consumables. So I thought that was interesting. But a six-year program there would be what we were looking for. So if it's approved today our next steps would be to get these materials into our teachers hands and start training them right away.
026So we'd look for spring training right now to get them excited and get them ready for their students. And then when we get back in the fall they would need another like overview. Which is all included in that purchase price that I showed you guys. And then we would work on curricular alignment. We are standards-based grading in those levels. So we do have NGSS or next generation science standards and making sure that aligns to our report card. And then of course ongoing implementation next year with lots of support from Ms. Sullivan and Ms. Wanderson who are always very helpful. Thank you. I would like to say I'm so impressed. Oh, thank you. And it looked like they had so much fun that I would like to go back to class. But all kidding aside. I
027don't think you could hack it. I don't think the teacher would want me. But the thing that I really love about it is the hands-on interaction. Because just in my job alone it seems silly. But I train officers, field training officer. And the one thing that we were taught in class training to get trained to be an officer was that seeing it you retain 30%. Seeing it and saying it you retain 60%. Seeing, saying, and writing it you retain 90%. And so that whole program there is too bad you couldn't do it for every subject like math. But it's incredible. I really appreciate the hard work on the students, the teachers, and you yourself. Thank you. Thank you. Very impressed. So what do we get for the digital by any chance? So it's an online.
028That's where those videos are located. So the teacher has like an online portal in there. The students do have a student facing one too. When I met with the teachers they said that you could do like a game in there if you wanted. They just did one just to try it. But they said that they were more interested in the hands-on. And you don't need the digital part. Like the student doesn't have to take like a test online or anything like that. Okay. Is there any, with the digital, is there any resources for like the RTI and stuff of that nature? Sort of your different levels? So those are kind of embedded in the books already. Okay. But there are extra printables and things like that that you might not have in the student book.
029Okay. Yeah, I like that a lot too. I like that a lot too because I've heard that not just my own student but multiple students and parents that they like books. You know, that the computer is good but not all day. Right. But yeah, I like the hands-on. I like the books. I like the thought that went into that. How are the other, I want to thank the teachers that volunteered and did this and put the time and effort into this. I know that's a lot. And we really do appreciate their time and effort and input. So how do they communicate with the rest of the teachers that aren't on that? Sure. So we have PLC even in elementary. So they meet with their team members and they can talk about it during that time.
030It's only once a week so maybe not as often. But our elementary teams do have that collaboration time. I particularly enjoyed the two elements of it. I love that there's the 3D Learners Plan because, you know, it's very difficult. You have different students that have different learning capacities. And this creates a way to connect with all of them through the projects. And that's so important. Plus you add in the engagement and the excitement. The other part that I was really excited about is it actively encourages and builds critical thinking skills that those are tools that go across all the curriculum. So this program I don't think would just benefit the science. It would also benefit students' performance in other areas as well because you're really exercising the muscles of critical thinking. And that's really tremendous.
031I do have some questions. Oh, thanks. Yeah. Love it. That's exactly right. Thank you. Yeah, it's awesome. And it really, really hits the nail on the head. The questions that I have, not deal breakers by any means, in the videos it showed a lot of hands-on materials. But the materials are not included in the $100,000 cost, correct? So they do sell the bundles. So I looked into if it was cheaper to purchase the bundles or if it was cheaper to buy them because we do have leftover materials from our other programs. And after going into the details and breaking it down by cost, it was more cost efficient for us to order it on our side and not buy them. Great. I know that just from talking to members in the community, SCOs in the
032past have purchased specifically art products for schools. Yeah. I hope those materials are still around because that would be very helpful to roll right into this, right? Yes. I have like a science room that has materials in there. So Katie Sullivan and Pam Wanderson are very helpful, too. So we organized that room and labeled it and color-coded it and everything. So it would be easy to pull the products and look at what we don't have. We're actually working on a document now in anticipation of approval that we could go ahead and we can decide like what grade level needs what materials and then have it organized and ready for the teachers to go rather than them having to collect it on their own because that takes away some of the legwork. Yeah, it's almost like
033structure and having a plan work. That's a really great idea. The last question that I have is, you know, this bundle pays for the six years, right? Was there any information on what the cost would be past year six, like the economic cliff of it, if you will? So I only went up to six years only because I didn't want to be locked in too long if it wasn't, like if data was showing us that it wasn't like the best in the world. That's the right choice. But did they present any, like if you do it for six years, this is what it will cost for the seventh year. It's not a deal breaker. It just would allow us to allot funds correctly or future boards to allot funds correctly because if we're using it
