Superintendent's Reports -- Recommendation for Financial Advisor: Michael Adamczyk, SFO, the District's Chief School Business Official, presented the Board with a proposal from William Blair & Company, LLC, to serve as the District's financial advisor for the issuance of life safety bonds. Their fee is $1.50 per $1,000 par amount of bonds sold, which equals $30,000 for a $20 million bond sale. Similarly, they would receive no fee if no bonds are issued. Later in the meeting, the Board approved the acceptance of the William Blair Financial Advisory Agreement, dated September 8, 2015, as recommended. 

Superintendent's Reports -- Student Enrollment Update: Matthew Barbini, Ed.D., Deputy Superintendent of Schools, reported that the District's enrollment has decreased by 23 students compared to this time last year. As of August 28, the District had 11,974 students enrolled in Grades K-8, and 177 students in the early childhood program at John G. Conyers Learning Academy. Dr. Barbini noted that the District's budget was built on the assumption that it would employee the equivalent of 889.67 full-time teachers this year, and -- as of the report -- that number stood at 890.67, just one teacher in excess of the projected number.

During his report, Dr. Barbini also outlined general education class sizes in relation to Board targets. Kindergarten has an average of 20.2 students (target 20), primary classes -- 23.9 (target 24), intermediate classes -- 24.8 (target 26), and junior high classes -- 26.17 (target 28). Per the state, the average enrollment in bilingual classes cannot exceed 90 percent of District's regular education class sizes, and this year it stands as follows: bilingual kindergarten classes -- 17.1 students (bilingual target 18), bilingual multi-age first- and second-grade classes -- 18.9 (bilingual target 21.6), and bilingual third-grade classes -- 19 students (bilingual target 21.6).

Although class size averages are on target, a total of eight elementary classes (four of them gifted sections) have 30 or more students. Dr. Barbini noted that, when buildings are confronted by large class sizes at a grade level, the building's administration works in conjunction with staff to provide additional assistance to those classrooms, frequently in the form of additional program assistant hours or additional resource teaching time.

Superintendent's Reports -- Summer Construction Projects Update: Jan Taniguchi, Principal Partner for STR Partners, the District's architect of record, reported that the District completed two primary construction efforts this summer. One was a series of life safety projects that replaced galvanized pipes at Plum Grove Junior High, Gray M. Sanborn School, and Lincoln School. The other was another series of life safety projects that replaced fire alarms at Thomas Jefferson School, Gray M. Sanborn School, Frank C. Whiteley School, Marion Jordan School, and Pleasant Hill School.

Mr. Taniguchi said the fire alarm project went very smoothly, but that the pipe replacement process was more challenging because it required demolition of walls, abatement of asbestos, and installation of new fixtures in addition to the replacement of the pipes. Nonetheless, all of the summer's construction efforts were sufficiently completed in time to allow all of these schools to welcome students on the first day of classes, reported Mr. Taniguchi.

Superintendent's Reports -- Two-Way Communication Software Pilot: Scott Thompson, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, explained to the Board the first step he will take to meet the 2015-16 Annual Board Goal related to increasing two-way communication opportunities for District 15's stakeholders. Dr. Thompson reported that the District is set to begin an eight-month trial of the Let's Talk! software produced by K12 Insight, an educational communications company.

The Let's Talk! software allows any stakeholder to easily engage with any member of the District 15 community. A Let's Talk! icon will be embedded on every District 15 webpage, and, when clicked, this feature will instantly offer the user an avenue for questions or comments. Let's Talk! aims to facilitate authentic communication, including reading, reflection, and prompt response to stakeholder input. It is designed to ease that process by organizing feedback and ensuring follow-up by the appropriate staff member. An intuitive "dashboard" manages access and displays common themes, average staff response times, and user satisfaction, turning every interaction into an opportunity for progress.

Dr. Thompson said the District will use this eight-month trial to pilot the program and evaluate its impact on two-way communication between the District's stakeholders. At the end of the pilot, he will provide a report to the Board and a recommendation on whether to continue using this service.

Superintendent's Report -- Luke Hardt Recognition: Dr. Thompson presented the District's "Above and Beyond Award" to Luke Hardt, the District's Maintenance Supervisor. Mr. Hardt has worked in the District for 25 years, and this summer he deftly saw to his own responsibilities while also covering many of the duties normally met by Craig Phillips, the District's Manager of Environmental Services, as Mr. Phillips was on leave for a large part of the summer.