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Board Highlights are timely recaps of School Board meetings. They are emailed to staff, parents, and interested community members before the official minutes are approved and posted. 

 

Links to pertinent memos and presentations from the Board packet are highlighted in green. Board packets are posted the day before regularly scheduled Board meetings.

 

Meeting podcasts, packets, and Board information can be accessed using the links on the left. 

Regular Meeting


Board President, Ms. Kendra Wallace, called the meeting and acknowledged that summer began with two great Institute Days for District 36, as well as a Board Retreat to discuss goals and the new Strategic Plan. She also welcomed Mr. Joshua Swanner and Mr. Anthony Venetico, who were later approved as the new Assistant Principals for The Skokie School and Carleton Washburne School, respectively.

Superintendent, Ms. Trisha Kocanda, noted that eighth grade graduation, an annual highlight planned by parents and staff, included impressive commencement addresses and performances. Carleton Washburne School students also earned Highest Honors in the 2014-15 WordMasters Challenge™, a national vocabulary competition involving nearly 150,000 students. Ms. Kocanda attended the New Trier High School ground-breaking ceremony with a sixth grade student from The Skokie School who was representative of the first class of students who will attend high school at the new New Trier. The District's elementary schools commemorated the end of the year with the traditional Crows on Parade display at Crow Island School, an interactive Animal Fair at Hubbard Woods School, and a Dream Green Block Party at Greeley School.  Nationally renowned educator and speaker, Grant Lichtman, author of #EdJourney, led District 36 teachers and administrative staff through two productive and empowering Institute Days after students began their summer break.

 

 

Superintendent Entry Plan Report

 

 

Superintendent Kocanda presented a draft of the Shared Vision Statement & Revised Strategic Plan for 2015-2020, noting that the Strategic Plan represents data collected during the Entry Plan Process. The revised Plan will incorporate the seven ambitious opportunities that emerged from Entry Plan meetings including: the development of a Student Growth Model, Special Education, Professional Learning System (Winnetka University), Kindergarten length of day study, STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Math), 21st Century Experiential Learning, and Environmental Design. A draft Shared Vision statement was developed with constituent input. Existing goals were also refined throughout the process. This summer and fall the Revised Strategic Plan & Shared Vision Statement will be presented to stakeholders for review and further refinement before it is adopted at the December School Board meeting.

 


Presentations


Measuring Our Mobile Learning Initiative (MLI)

 

 

Director of Technology, Maureen Chertow Miller, shared the first comprehensive collection of data from year one of the Mobile Learning Initiative (MLI). The data measures the three student outcomes presented to the School Board in January:

  1. Students have increased opportunities for self-directed learning experiences.
  2. Students use technology to effectively initiate and engage in collaborative learning.
  3. Students are savvy, strategic, responsible and balanced users of technology.

The data indicates that access to technology has enhanced teaching and learning. Areas for growth include Digital Literacy & Citizenship, Parent Education and Professional Learning. 


 

Preliminary 2015-2016 Budget


 

Chief Financial Officer, Dr. Susan Pingitore, provided the preliminary Fiscal Year 2015 budget, noting that it will be reviewed and refined before it is presented for approval at the the September 29, 2015, Board Meeting. Expenditures are currently projected to decrease by 1.8%. Budget assumptions include state funding, property tax revenues, revenue projections, federal IDEA estimates and interest. Staffing, revenue, and expenditures will be monitored throughout the summer and a budget update will be presented at the August 18, 2015, Board Meeting.  



Informational Memos


1. Summer Curriculum Work

This summer, over fifteen curriculum teams will be revising units, lessons and assessments. A communications plan is in place for sharing the revised curriculum. 

 

2. Year-End School and District Improvement Plans

The Year-End District and School Improvement Plans reports were presented to the School Board. This year, the goals were focused on math, reading and writing. A summary of goals, action plans, and evidence of goal achievement were presented.

 

3. Prevailing Wage Resolution

Each year, the School Board is required to adopt a resolution to pay the prevailing wage rates for laborers, workers, and mechanics employed in Public Works projects in the District. This was later approved. 

 

4. Designating Interest Earnings Resolution

Under the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) rules, the District must pass an annual resolution to retain the ability to transfer interest from one fund to another or to assure that interest remains as interest in subsequent fiscal years. The Board later approved a resolution Designating Interest Earnings for fiscal year 2014-2015. 

 

5. Teacher and Education Support Personnel Evaluation Summaries

By State law, the District is required to formally evaluate non-tenured teachers every year and tenured teachers every other year. For the 2014-2015 school year, 120 teachers were evaluated. All other staff are evaluated annually. A summary of the evaluations were made available to the Board.

 

6. Hubbard Woods Garden Gift

A family in the community has offered a gift, valued at $8,000, of a student garden at Hubbard Woods School. The garden would be approximately 30 square feet, surrounded by a wooden fence, and allow children to tend the plants. The project was later approved.



Action Items

 

 

The Consent Agenda and the following items were approved:

  1. Prevailing Wage Resolution
  2. Interest Resolution
  3. 2015-2016 Tentative Budget
  4. Hubbard Woods Garden Gift
  5. Hubbard Woods PTO Gift - Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) Lab & Project Room
  6. Compensation Increases and Final Contract Language for the SEIU Custodian and Maintenance Staff Agreement 2015-2018
  7. Denial of non-resident student admission tuition exception
  8. Two Intra-District Transfer Requests approved
  9. 2015-2016 employment contract for the position of Assistant Principal for The Skokie School
  10. 2015-2016 employment contract for the position of Assistant Principal for Carleton Washburne School
  11. Purchase of Math Materials Grades 6-8
Upcoming Regular Meeting Dates
August 18, 2015
September 29, 2015
October 20, 2015
November 17, 2015
December 15, 2015
January 26, 2016
February 23, 2016
March 15, 2016
April 19, 2016
May 17, 2016
June 7, 2016

Regular meetings are open to the public and will be held in The Skokie School Resource Center. Regular meetings begin at 7:15 P.M. Work sessions are also open to the public and may be scheduled at the discretion of the Board. Discussion topics and times for work sessions will be posted on the District website 24 hours in advance.
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