001The CCSD 21 July 24th, 2025 regular board of education meeting is called to order. We appreciate your patience. Uh board secretary Dagmar Kalinowski is unable to attend our meeting this evening. So our first order is I am appointing board member Bill Harrison to be secretary prom for tonight's meeting. Thank you very much Bill in advance. Would you please take attendance of the board members? >> Certainly. Uh Jessica >> I am here. >> Debbie >> I'm here. >> Harin >> here. >> Liliana >> here. >> And I am present. We have a quorum. >> Thank you. Would everyone please rise for the pledge? >> I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic which stands. One nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. >> Right. Welcome
002everyone to the meeting. Um, let's see. Oh, I see our friend Sher Clump from the park, the Wheeling Park District is here. Thank you again for attending. We love to see you. Um, any individual physically present at our meeting tonight wishing to address the board must complete a comment card and provide it to Miss Bender. Uh, with that, I would like to formally welcome Miss Bender to our district here. She will be filling in uh while Leticia is out on leave for a bit. So, welcome, Miss Bender. Thank you for joining us. Thank you. >> Um, I also wanted to note any written public comments may also be submitted by emailing us at district21cccsd21.org. Let's jump into announcements and celebrations. Um, let's see. Dr. Connelly, you have uh a presentation for us from uh Organic
003Life. >> Well, I'll just introduce Allison Brown from Organic Life who wanted to just um say a few things uh to the board. So, if you want to come on up. >> Yeah. Okay. >> Hi. Nice to finally meet you. We've been talking a lot. And Lewis, nice to meet you. Um, good evening everybody. My name is Alison Brown. I am the food service, sorry, food district manager um here at the Wheeling School District. Um, this is my assistant director, Don Pzel. Um, and together on behalf of organic life, we would like to take this opportunity to express our heartfelt grat um, gratitude for being part of such an incredible district. Um serving the Wheeling School District um for the past 10 years has been an absolute privilege of ours. Um we are deeply thankful
004to the um among the community and the superintendent, the CFOs, the school board and the parents who are deeply invested in the well-being and success of their children as well as Don and I are um our love languages what we do every day and to help serve the kids, make sure that the food is of great quality. um number one customer service and that we're here to support the district in any venture that they may have or need from us. Um this year we achieved a remarkable milestone by serving more meals than ever before. Um I think a large um due to that is to the new ovens and the new kitchens and that has just been a wonderful opportunity for us to expand our services to the children in the district. And on behalf
005of everybody at Organic Life, we just want to say thank you um for renewing the contract and for trusting us and supporting us with all our needs and everything. So, um we wish you all the best and for successful school year and thank you very much for your time um and letting us come up and say a few words. >> Thank you both very, very well. We're looking forward to another wonderful year >> of feeding our children so that they can learn and be happy. >> Thank you for your time. We appreciate it. >> Okay. Um, as everyone knows, we are implementing our newly adopted strategic plan. Um, and we are appointing a board a member of the board uh as a board champion to each of the five areas of the strategic plan goals.
006Uh this board champion will act as a liaison between the board and the administration as they implement strategic plan goals and will also be providing periodic updates to the full board of each goal area. Um I offered the opportunity for board members to weigh in on areas that they would like to take on. Um and so I'm making the following appointments. The teaching and learning uh board goal will be uh the board champion will be Carrie. Uh Ilana will be the board champion for meeting unique needs of learners. I will take the section on social and emotional growth. Debbie will be the board champion for homeschool and community engagement. And Bill will be our board champion for securing the future. Um so I imagine as the school year gets started, your administrators will reach out
007to each of us. Um, we'll be thinking about how best to present those reports each month or at whatever frequency is appropriate as we go forward. Um, but that's a good step to have in place as we move along in our strategic plan. Um, okay, let's move into staff communication. Um, this month we have uh an update on student enrollment. Dr. Connelly. >> Yes. So, I wanted to start off by uh officially welcoming uh Lewis Roberts, our new executive director for HR uh to the board table. Um Lewis began officially on July 1st and um has been drinking from the fire hose ever since. Um so, uh I'm going to turn it over to Lewis who will give our student enrollment update. All right. Well, thank you. So, a few things before we start that
