Oct. 24th Board Meeting -- School Counts

Here are the class sizes reported at the Oct. 24th School Board meeting:

Algonquin Road School
Kindergarten
Students: 59
Classes: 3
Avg. Students per Class: 19.66

1st Grade
Students: 57
Classes: 3
Avg. Students per Class: 19

2nd Grade
Students: 66
Classes: 3
Avg. Students per Class: 22

3rd Grade
Students: 67
Classes: 3
Avg. Students per Class: 22.33

4th Grade
Students: 58
Classes: 2
Avg. Students per Class: 29

ECE
Students: 17 (7 of these students reside in District 3)

Fox River Grove Middle School
5th Grade
Students: 66

6th Grade
Students: 56

7th Grade
Students: 68

8th Grade
Students: 70

Oct. 24th Board Meeting -- Cargo Beep Beep

The Board unanimously approved the purchase of a used cargo van for up to $7K. The money comes from the Transportation Fund. Rick Miller has been using his personal vehicle, with mileage expenses of approximately $100 per month.

Before the vote, Board Member Bob Nunamaker wondered if the district could get one vehicle to be used for cargo and food transportation between the Middle School and Algonquin Road School. Supt. Jackie Krause said that this would not be workable, since food truck is used approximately 3 hours in the middle of the school day, and would be unavailable for cargo during this time. When Nunamaker asked if the district considered not serving hot lunches at Algonquin Road School, Board President Paula Zasadil told him he'd have a mutiny on his hands.

Oct. 24th Board Meeting -- From the Ashes

This week's Countryside has an article on the rebuilding of the concession stand and storage shed burned last August.

The reconstruction was discussed at the Oct. 24th Board Meeting. District 3 is involved in the reconstruction because the concession stand and shed are on Algonquin Road School grounds. The district owns the concession stand, but because the shed was not a permanent structure, it was not owned by the district.

Dr. Krause said that the repair costs to the concession stand and the fence that were damaged in the fire were estimated at $23K. If District 3 pays for the repairs, which are covered by their insurance, the deductible paid by the district would be $1K. Dr. Krause noted that the Fox River Grove Recreation Council was interested in doing the repairs (as indicated by the Countryside article), and that the families of the 14-year-olds responsible for setting the fire may be liable for the cost. She also said that increased lighting to the area may mean added cost to the district, but would increase security to the grounds.

Board Member Steve Knar said that repair estimates obtained from the Rec Council were in the range of $40K, and that the families of those responsible for the fire may not be able to shoulder all of the cost. He added that once the repairs are done, the district should consider leasing the concession stand to the Rec Council. Dr. Krause said that she would have to see if the district would be allowed to do this.

Oct. 24th Board Meeting -- Graduation Day

The Board approved moving 8th Grade graduation to June 1, 2005. Graduation was originally scheduled for May 31, but the Cary-Grove High School auditorium, where the 8th Grade graduation ceremony takes place, was previously booked for that day.

Oct. 24th Board Meeting -- Reading Group Study Update

Supt. Jackie Krause presented an update to the ongoing Reading Group study. (Those of you who are members of the Partnership for Schools e-mail group may have already seen the excellent analysis done by Tim Kassel, who lead the charge for the Reading Group study to take place. If you have not seen Tim's analysis, you can download a copy of it here.)

Dr. Krause said that a change would be made to Algonquin Road School report cards in the wake of the study. Underneath the Comments section for each quarter, the student's End of Quarter Reading Level will be indicated, showing both grade level and basal level. For example, a check mark underneath "1-2" would indicate the student is reading at 1st Grade, 2nd basal level. An explanation letter for parents, by ARS Principal Karen Machroli, would be sent home with the first report card using this assessment. (It was hoped that this change would be implemented with the first report cards of the year, but my daughter's first report card this year was in the existing format without this change.)

Asst. Supt. Tim Mahaffy said that the added reading level assessment will be all electronic, so that the district will be able to store the quarter-by-quarter results. This will help in further data analysis, said Dr. Mahaffy. Board Member Gerry Blohm noted that parents will be able to see their student's progress throughout the school year.

Vice-President Doris Sadik wondered if this would offer parents a guarantee of the level at which their child is reading. Dr. Mahaffy said that this is what the district was trying to get away from. He said that assessing, storing, and tracking basal level information is a good check for teachers used to giving just a grade level. He said the district wants teachers to feel they have the flexibility to move students to other reading groups when needed. He said the information on the report card tells the parent at which basal level their student is reading, not the student's reading level. Along with the explanation letter, parents will receive a rubric explaining the requirements for each reading group. This will help parents understand how their student is reading, and on what skills to concentrate when reading at home.

Principal Machroli said that she met with the reading teachers at ARS and asked them to write requirements for each grade level in order to develop the rubrics. Rubrics were then broken down by quarter or semester, depending on the grade level of the student.

Machroli noted that, starting this school year, all students in the 3rd Grade class started at a 3rd Grade reading level. None of these students started in a 2-2 (2nd Grade, 2nd Basal) instructional group.

Board Member Bob Nunamaker said this looks like a program to better inform parents. He wondered if there were any ancillary benefits to teaching using this program. Machroli responded that when teachers were assessing students using only grade level, that there was some level of interpretation that may have happened. She said the rubric will give teachers guidelines in grading.

Dr. Mahaffy said that the district wants to look at the continuum of reading instruction and placement for instruction; the administration doesn't want to frustrate the students.

