Board adopts tentative tax levy
The Board of Education adopted a tentative tax levy increase of 3.5 percent for tax year 2011. This represents 1.5 percent based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI), and 2 percent for the capture of new property growth.
Under the Property Tax Extension Limitation Law (PTELL), Cook County school districts are limited to a property tax revenue increase of 5 percent or the current CPI (1.5 percent), whichever is less. In addition, school districts are allowed to gain additional revenue from new property introduced to the tax base. School districts commonly levy more than they will actually receive because at the time of levy, the equalized assessed valuation (EAV) for new property is unknown. Historically, District 225 has advertised 2 percent for new growth each year, but has received between 1.0 and 1.5 percent.
The 3.5 percent tax levy request represents total revenue of $99,636,235, (an increase of 2.60 percent from last year). Although it is not required since the total tax levy request is under 5 percent, the Board approved the advertisement of a voluntary Truth in Taxation hearing as part of their next scheduled meeting on Monday, December 12, as a further effort for government transparency.
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Board continues discussion on turf fields
The Board of Education engaged in further discussion about the construction of synthetic turf fields for both Glenbrook North and Glenbrook South. If approved, the project would be funded by a number of sources including: Athletic Booster Club Donations, Small Building Project Donations, School Community Donations, Capital Projects Reserve, and Build America Bond Funds. The total cost is approximately $3.5 million and includes synthetic surfaces, irrigation systems, site work/drainage, running track replacement, water detention, and fees/contingencies. If approved, turf installation would occur at GBS during the summer of 2012. Due to water detention permits, GBN would receive its turf field over the summer of 2013.
The district expects the new fields to increase usage from 4 percent to potentially 100 percent of allowable time* and would allow many more student groups to utilize the outdoor facilities. The fields would be used for physical education classes, marching band, school and community athletic practices and competitions.
"The entire school community would benefit from the installation of turf fields," said GBS Physical Education Instructional Supervisor Steve Stanicek. "Additionally, we would consider the new fields to be our largest classrooms, touched by nearly all of our students at some point in their educational careers."
The Board is expected to vote on the proposal at the next scheduled meeting on December 12.
*Allowable time is defined as approximately ¾ of the year and 3,500 total hours.
Board reviews ten years of trend data
Each year, the district issues a Dashboard Report that illustrates trends on student achievement and demographics. The report is meant to provide an easy-to-read summary of statistics for our school community. There is also a financial Dashboard Report that is presented annually in the spring.
The highlights from the 2011 report were presented to the Board and will be posted on the district website. Highlights include:
Student achievement:- Graduation rates continue to remain high despite recent federally mandated changes in how this rate is calculated. The 2011 district average is 98 percent.
- The percentage of students attending college at both schools has consistently been over 95 percent since 2003.
- Composite ACT scores at both schools recently reached all-time highs for the class of 2011.
- AP participation has steadily increased since 2002 at both schools while the percentage of students potentially qualifying for college credit remains around 90 percent.
Student enrollment- Total student enrollment has grown 6.05 percent over the last 10 years, increasing from 4490 students in 2002 to 4762 students in 2011. District enrollment is projected to fluctuate somewhat over the next 6 years, with 4956 students in 2017, an increase of 4.07 percent as compared to this year's population; however, projections beyond three years are volatile.
Student Demographics- The overall ethnic makeup of the Glenbrook student population is approximately: 75.3 percent White, 15.4 percent Asian, 5.6 percent Hispanic, 2.6 percent Multi-racial and 1 percent Black. These percentages have remained fairly consistent for the past three years.
Attendance/Dropout rates- Student attendance rates have been consistently above the State average. The District's dropout rate has been at zero percent for the past two years.
Special Education- The percentage of special education enrollment in the district has grown from 10.96 percent in 2001-2002 to 11.21 percent in 2009-2010 but has remained below state (14.88 percent) and NSSED (15.20 percent) levels. State and NSSED numbers include students in grades K-12.
Staff- 89.9 percent of teachers hold master's degrees or above, compared to a State average of 60.4 percent.
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