034for six years and it's successful, I think it makes a case that you're going to keep it going. Yeah. And what might that cost increment look like? It was just a question. Yeah, I did one, three, six. That's what I did just to see. Great. Okay. Can I piggyback off that question of six years? Is there a reason why you chose six and not four? So a lot of times curriculum cycles go through like a six year cycle. And so that's like gives you enough time to collect data and look and the teachers like build or comfort the program by then. So you'll know if like I like this program or maybe it's time to move on. All right. One more question. From the old program we have now to the new program that we're
035going to be pushing, is the new program more intense with STEM? Because I know we have a big STEM connection here. That's one thing that I know is a district with a vision is to get these kids to get students to continue to like to build things with their hands and continue to move that direction. We obviously spent a lot of money updating the STEM program. It did different schools. So can you elaborate that a little bit more? I would say both programs were STEM related. Even our old one was called STEM Scopes. So it was very STEM heavy too. It was just hard on our teacher end to kind of always get the materials and you had to go online and sometimes they would update and we didn't know it was updated. So it
036became like a little bit of a struggle sometimes to keep up with it. So this one seems a little bit more easier to flow with. I'm just thrilled there's a book. Thank you. I talked to Amy today and I said, Amy, I just wish that the kids could get a book. I know there's so much on the tablet. So I'm thrilled about that. And also you really caught me with the EL differentiation. I think it'll be helpful for teachers. I agree. Yeah. The book has something called CER, which is a type of writing that the upper grades use. So when we saw that connection, we got excited too because we're like, that's what we've been pushing is CER. And seeing that in first grade implements, it would be very helpful to build our students writing
037skills, which is very important as well. I saw a student board member agreeing too. He was sitting there nodding his head at everything, right? Obviously, we want to balance age appropriateness with rigor and everything. And then keeping them engaged to while they're also challenging and pushing them, which I know our staff does. Any other further? Then can I have a motion that the Board of Education approve experience science by SAVAS for grades one through four for six years at the cost of one hundred one thousand four hundred ninety one. So moved. Second. Second. Melissa Ryan. Aye. Ron Petrie. Aye. Amy Burke. Aye. Adrienne Chavez. Aye. John Winter. Aye. Joy Murphy. Aye. Next. Annie Ok, I'll start. And then if you have questions, Walt can come up. This is not quite as exciting or hands on
038is adopting science curriculum but all important. at the end of February when it was published in the newspaper. The bid spec stated that the agreement is for a 30-week term. Also upon mutual agreement, this contract may be extended up to two 30-week terms. Five contractors submitted bids at the March 12, 2026 public bid opening. The lowest most responsible bidder was RapidTreeService. They are the incumbent vendor for this contract and the results of the original bids are posted in your board book. RapidTreeService came in at $33,099 for the first 30-week term, George's Landscaping $36,030, Carefree Lawn Maintenance $39,075. From the ground up, $53,766.90 and HL Landscape was $65,880. You'll also see that there's an alternate in there for hourly rate for special projects and those rates range anywhere from $45 per hour to $150 per hour.
039RapidTreeService with the lowest being $45 per hour. We're asking that the board approve RapidTreeService for this year's 30-week contract bid for the District Landscape Maintenance with the option of up to two one-year extensions. Are we open for questions? So Bill's Landscaping didn't put a bid in? Nothing from Bill's? No. We had them for so long. Walt was shaking his head no. Okay. What was our last year's cost for the annual? All right, come on up Walt. Just want to see where we're at from last year. The other notable point with RapidTreeService is there is not a sizable increase from year one to year two. There isn't that third year, but the second year they held their price for us. Okay, Walt. It's about the same. I would have to actually look it up to get
040you the price difference. Okay. I trust you. I just wanted to know if there was a big difference. You know, everything's going up. I'm just curious. Obviously, they're the best bid. Yeah. So I appreciate it. You can always email it to me or, you know, no stress. We'll do it. Just curious. Will this be the three-year contract then? Is that what we're projecting here? If their services are good, yes. That'll be a three-year. So then if we go with the third year, obviously, the $6,000 increase would happen then, right? Correct. Okay. Yeah. It's still, you know. Still lower than other owns. Yeah. $750 more. That's it. It's not much of an increase, you know, over the next lowest one on the third year. Correct. No, I agree with that. Plus, they're holding us on the
041second year too. That's exactly right. Right. For sure. Any further? Okay. So they're asking for, again, that 30-week contract with up to two one-year extensions. So do I have a motion that the Board of Education approve the 30-week contract slash bid with RapidTree service in the amount of $33,099? Motion. Motion. Second. So moved. Ron Petrie. Yes. Aye. Patrick Oliphant. Aye. Amy Burke. Aye. DeJoy Murphy. John Winter. Aye. Melissa Ryan. Adrienne Chavez. Aye. Motion carries. Moving on to 5B3, approval to purchase Hilda Walker bleachers through Sourcewell. Thank you, Walt. Okay. This one is interesting, so I'm glad Walt is up here. During the recent board planning meeting, discussion took place regarding the renovation of the gym at Hilda Walker. To our best knowledge, the gym has not undergone a major renovation since the building opened in
