A District 2:25 Update 

Timely news from Glenbrook High School District 225 

 
Students and Staff Who Excel

Board recognizes GBS Swimming and Diving for 4th place title

The Board recognized the GBS Swimming and Diving team of Amanda Browder, Bailey Moynihan, Katie Iida, Sarah Grieve, Niki Wells, Kelly Cordes, Kimmy Durkin, Katie Wells and Olivia Smoliga for their 4th place finish during the state meet the weekend of November 16-18.

GBS Swim
Members of the GBS Swimming and Diving team stand with Coach Kelly Timson.

 

 

GBS qualified four events for the finals and earned state championships in every event. Additionally, GBS set state records in these events.

 

Smoliga became the first American girls' high school swimmer ever to swim under 22 seconds in the 50 freestyle, and her time of 21.99 was not only a new IHSA state record but also a national record. Her state championship swim in the 100 backstroke also set a new state and national record with a time of 51.43.


The GBS 200 freestyle relay team of Smoliga, Moynihan, Niki Wells, and Katie Wells earned a 1st place state medal and also set a new IHSA state record with a time of 1:32.98. The GBS 400 freestyle relay team of Katie Wells, Cordes, Moynihan and Smoliga also swam to a state championship 1st place finish in a state record time of 3:24.50.

 

Also, following the state meet, Smoliga traveled to Istanbul, Turkey to represent the United States in the FINA Short Course World Swimming Championships.

 

On December 13, after qualifying 7th for the 100M Backstroke final, Smoliga beat second place Mie Oestergaard Nielsen of Denmark by nearly half a second with a time of 56.64 seconds and earned the title of world champion. She is now the second-fastest American, behind only Natalie Coughlin (55.97), and ahead of USA Olympian Missy Franklin (56.73), according to the Chicago Tribune.

 

Smoliga also earned a bronze medal in the USA's 4x100 Medley Relay Team, which finished third behind Denmark and Australia, a silver medal in the 50M Backstroke final and broke the American record in the 50M Backstroke with her time of 26.13

Calendar   
 
Second semester Board meetings take place @GBN  
 
Regular Board Meeting
  Jan. 28, 7 p.m.@ GBN

Regular Board Meeting
 Feb. 11, 7 p.m.@ GBN

Regular Board Meeting
Feb. 25 7 p.m. @GBN
 
Meeting Highlights

Board reviews new courses

On Monday, January 14, the Glenbrook High School District 225 Board of Education reviewed a list of proposed new courses for the 2013-14 school year.  The administration recommended the following new courses:

 

Glenbrook North:

 

Career and Life Skills

Sports Management 161 & 162: This course is in direct response to student interest and to address the expanding number of sports management programs available at the collegiate level. (One semester elective)

 

Fine Arts

Electronic Music 361: This course would be a continuation of the Electronic Music program and offers additional challenges. (One semester elective)

 

Social Studies

Sports and Society (summer school offering): This would be a curricular change to expand the current course and change credit from .025 to .50. The limited credit discouraged students from previously enrolling in the course.

 

World Languages

Hebrew 563 & 573

These courses would be part of the continued development of GBN's Modern Hebrew language program to meet the  needs of current students. (Yearlong elective)

 

 

Glenbrook South:

 

Applied Technology

PLTW Introduction to Engineering Design (IED): The major focus of the IED course is to expose students to the design process, research and analysis, teamwork, communication methods, global and human impacts, engineering standards and technical documentation. (Yearlong elective)

 

PLTW Principles of Engineering: Students would be exposed to major concepts to better prepare them for a post-secondary engineering course of study. (Yearlong elective)

 

English

Honors News and Sports Broadcasting: Advanced students in News and Sports Broadcasting would act as directors of current programs broadcast over GBS TV and be responsible for the assignments of any student in the program (production work, live broadcasts, writing) as well as the management of novice learners. (Yearlong elective)

 

Social Studies

AP Microeconomics: In response to numerous AP Macroeconomics alumni and parents asking for an AP Microeconomics class, this course would combine both one-semester long courses to create a full-year course. (Yearlong elective)

 

World Languages

American Sign Language 363: ASL has been a 2-year language program for more than 14 years. Numerous students, parents and guidance staff have expressed interest in extending the sequence. (Yearlong elective)

 

The new courses proposed will have little to no impact on District resources.  For a complete look at the New Courses Report as presented to the Board, please visit the District website (www.glenbrook225.org) Board of Education section. The Board is expected to take action on this agenda item at the next scheduled meeting on January 28.

 

"It is important that the District continues to offer a diversity of courses that encompass both the academic rigor and comprehensive educational experience our community expects of the Glenbrooks," said Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services Rosanne Williamson.

 

District sees cost savings following changes to workers' compensation, insurance plans

A more streamlined approach to workers' compensation and changes to insurance plans have yielded significant savings for Glenbrook High School District 225.

 

During a report to the Board on January 14, Assistant Superintendent of Business Hillarie Siena said over the past two years the district has seen a reduction in the time it takes for an employee to return to work, as well as the total number of claims and costs and expenses per claim.

 

As a member of SSCRMP, the district was able to achieve these reductions through a new administrative model that brings greater efficiency through the utilization of a dedicated claims adjuster and safety coordinator. In addition, the District has benefited from the development of new safety and security initiatives, onsite safety inspections and ongoing employee training.

 

As part of her presentation, Siena shared that the total costs for workman's compensation has dropped by 63 percent, resulting in a savings of nearly $230,000. This is based on a comparison of a two-year period from 2009-2010 to 2011-2012.

 

Total employee insurance costs from August 31, 2011 to August 31, 2012 fell from $11,285,036 to $10,642,804. This was achieved through increasing premium costs to cover projected shortfalls, implementing a new PPO dental plan and increasing participation in the District's wellness program.

 

 "With salaries and benefits making up the largest component of our budget, we understand the importance of implementing different cost savings measures," Siena said. "These efforts also go hand-in-hand with increasing the overall health and safety of our employees, which remains our top priority."

 

In 2008, a Cost Containment Committee was formed by the District to annually review insurance plans and implement cost saving measures.

 

 "Looking forward, our committee will continue to evaluate current practices in the District and bring forward new ideas about how we can reduce our expenditures. Through board support, employee education and participation, health promotion, business partnerships and other methods we also can continue to meet future challenges," Siena said.

 

For a copy of Siena's presentation, click here.                   

Consent agenda: Regular actions such as appointments, resignations, FOIA, vendor bills, minutes, gifts, etc. are approved during the consent agenda. To view supporting documentation (when available) and the official meeting minutes, please visit the school board section of our website.  Please note, official minutes are available after Board approval the following meeting.