Last day of school set for 2013-14  

On April 14, the District 58 School Board voted to set Wednesday, June 11 as the last student attendance day for the 2013-14 school year. Four emergency days were used during the 2013-14 school year, and more attendance days were scheduled than required.

Promotion exercises at Herrick and O'Neill will take place Tuesday, June 10. 

The Board also voted to establish Thursday, June 12 as a certified staff member work day.  

The Board approved the calendar for the 2014-15 school year at its March 10 meeting. Click here to view the full calendar for 2014-15. 

O'Neill Middle School seventh grade science teacher Dr. Meg Van Dyke is one of just two DuPage County teachers to be named a 2014 finalist for the Golden Apple Award for Excellence in Teaching. A total of 32 finalists were selected from a pool of 620 nominations and 272 applicants representing fourth through eighth grade teachers throughout the Chicago metropolitan area.

The finalists will participate in a final round of review and observations prior to the selection and announcement of the 10 award recipients. A Celebration of Excellence in honor of the 32 finalists will be held April 19 at the Chicago O'Hare Marriott.  

"I was surprised, delighted and humbled to find out I had been nominated for the Golden Apple Award. It is a truly an honor to be considered for this distinction, and to see teachers recognized for their dedication to this profession is heartwarming," Dr. Van Dyke said. "I am excited to learn how this opportunity can positively impact my future teaching in Illinois in the coming years, and I look forward to collaborating with such an esteemed and dedicated group of educators in the future."

Several Herrick and O'Neill students earned awards in the Downers Grove Junior Woman's Club's 2014 Junior High Art Contest, which is open to all seventh and eighth grade students in Downers Grove. In addition, the Club recently honored two District 58 staff members with 2014 Outstanding Teacher Awards. Each year the award recognizes teachers in Downers Grove area schools who are truly special and remarkable in the field of education.   

Junior High Art Contest winners

Work by District 58 students was selected as follows:

• Best in Show: 7th Grader Brin Driscoll of Herrick Middle School for "Fall Day in the Mountains"
• 1st Place: 8th Grader Hollis Kerr of Herrick Middle School for "Owl"
• 2nd Place: 7th Grader Taylor Fingerhut of Herrick Middle School for "Red Roof"
• Honorable Mentions: 7th Grader Margarita Kuzmanova of O'Neill for "International" and 7th Grader Ellie Maher of Herrick Middle School for "Bike Ride to Gilbert Park

All artists were honored March 25 at the Lincoln Center with friends and family present. Collectively, the winners received $250 on behalf of the Community Bank of Downers Grove and the Downers Grove Junior Woman's Club.

Connor Hopkins, a sixth grader at Pierce Downer School, nominated his teacher, Megan Finnegan (left, with Connor).  

According to Connor, "When I can't understand a new idea, she finds a different book or worksheet so I can learn it. We talk about my problems and fix them so I can have fun in school. She helps me feel better when I have a bad day because she is so nice. I feel proud of myself because I am learning thanks to Ms. Finnegan." 

Maxwell Churma, a second grader at Indian Trail School, nominated his teacher, Karen Ryan. Maxwell says, "Mrs. Ryan is the best teacher ever. Because she is kind caring and I love her. And I enjoy doing math with her. My wish is that all kids could have a teacher like Mrs. Ryan. I will always remember her."

"We are proud to honor these extremely talented teachers who are passionate about education and have positively impacted students in our local schools," said Junior Woman's Club President Joanne Vought. "Part of our Club's mission is to support education, and we were impressed by all the applications from students and the incredible things they said about the teachers here in the community."

Finnegan and Ryan were honored with the Outstanding Teacher Award on March 25 at The Lincoln Center. Students read excerpts from their Outstanding Teacher Award submissions during the ceremony.

Indianapolis classroom benefits from Hillcrest teacher's recognition 

Hillcrest reading specialist Christine LaPointe's recent recognition as a Chicago Blackhawks Top-Shelf Teacher ended up benefiting a classroom garden in Indianapolis.   

LaPointe was selected as the Top-Shelf Teacher for the Chicago Blackhawks' March 21 game versus the Carolina Hurricanes. She was nominated by a parent, and her name was drawn for the award.  

In addition to receiving free tickets to the game, a Blackhawks jersey and recognition during the game, LaPointe also was awarded a $100 gift card to www.donorschoose.org, a website that matches up potential donors with schools in need of funds for projects and purchases. Teachers post project requests on the site, and donors can give any amount to a project that interests them.  