0421996. Due to the scope of the work and limited time frame available during summer break, prompt planning is necessary to ensure the project can be completed prior to the start of the school year. The district has engaged TRIA architecture to begin developing conceptual drawings and preliminary estimates. Based on their initial review, the project appears feasible and within the anticipated project budget. One critical component of the project is the replacement of the gymnasium bleachers, which is considered a long lead item. TRIA has contacted several manufacturers and recommends Hussey Seeding Company and their Maxim telescoping bleacher system. This system is widely used in school facilities and is designed to withstand heavy daily use. The proposed bleachers will primarily feature black plastic seating. Selected black seats will be replaced with custom teal seats to match the school's newly
043revised logo and colors. By arranging these colored seats strategically, the bleachers will spell out wild cats across the seating area, creating a visual appealing feature that reinforces school identity and pride. In contacting Hussey Seeding and Carol Seeding, which is the manufacturer and local installer to confirm production and installation timelines, if the district authorizes a purchase order and signs the project proposal, stemming from this meeting, they indicated they will make every effort to have the bleachers delivered the first week of August. The completion for a project of this size is estimated to take approximately one week, allowing completion prior to the start of the school year. To streamline procurement, the district intends to utilize Sourcewell, a cooperative purchasing organization that provides competitively solicited contracts for public entities. These contracts are awarded at the manufacturing level but
044can be used locally through authorized dealers, allowing the district to comply with purchasing requirements while expediting the procurement process. And so just to give a little scope of this project and then I'll let Walt jump in and question and start flying. So the renovation of the Walker Gym project would include painting the gym, cleaning the gym and painting the gym. It would be removing the base, which didn't allow for any movement as the wood expands and contracts, so we would cut that edge. There's some compromised wood around the doors to the gymnasium where water has leaked in and caused some pretty significant damage. There's also a few dead spots on the floor, so imagine bouncing a basketball down the floor and then there's one spot where it doesn't quite bounce quite so much. Nonetheless, we
045would repair those specific sections and then sand the whole floor. And if you think about what we did at Summit Hill Junior High, put a finish on something of that quality. We have done some core samples underneath the bleachers, so we've actually drilled a hole to see how thick the wood is, how many times it's been refinished. There's plenty of wood there to go ahead and just refinish it, which really keeps the cost down. So we'll re-stripe it, refinish it, and that will be done with the bleachers out. Once the floor is done, then we would install these bleachers. They're plastic in nature. So the framing and the hardware is metal. The flooring where you actually put your feet is wood. The rest is plastic, so the seats actually go in. So we will spell
046Wildcats just because we think it's super snazzy. Using the school colors, and it's much, much lighter than the traditional wood bleachers, which is going to allow for our floor to last an extended period of time without needing to be repaired. So I'll turn it over to Walt and any additional information or questions that you might have, but that at least kind of gives a scope of what we're looking for. Okay. Well, anything that I missed? No. You got it all. He's sometimes a man of few words, but. Also, we're planning on doing the doors, the exterior doors as well. And then they would be already prepped for electronic door swipes and everything else. I called Dr. McDermott, or I talked to him today, and he had mentioned, I had asked him about the stage. Are
047we going to keep the stage that we never use, or are we going to, during this renovation, remove it? Remove it. Are we? Good. Yes. The PE teachers want that space. Okay. So they asked to remove it. They've actually been asking since I got here. Okay, good. So these are actual seats. It's not a bench. It's not like what we have now. We have the wooden benches. Is it a seat the kids sit in with the back? No back. It's just a plastic seat as far. It looks like the benches. The only difference is they're individualized. Perfect example, Lincoln Way, East Hazard. It, I read, I thought I read in there. I could be wrong. I hope I'm right. Six hundred and fifty seats, like six hundred and fifty some seats total. Correct. A little
048over six hundred. I mean, right now our students could fit in there, but if. Six seventy two. Six seventy two. Is that enough with staff and students and any kind of growth in the district? Yes. And again, they're solid. So they're going to be, you could definitely push kids closer together. It's not like it's an individualized seat where you have that one person can only sit in that spot. Okay, good. And do you have pictures? I had asked Dr. McDermott if we could see a picture of what it would look like with the bleachers shot and open. I made one of what it would look like as it's shut, but they did not provide. Okay. Like renderings of what the bleachers would actually look like. And while you're looking for that, I was wondering, I