Dr. Krause said that the rubric give guidelines to parents wondering what to do to help their student get to the next reading level. She said that the student's teacher and parent can partner to help the student. The rubrics would be sent home with the first new-format report card. They would also be available on the District 3 website.

Board Member Gerry Blohm wondered if the rubrics could be printed on the back of the report cards, since it is blank. Board President Paula Zasadil said that the rubrics may be more information than could fit on the back of the report card. She suggested printing the URL for the rubrics on the District 3 website on the report card instead.

From the audience, Tim Kassel said that there would be a presumption on the part of the parent that their student's reading level would be re-evaluated each quarter. He wondered if this was part of the plan. Machroli responded that the reading lab tests fluency weekly. Dr. Mahaffy said that there is an ongoing assessment of students, not just a quarterly assessment outside of initial placement.

Oct. 24th Board Meeting -- Dollars, Taxes

Supt. Jackie Krause brought up an appeal by the owner of 300 Opatrny to have that addresses property taxes reduced. The owner had appealed to the county assessor, and the original appeal was denied. The owner of the property is appealing the denial. The reason the owner says he is appealing is that the building, which is an apartment building, has units that are not being rented.

Supt. Krause said the owner's appeal was opposed by the Memorial Library and the village. The village is intervening in the appeal. Supt. Krause sought a motion from the Board to join the intervention by the village.

If the appeal were granted, Dr. Krause said, District 3 would lose $10K in tax revenue this year, and would continue to lose $10K per year in subsequent years. She noted that, if the district were to join the village in intervening, the paperwork to file would cost the district approximately $150, and court costs could go as high as $5K. These fees would come from the Education Fund, not the Tort Fund, because the district is not incurring liabilities with this action.

Board Member Steve Knar asked if joining the village was a "strength in numbers" move, if the district would send in a lawyer alongside the village's lawyer. Dr. Krause said that it would be District 3 protecting its own interests. She noted that Village Administrator Art Osten said that the district gets most of its money from property taxes. By comparison, the village gets revenue from sales taxes in addition to property taxes.

Board Member Bob Nunamaker said that this is a tough situation. Board Member Gerry Blohm opined that it doesn't seem like the district is in the business of enforcing assessments. He added that someone else (the village) is already on this. Dr. Krause countered, saying that if the district doesn't have a voice in this, they are relying on others, possibly with less vested interest, to come forward. Board Member Tom Mollet echoed this, saying that if the district stands by on this, which ones does the district fight?

Nunamaker asked what the assessor's feelings are on this. Dr. Krause noted that the assessor originally appraised the property, but that the owner was basing his appeal on an outside appraisal that he sought individually. Knar noted that a property owner can get an outside appraisal that will say whatever the owner wants.

Nunamaker wondered if the board could "dodge this bullet" and vote on this at the next meeting. Dr. Krause said no, there was a 30-day limit to make the decision. It would have to be voted on at this meeting.

Blohm wondered what the district's basis to derive value from joining this case would be. He said that assessments are someone else's ball game. Dr. Krause said that the district would be supporting the County Assessor. Knar noted that joining the case would be to protect the district's interests.

Nunamaker seemed to be leaning toward not joining the case, but inferred that he might decide differently if the costs to the district were incidental. Knar also seemed to be leaning toward not joining the case, but said he'd feel differently if the village weren't involved. Dr. Krause said that the village invited the district to join the case because the district has the most to lose. Mollet said that it would be the County Assessor's lawyer, not the village's or the district's, who would deal with the case. Dr. Krause said that she consulted the district's lawyer, who advised that the district join the case, because it shouldn't seem as though this kind of action doesn't matter to the district.

From the audience, Cindy Pilz wondered if the district would need to use it's own lawyer, or could a lawyer from the village volunteer to help. Dr. Krause said that the district's lawyer understands how the law relates to school districts. Asst. Superintendent Tim Mahaffy noted that if a lawyer from the village wanted to volunteer, perhaps he or she would consider coaching volleyball. During a tense discussion, this line got a big laugh.

At the end of the discussion, the motion to join the case did not pass. With one Board Member, Pat Hughes, absent, the vote was a tie, 3-3. Voting in favor of joining the case was Vice-President Doris Sadik, President Paula Zasadil, and Mollet. Voting against joining the case was Nunamaker, Blohm, and Knar.

Oct. 24th Board Meeting -- Wha Happen?

OK, a little update on why there has been little in the way of updates. As I posted previously, I started a new job near the end of July. My previous job had become such that the work flow increased dramatically at the end of each month. This is the same time that School Board meetings took place, which meant that I had a ton of work to do at the same time I was trying to write updates to this blog. The new job meant no month-end crunch, so my postings could be more timely, right?

Well, we all know about best laid plans. Though my co-workers at my new job insist that we are in the "slow season", all of us, including me, are working like dogs (and that doesn't mean we're on all-fours). It's been relentless. I usually try to post while at lunch or on weekends. Lunch has been non-existant, and weekends have been spent catching up on everything that needs to be done at home. So there ya go.

Enough excuses. It's Saturday, it's chilly out, but the sun is shining, the birds are flying south (and may be singing, but who can tell), and I'm blogging.

Mr. and Mrs. Fox River Grove, and all ships on the river; let's go to press. If you were at the Oct. 24th Board Meeting, here's what you already know. For everyone else, read on......

2005 Illinois School Standardized Test Results

If you've not yet seen it, the 2005 standardized test results for Illinois schools are available on the Chicago Tribune website. You can go here, then select Fox River Grove schools by name or by selecting McHenry County, then browsing to "Fox River Grove Cons S D 3".