008I wanted to just point out with this. Um, for the middle school classes, uh, currently the middle school administrators are still bouncing class sizes. They are they are loaded into power school. Um, but with a middle school schedule, a lot goes into that. So, they are moving class, you know, students around every day to balance those class sizes. Um, unfortunately, coming from the background as a middle school principal, you do a lot on the back end and then when you put it into P school and go live, sometimes P school kind of does what it wants to do and then you have to go in and manually uh move a lot of kids around. So, um, they're working on that. Now, for the elementary sectioning, um, the elementary numbers that are up here are an
009average of students per grade level, not actual class sizes. those have not yet been loaded into power school. Principles are still doing that as well. Uh so these figures are derived by simply dividing the total number of students in a grade by the number of anticipated sections for that grade. These numbers might be skewed a little bit in schools and grade levels that house specialized programs or language specific programs. I'll provide an example of that when we talk about Riley Elementary. At the next schoolboard meeting, I'll present a more detailed breakdown uh for all schools, including average class sizes and the ranges for each grade level. So, we'll go school by school. Starting off um field, we have no core sections exceeding uh the guidelines. And just for clarification, these numbers um they are they
010add up to the total number of school enrollment minus the pending students. So for example at field the total enrollment right now is 472. Frost we have a total enrollment of 417. Kilmer 561. Longfellow 452. And again, um, when we back out that, uh, we have a specialized program at Longfellow. So, when we back that out, um, the average there for that guideline actually drops a little bit to 25.6 as of right now. Oh, we have a total enrollment of 427. and then Riley. So, this is a good example of how some of our more specialized programs skew the numbers a bit. When this data was pulled last week, we had 54 students enrolled per grade level at one and two. They were the exact same number for first and second grade. Um, which is
011where we got the 27 per section. However, 13 of those students uh will be in one of our specialized programs that is housed at Riley. So that brought the gened population total um to 95 with an average of 22.5 in first and 24.5 per se per section in second grade with a total enrollment of 317. As of 5:30 this evening, uh there are grade level averages at the recommended guidelines, but none are exceeding. Right now K is at 25, first is at 24.5, and second is at 25. So, this is a school um that we are watching very closely. Um the principal over there is has a spreadsheet and she is updating it every time a new student enrolls and she's letting us know. Um so, we are keeping a very close eye on Riley.
012With Tarantine, we have a total enrollment now 46. Twain 426, Whitman 385, Cooper 683. Um the science and social studies classes right now, well, as of a week ago, uh we're sitting at average of 27 in a class. So again, um, principal Duth over there is looking at that and he did say some balancing needed to happen. Holmes 586 and London 672. So some of the hot spots, um, Riley, we already talked about, um, oh, right now they're fifth grade. Um, it's in an average of 23.6 6 when we back out the specialized programming. So again, just something we're keeping an eye on. And then um to mention with the middle school um when I talked to principal Net Netzel um 8th grade was getting close with that 27. It wasn't quite there yet, but
013it is something she's watching. Um we also know that we have seen an increase in our middle school numbers and that is why um we've added many different forms of staffing uh totaling uh 12.1 FTE in recent times to our over our three middle schools to address those increasing numbers. >> And I would just add at Cooper in particular, there's a bubble group going through there right now. So it's kind of a bigger group. Um we have added an additional core section FTE. Um we have also added additional exploratory U FTEEs. Um as well as some more part-time um uh staff that are being shared with with London uh to kind of round out some of the um so you know we have uh raised the staffing levels over at Cooper in particular uh to
014try and accommodate um the the fact that they've got a large group um that are going through right now. And then for the board, just a reminder, uh, per the CBA, you know, we do have the recommended guidelines there for, um, each of the grade level bands. >> Thank you very much, Louis. And welcome again to District 21. >> Thank you. >> Um, you know, I know the the numbers in this report are always funible. They're always a little tentative. Well, very tentative. What really continues to jump out at me is just the the number of students who returning students not registered. Um I would just like to put another plea out there to the community um to please register your children as soon as you can. It helps us make our staffing decisions, our
015class size and sectioning decisions uh much better when we have better numbers. Um, and if you need any assistance with registration, we have folks at the district office here that can assist you. So, spread the word, talk to your friends and neighbors, and let's let's get those enrollment numbers going. Okay. Uh, we've reached public comment section of the meeting. We will the board will allow any individual present to share a public comment for up to three minutes. Such comment should not include discussion of personnel matters which should be brought directly to the attention of the appropriate school official. During public comment, the board and administration will listen to your comment, but we will not respond to the public. Um Yolanda, you've given me two cards. Have we received any other public comment cards? Okay. uh