049know another question I had asked Dr. McDermott was repurposing the excellent wood on the bleachers. I know it may have like marks on it and stuff, but school districts do it all over where they actually repurpose the wood. So there's two things we could do. Yes, we can repurpose it. One of the last projects that I did, the actual contractor purchased it back and then sent it to a reclaimer. And then they obviously sold it bringing the price of the installation and everything down. Yeah. But as far as around the school district, you definitely need an unstaffed carpenter to mill it down and make it look presentable somewhere. What was the primary reason the bleachers, because the bleachers did something to the floors there, right? It was part of the problem that ruined the floors
050or? Correct. So the wear and tear on the floor and the rollers were, they were maintained but not properly. So you were getting a lot of grooves within the floor and then the weight was off on them. So they would skip causing some damage to the floor as well. So the lighter bleachers would help that as well for the, once we renovate the flooring, the bleachers would definitely be less wear and tear on that. On the floor, correct. And what is the percentage of the floor that we have to replace? Just a guesstimate. I would say 10 percent because we're going to also keep some of the areas around the door areas, we're going to keep out and do more of a sports flooring so that way the water is not, when they come in,
051doesn't go right onto the floor. Okay. Thank you. I have a couple of quick questions. I guess one that I hadn't planned before, you know, Joy was speaking. When you had touched on it, on selling the wood back to a contractor to repurpose it, is that something that we looked into or is a possibility? It's a possibility, yes. Would we be able to use some of that repurposed wood as a material for replacing sections in the floor? No. I know it's different, totally different. No, you've got white pine for the bleachers and then you have a maple for the floor and there are two different thicknesses. Yeah. So it wouldn't look really good. Yeah, I know it would stand out but it's just, you know, sometimes it's kind of cool. I've seen commercial buildings that
052will have gyms and the floors are repurposed from high school, you know, gyms and stuff. I do know people that have taken those, laid them down and used them, reused them. Yeah. But it's very hard. It's not something simple and especially with the white pine. For sure. The broader question I have is this proposal is for the total of $188,384.15, correct? Now I know Tria did some legwork but I didn't see anything, you know, this is a pretty large amount of money. Is there a reason why we didn't get multiple bids for this? I can't imagine these companies are the only ones providing this service. No, there are several different companies out there that provide bleachers. This is the main source well one that has been bided out before so they have gone out to
053bid and Hussey was the cheapest manufacturer out there. Also they're the ones that could do it within the timeline. Right. Maybe I didn't hear it right. Do we know who the other bids could have come from? You said it was done before, done like in this process or Tria has done that in other gyms and bided it out. Source well is I believe out of Texas and they do government bidding so what they'll do is they'll put out a bid or they'll piggyback on someone else's bid. They'll go out for a project and then from there whoever bids that project they'll kind of grandfather it to other government agencies. Do we use that company for other purchases too? I know I've heard that before. Something else we've done. Yep. Source well we purchase a lot
054of these. And Omni? Omni, yep. Yep. Omni. Okay. So they do the legwork for us. Correct. Okay. My ears always perk up when we say like they were the cheapest. I don't, for some reason, that always rolls me the wrong way because what is the value that you're getting out of it, right? Like this is, like you said, schnazzy. Was that the word you used? Okay. So very technical. Very technical. But, you know, what was the input that we had on that? Right. Given that it is such a large price tag. Yep. Yep. You know, did you have a lot of say? Yes, I was the one that picked the bleachers. The bleachers I've used in the past, like I said, I used them over at Lincoln Way East for a very good bleacher. For
055the years that we had them there, I never had an issue. And they provide tons of addict stock. So if something should happen, we have the addict stock to make repairs. So functionally, and that makes sense, style-wise, you bring up a great point about school pride. That's big for me. So the look of this, I think it's fine. I think it's cool. Was there other options? Is there other options? Is there other options than this? Because this is okay. But I saw on their website today, I took pictures of it. Yes. They have a lot of really nice logos and a lot of custom graphics that will almost double the triple E price. It is very expensive. I mean, if it's double the price. Is there anything different than this? I mean, are we stuck
056with this? Yeah. Or could we come up with, this is okay? But I... Right. We could change its block lettering. But, I mean, again, I don't know. One, it's going to be probably over winter break that they're going to be able to get that to us and installed. Again, it adds a large price tag to it. I mean, it's going to be around for 30 plus years. And I want it to be spending that kind of money like, wow. You know, we're spending a lot of money in that gym. And it's okay. But I saw on their website... Yeah, they have a lot of collegiate stuff on their website. So I mean... It wasn't even that fancy. It was just fancier than that, though. Yeah. No, that's... But you said it's double the price, right?