"I chose a classroom in Indianapolis that wants to start a garden because many of the students live in a high poverty community and some students have never seen a garden before," LaPointe said.

Spotlight on our Schools:  

1:1 Program Considerations and Future Expansion 

Dr. Matt Rich, Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction, and James Eichmiller, Director of Innovative Technology and Learning, provided an update on the District's highly successful 1:1 pilot and shared a proposal for expanding the program.

At least two grade levels at each elementary building, a total of approximately 1,500 students, are taking part in the 1:1 pilot program in which they are provided with a device to use throughout the day and take home in the evenings. The District has experienced positive gains in all measures, including student collaboration, ownership and engagement; staff flexibility and choice in meeting learning and curriculum objectives; and student growth from fall to winter on the Measures of Academic Progress tests.

The expansion proposal would increase the number of K-7 students participating in the 1:1 tablet program to 3,600, with an emphasis on the participation of third through seventh grade students. Within the plan, all current grade levels participating at each building, as well as all current participating students, would continue with the program next year. For example, if the third grade at Highland participated in the 1:1 program this year, those third-graders would continue with their devices next year in fourth grade and the incoming third-graders would receive devices next year as well. Additionally, teachers from other grade levels not already scheduled to participate in the 1:1 program next year through this roll-up plan will be able to apply to participate next year through the challenge-by-choice application. If implemented, the expansion proposal will next year provide enough tablet and laptop devices in each school for all students within any of the District 58 schools to be fully 1:1 at any given time, allowing all students and staff access to digital resources.

The District is able to continue funding the 1:1 program without expanding the technology/curriculum budgets. The plan calls for purchasing 450 additional devices (about $180,000) out of the remaining 2013-14 budget, and purchasing another 1,650 devices (about $660,000) out of the 2014-15 budget. An additional 1,000 devices ($400,000) would be needed in order to complete the 1:1 program district-wide and provide a device to all K-8 District 58 students.  

Board members said they appreciated all of the information that has been provided to them throughout the 1:1 pilot. Staff will conduct a follow-up survey this spring with the 1:1 students, teachers and parents, and hopes to receive Board approval in May to proceed with the expansion proposal. Professional development opportunities for staff will continue, including real-time, ongoing experiences with the District's instructional coaches. Staff also is looking at hosting parent education opportunities this summer.

Superintendent's Report

Superintendent Dr. Kari Cremascoli welcomed James Eichmiller as Director of Innovative Technology and Learning. She reported that the District has launched online registration, which is much easier than the previous paper registration format. Last week she attended the Education Foundation's annual Distinguished Service Awards, at which a record number of deserving staff were recognized and Highland's Cheryl Varys and Pierce Downer's Megan Finnegan were recognized as the winners. She also reported that Kingsley's Marla Gilbert has been named the Downers Grove Elementary Education Association's Teacher of the Year. Cremascoli also reported that facility improvement work completed over spring break went well. Work has begun on the early replacement of the fire alarm at Herrick, and a fire drill conducted after spring break went smoothly. Lastly, she reported that several items are on the agenda for this evening related to summer facilities work.

The Board of Education also:

• Was led in the flag salute by representatives from Lester School's student council, who also reported on the organization's activities   
• Heard the Middle School Scheduling Committee's recommendations for 2014-15, which include adjusting staffing levels to better balance class sizes, reorganizing students to allow for greater flexibility in scheduling, and continuing to monitor the structure to best support individual student needs  
• Awarded the bid for HVAC life safety work at seven schools including alternates 1 and 2 to Troop Contracting, Inc., for the cost of $1,311,300
• Awarded the bid for flooring life safety work at Herrick, Highland and Whittier to Vortex Enterprises for the cost of $340,000
• Approved the one-year contract extension for special education transportation with Septran, Inc., for the 2014-15 school year with a rate increase of 1.7%
• Authorized District 58's participation in various state and federal grant programs for 2014-15
• Approved a room rental agreement between District 58 and School Association for Special Education in DuPage County (SASED)
• Adopted revisions to Policy 5100.2 regarding health, eye and dental examination, immunization, and exclusion of students
• Adopted revisions to Policy 5111 regarding student promotion
• Approved an agreement between District 58 and the Village of Downers Grove for repairs and/or maintenance for public improvements (asphalt repairs), subject to review and approval by District 58's attorney