016in the order I received them. Uh first up we have Ben Coleman. >> Good evening. Sorry. Uh my name is Ben Kman and I am the current president of the District 21 Education Association. We represent the teacher, certified staff, education support personnel, and custodial maintenance staff here in district 21. I'm here as a part of an ongoing tradition that started earlier this year when we address where we address the board on a regular basis. Since my last address to the board, I've changed teaching positions in district 21. I will be an additional project leadway teacher at Cooper Middle School starting this fall. While I'm sad to be leaving homes, where I've spent the last 18 years working with many amazing teachers, staff members, and friends, I'm excited about the change, I'm also excited that the
017district is looking to expand its project lead the way offerings to include medical detectives, which I have been learning about this week and which has many clear links to possible future careers in the health sciences. It also involves some hands-on learning opportunities related to the brain, including a sheep brain dissection. And I think the brain is a fascinatingly complex topic. Now that my teaching schedule will be changing every trimester, I've been thinking a lot about the current schedule and possible changes to it. I hope that the association can continue to work with the superintendent and his team to refine the proposed middle school schedule so that everyone will be as happy as possible with the change. I'm optimistic that we can implement this change before the 2627 school year. I'd also like to share a
018little about what the association has been working on over the summer. Of course, myself and three other association members attended the Human X conference in Omaha to learn about the tools that they offer and how they might be used in our district. We're cautiously optimistic that the surveys and analyses they offer might help us understand a little better how to hold on to our talented young teachers and encourage more of our own staff to consider leadership roles. I also appreciated the chance to get to know Ben Nidich a little better, who appears to be a great person to take on the job of leading homes middle school. He also provided me with some good advice about taking the Staten Island Ferry to see the Statue of Liberty from La Harbor for free. Thanks, Ben, and
019good luck this fall. I was also fortunate enough to have been elected to represent our staff at the National Education Association Representative Assembly in Portland, Oregon. The NEA has almost 3 million members and is the largest and oldest labor union in the United States. The Representative Assembly was the largest conference held in Portland and we were definitely noticeable. I had the opportunity to speak to teachers from around the country and I was reminded many times and in many ways that not everyone teaches in a place like Illinois. We sometimes take things for granted that others have fought for. Next week, myself and a few other association leaders will be at the Illinois State University in Bloomington for leadership training with the Illinois Education Association. We hope to do better to represent our education support personnel.
020They are an important part of the success of our district and I think they sometimes don't feel that way. We look forward to a conversation with administration about how we might support our teaching assistance secretaries and LMC assistants better. Finally, I'd also like to mention that we had a brief meeting with Mrs. Riddick and Dr. Connelly about our board outreach program. While we understand the board's position, we are disappointed that we were unable to continue the conversations that we had a few years ago between board members and teachers. We plan to continue looking for ways to promote open and appropriate communication between staff and the board. Thank you for the chance to contribute and thank you for the work that you do in support of students and staff here in District 21. We're excited to
021be a partner in the decision-making process. >> Thank you, Ben. >> Uh Melissa Maraconda Good evening. On July 3rd, I boarded a flight to Fort Myers, Florida. 105 days prior was March 20th, the last day I was able to support staff, help a student, feel whole, and identify as a teacher. 104 days prior was March 21st where my identity was changed forever and I was left with more questions than answers. But I digress. As I stepped off that hot jet bridge onto the plane, I met Jacob, distraught and agitated. He wanted to get off the flight, though his mom needed him to stay. With limited language, he couldn't explain why. There I was trained to help Jacob. Yet I could have kept walking. It was a choice. Do the right thing or take the easy
022way out and head to my seat. Without hesitation, I stepped into a supportive stance, introduced myself to Jacob. The flight attendants instantly understood I was there to help. I turned to the lead attendant and said, "I can help if you'd like." He quickly replied, "Yes, you're in charge. Tell me what you need." I positioned myself between Jacob and the door and his mom watch with tears streaming down her face. No one asked me for my credentials. No one asked me how I knew what I was doing. No one asked me why my about my previous experience. They trusted me. But more importantly, Jacob trusted me. I gained that trust with a simple, "Hi, I'm Melissa." I could share more details, but that's not the point. So, I'll jump to the end where I calmly, verbally