057Or sometimes triple. I see prices, too. I, you know... Yeah. And we don't have anything now on the bleachers, right? So that would be an upgrade in itself? Correct. I'm not saying it's... To me, you can't change that at all. Like, it just looks so like a W's here, then an IL, and then a D. It's like so separated. We could do whatever we want with the buckets themselves. But as far as adding graphics, again, that adds a lot of cost and time to the project. So if we want to just put HW on there, the Hilda Walker, we could do that as well. Or some Wildcat, the actual Wildcat, the mascot? I think the price would just go way up. Yeah. The more you add to it, the price is just going to go
058higher. So I mean, I have no problem contacting Hussey to see what an added logo, because that would have to be additional to that cost anyway. So I could ask what it would be to add more logos to it. I think whenever we're talking anything about pricing, it's just nice to have a comparison. So if we say, okay, this is just your typical default font, okay, fine. What is it? Like you're saying, double the price. But is it really double the price? We don't know. If it is double the price, then obviously we're priced out, and that's not where we would want to spend it. But it is good to have an understanding of what we're getting for such a price tag. What we're getting, and also what's our cap? Like what's our limit? What's
059our cap? And then we could also understand what it is. So I mean, if you can, can we dig a little deeper and just see what options do they have? And what options do they have with just the standard offer? It's just great to know where we are, where we're sitting. What's the timeline that you, if we wanted to get this done over the summer, what's our timeline that you would need to get the approval for that? For the bleachers? Yeah. Today. And what if they, well, we probably couldn't because of the floor. But we're spending a lot of money and we need it to look really nice. And graphics would be, or whatever, shouldn't that be the last step anyway? I mean, we... No, because they actually CNC it into the font. So they
060actually take the front of the bleachers. They... It's not a sticker. It's not a sticker. They actually flatten it out a little bit because there's a texture to it. And then they come back and they add the graphics to it. That's why even when I was talking to them, they said already that if you were going to do that, we'd have to install the bleachers and then come back and put those on again. So we would be playing for basically twice the amount of bleachers because we're paying for the bleacher to be installed. And then we're coming back and putting those sections in for the graphic. The other thing is, I understand you like the graphics in there, but we have two giant walls within the gymnasium that we have vinyl ready for. And I've
061seen some of the renderings. I'm hoping to get some more of the renderings later this week from Tria. And the center back wall where the stage is, they're planning, as of right now, to put a giant Pildewalker graphic within that section. And then the west wall would also be a giant graphic. Now we're talking about. I do. I really like the bleachers. The only concern that I have at this point is just the graphic. That was it. Just when you handed me that sheet, I was like a little disappointed. It's very basic. I'd rather go basic there and then put a 40 by 40 foot graphic on an exterior wall than spend the money. I agree. Or you can always do other art projects or installations or other things like that to complement. Yeah. But
062I could also reach out to them and get an alternate and see what it's going to be. Because they do not only graphics on the front of the bleachers, but on the ends of the seats they have graphics. They have like, sorry, honor courage commitment going up the stairs. Going up the stairs. Yeah. Yeah. A lot of things. Well, I think there may be a bridge solution to this because if we were to vote and approve this today, wouldn't it be possible that we could issue an RFI or request for information and for the stuff that we were just asking about and should we, the board, feel the need to contribute the additional funds to nicer emblems or whatever, we could just add a change order into the contract. Correct. But if you're saying right
063now it's double or triple the call up. No, I would get the information. We're not installing the seats in April. No. Correct. We just want them to see. They'll just schedule everything else. So theoretically we could come up with a proposal after an agreement was made. We can do that. I'm just saying if we already know how many times it's going to be two or three times a class, I mean. I'm with you. I'm not willing to. Personally I don't think that it's in the best fiduciary responsibility for us to do that. I think it's going to look great, but that's just my opinion. Sure. But maybe Adrienne had a point and to Joy's point. If we do request that information and it's not double and it's feasible, it's worth a conversation I guess. At
064least it sounds like there's interest enough to have a conversation, but I don't believe that it would have to halt the process today. I think there are mechanisms in place. So vote today and see if there's anything additional. You can ask. And then we would just revoke for additional charges if that's the case. That would be a bridge solution. Sure. It'd be broad. Dr. McDermott, what do you think here? Because I think if it's possible to improve the graphic a bit, we just want a dollar amount, like how much more, but yet we want to order them and we want to get this ball rolling too. I guess I don't think that the purchase of the exact design is going to halt your whole project. No, no, no. I know what you're saying. I hear
