CCSD15 logo CCSD15 Board of Education
580 N. 1st Bank Drive, Palatine, IL 60067 · 847-963-3000 · www.ccsd15.net

MISSION STATEMENT:
To produce world-class learners
by building a connected learning community.   


BOARD BRIEFS: April 13, 2016, Regular Meeting
  
Meeting Video and Agenda Attachments

Special Performance--Plum Grove String Ensemble: (Video Clip: 00:00-12:48) Prior to the meeting, a string ensemble from Plum Grove Junior High performed several pieces for the Board.

Pledge of Allegiance--Walter R. Sundling Junior High: (Video Clip: 12:48-20:00) Jason Dietz, Sundling Principal, introduced the school's select chorus, the Sundling Sound, which performed a song and led the Pledge of Allegiance.

Student Recognition--Special Olympics Blue Jays: (Video Clip: 20:00-24:57) Susan Gehring, Assistant Superintendent for Student Services, introduced the Blue Jays, District 15's Special Olympics team, which won the gold medal at the Illinois Special Olympics State Basketball Tournament in March.

Student Recognition--Illinois Grade School Music Association (IGSMA) Solo and Ensemble Contest Winners: (Video Clip: 24:58-36:09) Kate Arenberg, Fine Arts Coordinator, and music teachers from across the District introduced students whose performances received perfect scores in the Illinois Grade School Music Association's annual Solo and Ensemble Contest held in February.

Superintendent's Report--Facilities Plan Committee v2.0 Report: (Video Clip: 45:06-1:16:13) Scott Thompson, Ed.D., Superintendent of Schools, introduced four Committee members who outlined the group's work and presented the following recommendations for addressing the District's long-term facilities needs:
  • Build an elementary school for Grades K-5 in northeast Palatine.
  • Use the District's Ela Road property to build a middle school in the southwest portion of the District.
  • Transition the District's existing junior highs to middle schools serving Grades 6-8.
  • Align the middle schools with the high schools their students will attend.
  • Close Gray M. Sanborn School, which is the District's oldest facility.
The Committee reported that it considered several sets of options for addressing the District's long-term facilities needs, and determined that these are the best steps to take to meet the two broad goals that guided its work:

GOAL 1: Address the Educational Needs of Students
  • Provide classrooms for full-day kindergarten.
  • Provide a location for intensive services for English Language Learners.
  • Address overcrowding issues throughout the District.
  • Provide additional classrooms to accommodate potential growth in student enrollment caused by new development.
GOAL 2: Improve the Accessibility and Organization of Schools
  • Expand the community school program near areas with families in greatest need.
  • Reduce student travel times on buses, and reduce transportation costs.
  • Reduce the amount of funding spent on maintenance of the District's oldest buildings.
  • Align junior highs with the high schools their students will attend.
  • Provide increased opportunity for students eligible for pre-school programs.
The Board is now seeking community feedback on the Facilities Plan Committee v2.0 Report to the Board of Education, which can be viewed in its entirety on the District 15 website. Residents can share their thoughts via Let's Talk.

Superintendent's Report--Teachers' Contract: (Presentation Video Clip: 1:16:14-1:22:53, Vote Video Clip: 1:49:49-1:54:20) Dr. Thompson reported that the District and the Classroom Teachers' Council (CTC) took a different approach to agreeing on a new teachers' contract this year. Instead of reverting to a traditional approach to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement, they formed a CTC Contract Exploratory Committee to discuss and brainstorm possible contract components. He then presented-and the Board later approved-the agreement that the Committee reached on new a 10-year contract.
 
The Committee, which was comprised of three representatives each from the D15 Administration and the CTC, reached the proposed agreement because both parties felt it would help safeguard the long-term financial health of the District, as its annual costs fall significantly below the 10-year average of the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Annual increases for most teachers will average approximately 2.5 percent for the first four years of the contract, and approximately 4 percent for the last six years. The total cost of salary increases for this group will average 0.9 percent annually over the course of the 10 years of the contract. The CPI average for the past 10 years is 1.9 percent.

Palatine CCSD15 Board Agreements: (Video Clip: 1:25:50-1:26:58) The Board approved a list of Board Agreements that were developed during the Board's self-evaluation meeting in March with Barbara Toney, Illinois Association of School Boards Field Services Director. The agreements are intended to help the seven individual board members come together to make decisions as one board, and they will guide the Board's actions moving forward. The Board Agreements March 2016 can be viewed in their entirety on the District 15 website.

Citizens Address the Board: (Video Clip: 1:31:14-1:48:13) Three residents addressed the Board regarding the Facilities Plan Committee's recommendations.

Approval of 2015-16 Revised School Calendar: (Video Clip: 1:54:21-1:55:17) The Board approved the 2015-16 Revised School Calendar as presented. In planning the calendar, five emergency days are included, and when they are not used, the Board traditionally shortens the school year by any remaining unused emergency days. This year, the District didn't use any emergency days due to snow and dangerous conditions, so the last day of school will be Friday, June 3, and it will be a half-day of classes for students in Grades 1-7. Kindergarten and early childhood classes will dismiss for the summer a day earlier-Thursday, June 2-and the school year will end for eighth-grade students after their respective graduation ceremonies earlier in the week.   
 
Celebration of the 70th Anniversary of the Consolidation of School District 15: (Video Clip: 2:02:13-2:04:58) Dr. Thompson noted that the District was celebrating its 70th Anniversary. On March 2, 1946, a referendum question was on the ballot to consolidate six of the districts within Palatine Township. Voters gave approval to consolidation by a resounding vote of 744 to 172. The following month, on April 13, 1946, voters went to the polls again to elect the first Community Consolidated School District 15 Board of Education.

Dr. Thompson marked this occasion by presenting the Board with updated copies of Generations of Excellence, a book of the District's history, and inviting those in attendance to enjoy a donut, which was the signature gift of Joseph M. Kiszka, the book's author and a longtime District 15 administrator. Dr. Thompson said that, when Mr. Kiszka reminded him of this occasion, he shared the following quote from Gray M. Sanborn, the District's first school board president:

The year 1946 will be one of the greatest years Palatine will have experienced if during that time the reorganization of the elementary schools of the township becomes a reality. Better educational facilities for the children of the village and their rural areas is a crying need. District 15 has been coasting along on school facilities provided 30 years ago when the present building was erected. It is common sense that we can't ride all the time. We must get out and push a little.

Dr. Thompson concluded his remarks by saying, "On this 70th anniversary of the consolidation of District 15, the Board is embarking on decisions that could make 2016 another one of the greatest years the community has experienced. Board members, District 15 staff, parents, and citizens have gotten out and are pushing to make the District a top-notch system for children well into the future. There is a good feeling about the next 70 years for the District serving our community's children!"

Next Regular Board of Education Meeting: Wednesday, May 11, 2016, at 7 p.m. at Walter R. Sundling Junior High School, 1100 N. Smith Street, Palatine. 
 
BOARD OF EDUCATION
Peggy Babcock, President
James G. Ekeberg, MD, Vice President
David W. Seiffert, Secretary
Gerald D. Chapman, Ed.D. 
David Gurion
Zubair Khan
Jessica C. Morrison

SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS 
Scott B. Thompson, Ed.D.

COMMUNITY CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL DISTRICT 15
Serving all or part of:
Palatine · Rolling Meadows · Inverness · Arlington Heights
Hoffman Estates · Schaumburg · South Barrington
847-963-3000
www.ccsd15.net