023deescalated Jacob. We boarded that plane together with reassurance and quiet support from the American Airlines crew and my family. Now, here's where the story comes full circle. As I buckled Jacob into a seat, he looked up and said, "Melissa, you're a good teacher." I hadn't shared anything about my life while we st stood there on that jet bridge watching the plane board. Nor did I tell him that my title as a special education administrator had been stripped from me. A loss that had kept me away from a building for 104 days. As I walked back to my seat, it hit me. No title given or taken defines our impact as educators. The work we've done, the teams I've been lucky to be a part of, we've made a difference together. And that the lessons that
024I've learned from so many colleagues in this district helped me support Jacob that day. It's not about the title. It's how we show up for others, the trust we build, and the respect we earn through our actions. There was no time to think, no time to process, just time to act. Events unfold and we respond. When I landed, my first message was to my dear friend Kim, the one who took a chance on me and gave me the opportunity to continue my career. She's always been a trusted thought partner over the years. I'm deeply grateful for the training, the opportunities, and the countless support that's been provided. Without everyone here, I'm sure I couldn't have helped Jacob the way I did. I'm grateful that Jacob and his mom were on that flight. I'm also thankful
025my family witnessed my passion for helping others because that truly is my passion. I was reminded that day, a title doesn't define you. It's the passion you bring to the role that truly matters. Thank you, >> Petraman. I apologize if I mispronounced your name. >> Ashman. Thank you. Thank you guys for if you just hit the button. Your your mic is off. >> It'll turn out. Gotcha. Gotcha. First time here. Sorry. I just wanted to thank you for uh keeping an eye on um all the hotspots. I think that's what you call them. Uh and especially Riley. So, I'm a I'm a mom of a second grader in that school. And I just wrote something really quick. I just want to read it. It will be easier. Uh, I would like to express my deep
026concern about the growing class sizes in our school. When you have 23, let alone 27 students in one classroom, it becomes nearly impossible to give each each child the attention and support they need, not just academically, but emotionally and socially. Um, large class sizes can overwhelm students leading to increased anxiety, behavioral issues, and sense of being unseen or unheard. It's also incredibly unfair to our teachers who are already stretched thin. Even with the help of an assistant, managing that many children every day takes a serious toll on their well-being and mental health. In the long run, this isn't just a learning issue. It's a staffing crisis in the making. As more teachers burn out and leave the profession, the cost of the district will grow significantly in terms of hiring, training, and maintaining staff. This
027is not a sustainable or healthy environment for learning or teaching and something needs to change. Thank you. >> Um are there any other comment cards? Okay. Thank you. Um Dr. Connelly, have we received any written public comments? >> We did. We we uh uh received several. Uh my last count was 28. Uh and they were all related to the class size concerns uh over at at Riley. So, uh, board members have received those and they will be part of the, uh, the meeting minutes. >> Okay. And I I want to send a quick thank you to the parents who took the time to email us their comments. Uh, we appreciate you sharing those with us. Uh, I mean, that's civics and action right there. Um, okay. So, let's let's move on to the consent agenda.
028Uh, we received five freedom of information requests this month. There are board conference and travel expenses for seven board members to the IASB pre-jint conference Friday workshops. Um, two board members to the IASB super Saturday training event, one board member for the mandatory trauma-informed practices training, and four board members to the 2025 joint annual conference. Um, I did review the financial documents with Mike Zerger. I had a few questions. Um, and I do, Mike, I appreciate the quick and satisfactory explanations. There were no major concerns. Um, although I did learn a few things about how we reimburse staff who take college credits during the school year. Um, so thank you, Mike Zigger, for your time and your explanations. Um, does anyone need anything pulled from the consent agenda? >> Oh, yeah, I do. I was
029not here last month >> for the special board meeting. >> Oh, for the special board meeting, >> right? for the special rights. So item C. >> Item C. >> Yes. >> Okay. >> May I please get a motion to approve the consent agenda minus um item C? >> So moved. >> Second. >> Mr. Harrison, would you please take the role? >> Absolutely. Arwin, >> I. >> Debbie, >> yes. >> Iana, >> yes. >> I vote yes. And Jessica, >> yes. zero. >> And may I please have a motion to approve consent agenda item C? >> So moved. >> Can I get a second, please? >> Sorry. >> Okay. Debbie, >> yes. >> I'll vote yes. Jessica, >> yes. >> Harland, >> abstain. >> Very good. >> Okay. I just want to note that one of