065you. And that's why I'm asking like what suggestion? So we built a preliminary budget. We ran it through our facilities group that was part of prioritizing this project over other projects that were out there. So originally we were north of 200,000. I think it was two and a quarter, 225,000 for the bleachers. So when this price came in, we were pleasantly surprised. We're like, great, because that could be funds to do another project somewhere else in the district, or we could enhance what we're doing in the Walker Gym. So we do have an alternate for the logos on the walls. The placeholder from Trio was 20 grand, which that's a lot of money for something that's on your wall. So we put that in as an alternate. As we're looking at the project right now,
066it does look like we're coming in under budget. I think that with the new floor, the new paint, with the LED lights, with the other enhancements we're doing, that this is just going to complement that. This isn't going to be a standalone. If this were the only piece of the project that we're doing, like, okay, well, you know, maybe we'd push a little more. What would the bleachers look like without that? Because I'm not sure if that looks that, like I'm not. I almost think it looks funny. It looked funnier when we had it with black letters and blue seats. And so we flipped that around. And we did talk to the building admin. This is their gym. They're in it all the time. So we took some feedback on what the logos look like,
067what colors, like those kind of pieces. And so this is kind of what we settled in. If we decided we don't want the Wildcats, we would just do all black seats. But this is taxpayer money. This is a gym that's going to be around while we're all going to be gone. I have a question to kind of bounce, and then maybe we can move on. Just for clarification for everybody at home, the money that we earmarked for this project, we're looking at approximately a $20,000 difference, right? Might it be a good idea to take the funds allocated for this that are extra and entertain the idea that instead of maybe adding graphics, you take that $20,000 and put it right into materials for the science program. Or there's so many other building things, fields, or
068tracks. Specifically for the science program, because that's such a wonderful introduction that we don't have to pull from anywhere else or other programs. I think that would be a direct, I think it makes sense. Well, I mean, there's lots of places it could go. I know. We're all saving money. I agree. But you're right. It is a big project. I mean, so is this something that, are we good with this? Or do we want to pursue? But isn't there any way that, like, you could, did you come up, did you design this yourself, like, today? Or did they send this to you, and this is what? They sent it to me, but it was in blue and black, so I just redid it. But is there any way that, like, Was there any choice made?
069Yes. Was there any? I don't understand this. I mean, even just with, we're already putting that in. I do think it's possible to proceed and then still get those questions in there. No, I'm with you. I'm 100% with you. So let's go ahead and let's motion to, yeah. Yeah. Let's call the question. All right. One second. Go ahead, Leah. Leah was flagging me down over there. Oh, Leah. Go ahead. You said something about, like, let's get a motion. Oh, I'm sorry. Leah wants to say something. Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't hear Leah. Like, school spirit, right? Okay, I'm not saying this in, like, a sarcastic way. It's going to come off sarcastic. But if I walk into a gym and I see, like, it has their school name on the bleachers, I'm not going to
070be like, oh, this school, like, they have, I already know their students have a lot of school spirit. I'm just going to be like, oh, they have the name on their bleachers. That's cool. So I don't get why we would spend a lot of money on something that students are going to be, like, for a day or a week be like, oh, yeah, like, that's cool. Our bleachers have our name on it. And then just forget about it. Like, that just seems like a waste of money. So spending more money to upgrade the graphics. And I'm not even saying upgrade. I'm saying just the design. Like, when you have an art, you know, project anywhere, like, say that thing. We did that years ago. We had 50 different ways to do that same design. Why
071don't we have choices with this? Like, why maybe a Wildcat here and a Wildcat here and something in the middle? Like, why just, I don't know. I don't know. I just am surprised that that's the only choice. And that's what we're, after what I saw on the website today. I'm sorry. If I didn't see that website, Bossy's website, well, I should have never looked at it. Thank you for your input, Leigh Ann. And that's really important. I call for the previous question. I feel good that you had input from the admin and people that are there every day, you know, every day in the gym. So that, I think that's a good, very, very crucial and good thing that we always want input of the people that are in and out of their daily, you
072know. Of course we always want their input. Yeah. But it's for the community also. It's a big, huge ticket item. I call the previous question. Let's vote. Yes. Motion for the board to approve the purchase of the Maxon telescoping bleachers through Sourcewell Cooperative Purchasing Contract to meet the summer construction timeline in the amount of $188,384,015. So moved. Second. All right. Roll call. Patrick Goldfant. Aye. Joy Murphy. Aye. Amy Burke. Aye. Ron Petrie. Aye. John Winter. Aye. Melissa Ryan. Aye. I move that the board of education offer the following individuals a second year probationary contract for the school year 26-27 and employ Jonah Armelo Kerr, Katherine Dote, Ann Jenkin, Jaina King, Taylor LaPage, Lauren McCully, Veronica McFarland, Michelle Miesch, Megan Mestrata, Alessandro Montes, Christopher Perez, Laura Rodriguez, and Kathleen Welcome. So moved. Second. Amy Burke. Aye.