030the things that we just approved is the use of the let's talk system from K12 insight. Um you know we're always looking for better and multiple ways to encourage communication from the community with us. Um so I just wanted to highlight that we've now approved this program that uh should be implemented by the beginning of the school year. Um and we will get more information about how that will be used. Um but that is very exciting and in direct response to concerns that we have heard. Okay, new business. Uh next section will be a presentation and consideration of the district 21 FY2026 tenative budget. >> Okay. Um so um as you know uh each year the the board adopts a budget uh for the fiscal year uh and that generally happens uh in your September
031uh board of education meeting um by state law. Uh we need to present a tentative um budget uh at least 30 days prior and put that on public display uh display at least 30 days prior to uh the board adopting their final budget. Um in so far as the August board meeting um and the September board meeting do not have 30 days in between. Um we are presenting the tenative budget this evening. Um and then um you will continue to we'll continue to make um uh changes and updates and kind of true up numbers. Uh and then uh you will adopt the final budget in your September 18th um meeting. So, um, with, uh, with that, um, our director of finance, Mike Zagger, is going to give just a really high level, uh, kind of
032view of where we stand right now with the budget. Uh, it is very tentative. Um, and, uh, again, we'll be ted up, um, by the time we get to September. So, Mike, >> yes. So, >> that slide show me the clock. Good job, guys. So, we're just going to we're This is the same presentation we did earlier. I'm just going to go through a few slides, chop it down quite a bit. The two things I'm going to focus on are the timeline. >> Check your mic. Is it up? >> And just the main Oh, there we go. And the main How do I get it higher? >> Telescope. >> Is that better? Okay, there we go. So, I'm going to focus on the on two main pages. the um the timeline which which is for
033the board and then the actual summary sheets that are a few pages and I'm not going to go through all the up and down details. We'll do that at the at the final hearing and we already went over that with the finance committee earlier today and I believe the people who not were not there were were in the crowd. So the first thing and the most important thing is the budget timeline and this is a timeline for for the board and us we start this process in in February, March. So, so we're to the point where we're ready to present this to the board. And the key point here tonight is having the board approve putting on notice that we are going to have a public hearing. And that public hearing will be on September
0345th of 2025. So today, we will ask you to approve SC approve scheduling the public hearing and placing the the budget on display. It's required to be 30 days prior to the meeting. We are going to be well over that because we have July 28th through September 15 17. So we're going to be almost 60 days, but we're just short. So that's why we're here today instead of next month, which means more estimates. Um, between tomorrow and September 5th, the team will go over the budget, true up all those estimates, true up the staff plan, get everything nice and tidy. So when we come to the final budget, we are in good shape. And our goal this year is to not amend. So that's our goal. So hopefully we can do it. So we're going
035to try to make sure everything's in the original budget. >> September 18th. >> Yeah. >> Yes. You said September 5th. >> Oh, sorry. >> Just clarifying. >> Yeah. So So on September 18th, we will conduct a public hearing. Then we will present the budget and then we'll approve it. We are required to have that done by September 30th, 2025 and filed with with is by October 31st. If we're not done by September 30th, we cannot file a tax. Somebody can appeal our tax lobby and we could lose. So So the key date is September 30th having that budget finalized, it will be done on the 18th and we will upload it on the 19th. We will not wait till October 31st. So you just don't do that. So um I'm going to skip over a
036few slides. These are the changes. The details we went through on details. I'm going to focus on I first wanted to go over this for people who weren't in the audience. These are just some of the nice things we do do for the community, for the children to make sure everybody we're inclusive. Everybody gets a school kit at the beginning of the school year. Um the the Chris Laatino and and Beatatric and um Lordis go through and fill up a kit for every kid. We we allocate $25 per student for field trips. Um we allocate 3,500 per billing for assemblies, $5 per billing per student incentives. Another thing we do is we have a afterchool program and and um our our our teachers in the buildings and and other people are able to um to
037um go over their ideas with Chris and Chris will approve after school programs that that they can do with the students and we also provide transportation home for those programs. So the the big stuff here is the actual budget. This is our proposed operating budget. So, as you can see down down the key line is that that increase over prior year we're at about $8.3 million. We do have some onetime expenses in there. I do want to point out you'll see over in the increase decrease column. Our revenues are flat. Um that's due to several things. Mainly we have some state and federal funding coming off. Um that that you know so don't be concerned. We knew that was coming. So in the future we should probably stay in that 2% range because the federal