073Patrick Goldfant. Aye. Melissa Ryan. Aye. Adrian Chavez. Aye. John Winter. Aye. Ron Petrie. Aye. Joy Murphy. Aye. Motion carries and congratulations. I move that the board of education offer the following individuals a third year probationary contract for the 26-27 and employ Marissa Flores, Michelle Gage, and Jenna Rowe. Second. Amy Burke. Aye. Melissa Ryan. Aye. Ron Petrie. Aye. Joy Murphy. Aye. Adrian Chavez. Aye. John Winter. Aye. Patrick Goldfant. Aye. Motion carries. Congratulations. All right. Now the important one. I know they're listening at home if they're not here. The board of education offer a 10-year contract for the following individuals for the school year 26-27 and employ Diana Obudrzak, Peter Conrad, Kelsey Fitzgerald, Rochelle Jackson, Stephanie Lamartino Kim, and Amy Siddler. So moved. Second. Joy Murphy. Aye. Adrian Chavez. Aye. Patrick Goldfant. Aye. Ron Petrie. Aye. Amy
074Burke. Aye. John Winter. Aye. Melissa Ryan. John 26, superintendent and staff report. Okay. Just a couple of quick items today. In the enrollment report, you can take a look at the pluses and minuses where students moved around. The board has asked for regular updates, and so that's why this page is inserted for the board. And then secondly, yes, we're talking about summer. Not that you would know that from being outside, but in order to prepare for summer in our We do have a summer programs update. Our staff members have completed a survey to indicate interest in hosting summer enrichment activity camps and summer academic bridge camps. These events will take place at Summit Hill Junior High. After spring break, we will email families information about the registration process for summer enrichment camps. These camps are
075open to students at various grade levels on a first-come, first-serve basis. The club fee is $20. The summer bridge program is intended for students currently receiving intervention support. So if you think RTI, we had one of those questions already this evening from the board. So we have reading specialists and math interventionists who will support the process for this group of students. There will be enrollment limitations due to size. There is no fee that is charged for that as we prep students to get ready for the next school year. So just a little bit of a teaser. The summer enrichment activity camps will run from June 1st to June 11th, Monday through Thursday, again at Summit Hill Junior High, from 1 to 2.30 for students. Summer academic bridge camps, so RTI for reading, math, and English
076learners, will run from July 27th to August 6th. Give them a little primer a few weeks off before school starts and then back at it. Student times will be 8.45 to 12.15. And so again, information will be coming out to families soon regarding our summer program. Moving on to, let's go to our board member report. Since there are no action items after closed, let's allow people to leave after that. So let's do our board member report, starting with 8.43. I'm so sorry. I left my sheet at home and our meeting is like the Tuesday after this meeting. So I, Dr. McDermott, can you help me at all? Anything new with 8.43? He attends a different meeting, but it's similar. He's the advisory committee. Right. So the superintendents from each of the member districts are part
077of an advisory committee. So we meet and discuss business that should go on the agenda for the governing board. At our meeting, we talked a little bit about some staffing changes, both with staff and administrators, and then started to take a look at next year, transportation, what adjustments would occur, things like that, and then business goes to the governing board for approval. So we're just a group of advisors helping the executive director do her business. And they're also planning the summer school. Yeah. ESY is on everyone's mind right now. So students who could potentially see regression in the summer are sometimes in their IEPs recommended for ESY, which is extended school year. 8.43 runs programming. Leslie designs and runs all of ours here. So we keep our kids in-house for that. And so that was
078the majority of the staffing that you saw tonight was just staffing our ESY programming. I think that we're the only district that does that, don't we? Yeah. Thank you. I know it's hard work. I think do we start last time down here? So we'll start at this end and go down. Cool. So I got Rogus. And I'd like to report we had a great time coming together as a school community for the DJR Skate Night. I was there. It was a blast. Patrick has a mean double axle. It was so much fun seeing children, siblings, parents, and staff come out and have a fun time together. It really was a blast. At the Tinley Park Roller Rink, thank you Resco for sponsoring the event. We are in the process of building up our third and
079fourth grade buddies for IAR testing. Our kindergarten students have been making posters, cards, and bookmarks to encourage their buddies to do their best on the IAR test. That's nice. We had a wonderful turnout for kindergarten readiness night on February 19th. It was a wonderful opportunity to touch base with our incoming kindergarten families. We look forward to the year ahead. Also, we will be celebrating all abilities week as a school community next week. We have a fun week planned to focus on how our various abilities make us unique and special. We are also in the middle of doing our mathathon fundraiser for St. Jude. Students are practicing their math facts while raising money for a great cause. Thank you Mrs. Moss. Alright, for DJR grades one through four. This week, DJR is celebrating all abilities week.
080During this special week, we recognize and celebrate that everyone at DJR belongs and has something unique to contribute, which is quite incredible and I love it. Each day will feature a different theme, all centered around the same important message that together at DJR, we all fit in and that every single one of us is special. A big thank you to Megan Gallagher and Nicole Harris for planning and leading this week. This month, the DJR library is hosting the special all ability lab for students. In the lab, DJR students will be able to interact with learning stations where they can explore Braille, AAC devices, and other tools that help people communicate and engage with the world in different ways. We will also enjoy a special assembly with the Lincoln Way Special Recreation Association who will be
081demonstrating and exciting all abilities basketball game that will include students versus staff. Go students! Mark your calendars for April 27th through April 30th for Grandparents and Special Persons Day at DJR. We will be hosting our first grade loved ones on Monday, followed by second grade on Tuesday, third grade on Wednesday, and fourth grade on Thursday. We will be having virtual classroom invites with specific times, we'll be coming home soon. We look forward to seeing many family members during this week. Our third and fourth grade students have been learning and growing all year long and this month they will have the opportunity to show what they have learned at the Illinois Assessment of Readiness. We will take the IAR during the final two weeks of March. Families can help students feel confident and prepared by making
082sure they get a good night's sleep, eat a healthy breakfast, and arrive at school on time. We are proud of the hard work our students have put in all year long and encourage them to simply do their best. As my son is taking those for the first year this year, his report was, it wasn't that bad. And I thought that was pretty great. He thought it was going to be this huge mountain and he feels really good about how it went. So I know he's not the only one echoing that. Thank you Mr. Bradley and Ms. Bolfer. Alright, I have Summit Hill Junior High. This is an exciting week. Our drama production of Aladdin Junior is this weekend. We are so incredibly proud of our students and hope you are able to come view this
083performance. You won't want to miss it. Tickets are still available for purchase if you are available. IAR testing is completed and now our eighth graders are wrapping up ISA testing. Students have worked diligently preparing not only for these assessments but for our and standards overall. A big thank you to our student council for scheduling a spring break theme week kicking off next week. The week will conclude with a make a wish donation day. Students and staff will be wearing baseball jerseys in honor of baseball opening day and donating a dollar or more. Our student council will also be participating in Mokina's student government day next month. We will share more soon. Thank you Ms. Global. Very nice. At Indian Trail, the students raised over $1,320 in support of St. Baldrick's. Thank you to the families
084for donating to such a worthy cause. A big thank you to all our volunteers and let's go for our mother-son event. It was a great time filled with dancing, food, and crafts. Our choir concert is set for Thursday, March 26th at 6 p.m. in the Trail Gym. Our spring showcase is April 30th with performances at 10 and 1.30. More information will be shared with our families in the coming days and weeks. Thank you Mrs. Wright. Myself and Melissa have held a walker, I'll take the first half. Our band, orchestra, and choir programs have a busy month. On February 24th, the band program held their annual bandorama concert at Summit Junior High. On March 7th, students in our choir program competed in the IGSMA contest and the following weekend on March 14th, members of our band
085also competed in the IGSMA solo and ensemble contest. Finally this past week, two of our sixth grade students joined the junior high string ensemble at the ILMEA Orchestra Large Group Festival. We are so proud of all of our Wildcats. As we progress through the month, the students at Hilda Walker are also preparing for the IRA ISA assessments. Students have been working hard all year and we are confident that their hard work will shine. Students are being challenged to show what you know during our upcoming assessment week. The Hilda Walker SCO hosted our annual spring fun night for our fifth and sixth grade students on March 5th. More than 250 students came out to enjoy open gym games, a DJ, bingo, crafts, and lots of concession treats. Nights like this are not possible without the many
086parent and staff volunteers to attend and make sure that the students have a blast. Please save the date of April 11th for the annual band booster spaghetti dinner held at Hilda Walker Intermediate School. Also taking place on April 11th is the third annual Hilda Walker Art Show. This show will take place in the Hilda Walker Library from 3 to 6 p.m. and is open to the public. Thank you, Ms. Carroll. The Mary Drew Early Learning Center. The students celebrated love by receiving valentines from around the world. Family and friends of the preschool students sent valentines to our preschoolers from thirty states and five countries. Mary Drew Early Learning Center celebrated Read Across America Week by hosting a weekly virtual bedtime story. Each night, the students would log on and watch one of their staff members
087read one of their favorite stories, PJs were a must. And Mary Drew Early Learning Center staff participated in the Special Olympic Polar Plunge on March 14th. The Mary Drew Dunkers and 17 team members raised over $4,000 for the Special Olympics. The preschool registration is currently happening. Please check the Summit Hill 161 website for more information. Kim Zalka. Was it cold, Leslie? Where did you guys do it at? Okay. Yeah, I've been there. A lot of PDs had to do it and little swimming pools in the back because all the lakes were frozen and they tried to do it. Thank you to everyone for participating. Okay, with that, we will go into closed session 6C. Move that we go into closed session as printed and publicly posted on the agenda. So moved. Second. Amy Burke. Aye.
088Ron Petrie. Aye. Patrick Oliphant. Aye. Melissa Ryan. Aye. Joy Murphy. Aye.