038government's goal is CPF of 2% which is what our property taxes go up. You'll see down below our our um our salaries are going up by 3.4%. That's expected and our contract is 35. Um that's our big line items. You can see it's over half our expenses. Benefits and purchase services are up are two other big line items. Um we are expecting not only um we are expecting health insurance premiums to go up this year. We are running pretty much in line with budget which means we will have an increase next year. We've been lucky the last couple of years. we've done well and so we've been able to keep those flat. So we're expecting those to go about up about 10%. So that's why you see that large increase there. The rest of it
039is pretty much the payroll taxes. So that's that's what the extra 10% is there. Everything else is kind of in line. You will see ups and downs. I wouldn't be too concerned about that. A lot of it has to do with, you know, our budgets sometimes are a little higher than we spend. So So when you're comparing that budget to actual, there's always a little fluff there. Um so that that's the big picture. Main thing is we are still doing well. And I want to point out the bottom line that fund balance it's a percentage of expenditure ratio. Our policy is 35 to 45%. You can see in this we are still well above that. Obviously the the the construction transfer we talked about earlier is not in there. I could tell you right now
040I believe our our um 45% level is about 65 million. So that right alone gives us about and we'll get to the next page $13 million that we can go to the to transfer for that summer construction. that wouldn't keep us at at the top end of our policy. So that's on the next page. So you'll see there um overall it looks like we're doing horrible, but that's because the construction fund will be spending $16 million this summer on projects. We have already funded that. So you see the big deficit there, but overall you take that 16 million out, we're doing pretty good. So no big concerns. And again, I want to point out after all this, all of our funds are still at 50% of expenditures in fund balance. So we're in good shape.
041So, so no concerns there. There's obviously some some unknowns with revenues right now. Count, county, federal, and state. So, it's no one person. We just don't know right now. We will have good numbers by final. I'm not concerned about any of the numbers. They're good estimates. They're conservative estimates, but they will be adjusted. So, there will be changes. So, another thing is you see some of these negatives down there. We will readjust our our property tax levy to take care of that. So all those negatives will be addressed. We I do that at the very end. So I make sure we we have all our the monies around and we keep those fund balance percentages good across the fund. So we will move the levy around from year to year to make sure we're we're
042staying within the board policy. So that's kind of kind of the goal. So those will all be cleaned up for the final budget presentation in September. So any questions? >> So just kind of over overarching summary here. Um I think one of the budget philosophies um that Mike and his team uh and this district and this board has done for many years is as we are forecasting budgets as we are formulating these tenative budgets it's with the idea that we are very conservative on the revenue side uh and we overestimate on the expenditure side. Um and so as we do that um that gives that builds in a level of safety uh in the budget process. Um you don't want to be surprised on the revenue side. Um you can control the expenditure side with
043uh good planning um and you know watchful eye. Um but if you're overinflating your estimated revenues, you're just immediately creating a situation where you can end up in the red very quickly. Um, again, as Mike said, um, you know, one of the things that, you know, this board is going to, you know, engage with over the next couple of months is the scope of our summer work for 2026. Um, but right now we have the capacity to be able to do those projects. Um, and that is really in a a very good place um, for us to be. Um we are of course watching very closely um what is potentially uh on uh the horizon with federal funding um with state funding um you know but again uh because we are being very conservative um
044in our revenue projections um I think we're in a really good shape to be able to weather um whatever storm uh may come. Um you know and and and the truth is we just don't know. Um, so, um, >> and one thing I do want to point out with those fund balance avenue levels, right now the county has not even sent out our tax bills yet. We usually get about 50 to $60 million in July and August. >> That is our fund balance. So, when that and we're not going to spend it all right then. So, that reserve allows us to weather that storm and that's the biggest storm to weather and they have done a lot in over the last few years. So, that allows us to weather that storm having those reserves and
045not have to go out and get debt and pay interest on that debt. So, it's big. It's key to have those reserves because the county has been very inconsistent with their levies over the last two years and that's out of our control. So, >> Jessica, did you want to speak to the fact that the finance committee met before this? >> I was going to do that in board communication. >> Oh, fine. It's okay. >> Um, does anyone else have any other questions? Bill, >> not a question. I think the presentation was great and we're heading in the right direction. But a comment just from the what you mentioned on the federal funds and what I had heard in the committee meeting there was that 5.5 million that we get for the food uh services that's
046tied to agricultural funding. It's not just out of the agricultural department but is specifically tied to agricultural funding to our farmers. And we basically have the benefit, if you will, of the threat of mutually assured destruction. If they try to cut us, they cut them. And so both sides in a way have a desire to continue >> this program. So to that 5.5 billion, >> we never know for sure, but we should be okay. >> I don't I don't anticipate nor do nor have I seen a lot of chatter about there being significant cuts to the national school lunch program. SNAP and Tannif. That's a different subject, but uh but yeah, no, I think you're you're you're um right there, Bill. >> So, >> just a comment. >> I would be shocked to you'd be
047hardressed to feed kids twice a day for what we can do it for. So, and that's thanks to our wonderful people from organic life back there. They do a great job. But yes, I can't imagine I'm with them. I can't imagine much program. So, it's too important. >> Okay. >> Any other questions? >> All right. Can I please >> have a motion to approve the display of the FY26 tenative budget and publish notice of public hearing as presented? >> So move second. >> Okay. Arrow G motion. Second. >> No, you got the motion. She got the second. >> Oh, okay. That's >> okay. >> Yes. >> I will vote yes. Jessica, >> yes. >> Harland, >> I. >> Debbie, >> yes. >> Motion carries. Great. Thank you. And thank you again, Mike, for that presentation
048twice tonight. Um, okay. Let's let's move on to board communication. Um, I guess I'll start out with a quick update that finance committee met briefly before the meeting. Um, we heard a presentation from Mr. Zagger about the tenative budget and the plan the schedule for the posting of the budget and its approval. Uh, and we had a presentation from Glenn Molini about our plans for summer 2026 school construction and how the incredible work that's been done leading up to this year has allowed us to move into that new phase. And thank you again, Glenn, uh, for that. Um, NSSO Debbie, would you update us please? Certainly um I guess for this part uh fortunately there is no July meeting for NSSO so there really isn't much to talk about there um however I am working
049very closely with Dr. who is the superintendent for NSSO um on the current reorganization and we are setting up meetings with all of the representatives for all of the feeder districts um because again just like we have the no surprises we want to make sure that they're aware of everything that's going on with the reorganization and with the uh update of the articles of agreement because those have not unfortunately not been looked at in 10 years. So, we've got a lot of things that we need to update there. And with this setting up with a uh two-tiered board, it's quite important. So, we'll be doing that next week. So, I will have a lot more to report back in in August. >> Great. Thank you, Debbie. Um Edra, Bill, >> thank you. Uh very quickly,
050as a reminder, Ed's annual legislative breakfast will be held here on August 1st. That's a week from tomorrow. Participation is limited. As of 4:00 this afternoon, there are three seats left. So, if you haven't registered, you can do so on the Ed website. If you aren't able to attend, but have a question for our legislators that you would like to see addressed, please contact me in the interim. And that's it for Red. >> Okay. Thank you. For the record, I am registered. >> My understanding is uh that we're probably about 10% of the uh of the anticipated turnout. We usually are, but you know, we don't have to travel real far to get there, so there's an >> um IASB bill. >> Um again, quickly, COSBA, the Consortium of State School Board Associations, is holding
051a federal advocacy conference in Washington DC from September 7th to 9th. If you're interested, for additional information, see the IASB and Cosmo websites. And that is all for that. >> Thank you, Bill Northcook. Garland. >> Well, as we speak, um, staff is working on potential new locations, uh, for North Cook. As I explained at our last meeting, we had over we have overgrown our facility that we've been in for only 5 years. Uh, we expected a phone call that they'd have something for us to approve somewhere about. Now, I've not gotten that phone call yet. So, we're just waiting to see what the hang-ups are. We'll have another meeting in, I believe, September. So, uh, if if we get an emergency call, I'll let everybody know what's happening at that time. >> Great. Great. Thank
052you. >> You're welcome. >> Um, and for local government agency updates, just a reminder, if you have any updates, please make sure to send those in uh to Miss Bender and I for inclusion in the August agenda. All right, moving right along. We are Oh, we're we're at the end. All right. The next regular meeting I'm always surprised, you know, the next regular meeting of the board of education is scheduled for August Thursday, August 21st, 2025 at 7 p.m. right here in the admin building. And with that, may I please get a motion to adjourn the July 24th regular board of education meeting? >> So moved. >> Okay. Motion by Debbie, second by Ilana. >> Jessica, >> yes. >> Debbie, >> yes. Harland >> Iana >> yes >> and I will vote yes and have
053a good night everybody >> thank you very much we are adjourned