May 15, 2025 at 7:00 PM - Board of Education Regular Meeting

Description:  Minutes of special meeting held April 24, 2025
Minutes of regular meeting held April 24, 2025
Minutes of closed meeting held April 24, 2025
May Bills Payable
April Treasurer's Report
Destruction of closed meeting audio recording from November 9, 2023

Description:  Colin Noordyke will be in attendance so that we may recognize his accomplishments in being selected May Student of the Month.

Description:  Stacey Mays will be in attendance to be recognized for her receipt of the 4^th quarter Excellence in Education Award.
 

Description:  I am recommending changes to the following School Board Policies based on direction from the Illinois Association of School Boards and legal counsel:

Section 200 Board of Education
2:260          Uniform Grievance Procedure
2:265          Title IX Grievance Procedure

Section 400 Operational Services
4:15            Identity Protection
4:80            Accounting and Audits

Section 500 Personnel
5:10            Equal Employment Opportunity and Minority Recruitment
5:20            Workplace Harassment Prohibited
5:100          Staff Development Program

Section 600 Instruction
6:150          Home and Hospital Instruction

Section 700 Students
7:10            Equal Educational Opportunities
7:20            Harassment of Students Prohibited
7:70            Attendance and Truancy
7:180          Prevention of and Response to Bullying, Intimidation, and Harassment
7:185          Teen Dating Violence Prohibited
7:190          Student Behavior
7:200          Suspension Procedures
7:210          Expulsion Procedures
7:250          Student Support Services
7:255          Students Who are Parents, Expectant Parents, or Victims of Domestic or Sexual Violence
7:270          Administering Medicine to Students
7:315          Restrictions on Publications; High Schools

The PRESS Update Memo is included to provide supporting information for all other proposed changes.  These policies are presented as a first reading only this evening. They will be presented for a second reading and potential action at the June meeting.  
 

Description:  Honors Night took place at Maravela’s banquets and catering on May 7^th where we recognized the achievements of 81 students.  Through the generous donations of our Grant community we were able to distribute $48,750 in local scholarships that evening as well. It is always a wonderful ceremony that provides an opportunity to recognize the efforts these dedicated students have put forth the past 4 years.  The Honors Night program is included for your enjoyment. 
 

Description:  Also on May 7^th, the Regional Office of Education (ROE) hosted the Lake County Educator of the Year Awards ceremony.  Family and Consumer Science Teacher, Christi Flaker, was nominated for the Lake County Educator of the Year award.  Two non-certified staff members, Maria Cuevas and Joe Veronese, were nominated in their respective award categories. Social worker, Michael Gaughan, attended as the Guest of Honor, with the ROE choosing one category of school employees to honor annually.  This event was a wonderful way to recognize the contributions of these individuals, with their families in attendance as well. 
 

Description:  The Hall of Fame Committee had the difficult task of selecting next fall’s inductees.  I am happy to announce the following individuals have received the highest number of votes and are recommended for induction into the GCHS Hall of Fame:

• Paul G. Lewis
• Donny Schmit

Additionally, Daniel Dennis was selected for the Class of 2024, but requested to delay his induction a year.  We have reached out, but we are unsure at this time if he can participate next fall.  Further information will be forthcoming as we confirm Daniel, Donny and the family of Paul G. Lewis can participate in the homecoming festivities
 

Description:  Dr. Schmidt will give his monthly Principal’s Report.

Description:  Casey McCleery will provide her monthly report.
 

Description:  Dr. Schmidt will give his monthly Transitional Superintendent's Report.

Description:  We are in the final stages of refining a new after-school program: 12th Hour Mandatory Study Table.  This program is an evolution of the 12^th Hour Study Table Pilot program that has been running the past several semesters.

The goal of this program continues to be to support students who are academically ineligible for extracurricular activities. It will run Monday through Thursday from 3:15 to 4:05 PM and provide structured academic support to help students regain eligibility. It will be supervised by a certified staff member and supported by trained NHS tutors. Participation in the 12th Hour Study Table will be required for ineligible students.  Attendance and progress will be monitored through shared documentation of the supervisor and coaches. The program emphasizes academic accountability and will be supported by communication to families and language in the student handbook. The goal is to improve student performance, responsibility, and engagement while maintaining eligibility standards across all activities.
 

Description:  This summer, we are piloting a new athletic camp titled Strength and Conditioning Open Gym, designed to provide students with continued access to our weight room facilities during the months of June and July. This camp is not sport-specific and is intended primarily for athletes and students currently enrolled in Introduction to Advanced Strength and Conditioning and Advanced Strength and Conditioning courses. These students are already trained on proper equipment use, have established routines, and are familiar with the safe and supportive environment of our weight room.

All participating students will be required to register through our existing summer camp enrollment process.  Strength and Conditioning Open Gym will operate Monday through Thursday, from 7:00-9:00 AM, with a maximum enrollment of 120 students, which reflects the capacity of our weight room. The schedule has been intentionally designed to avoid conflicts with summer school and other athletic camps.

Student participants will pay a nominal fee to help offset supervisor costs. Supervisors will be responsible for ensuring a safe and well-managed environment, taking attendance, and supporting students in their workouts.

We believe this initiative supports our commitment to student wellness and consistent, healthy lifestyle opportunities. As this is the first year offering this camp, we will monitor enrollment, participation, and feedback to evaluate its effectiveness and determine future offerings.

Description:  Back in February, I shared an update on the various Village of Fox Lake Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts.  As mentioned at that time, plans for the Route 12 South TIF include a residential component.  The project includes a total of 154 1-2 bedrooms market rate apartments.  In consideration of the fact that the District may receive students from a TIF property, the Village is proposing this Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) to provide payment, when funds are available within the TIF fund, to offset the cost of educating those students.  If there are not sufficient funds in the TIF fund at the time, they are held over and paid when funds are available.  I will plan to review the IGA in detail at the meeting.  With the IGA addressing our concerns to the greatest extent possible for a residential component in a TIF, the administration is recommending approval as presented.            
 

Description:  In April, 2023, the State of Illinois launched the Illinois Targeted Violence and Prevention Initiative.  From that initiative, Protect Lake County was formed by DePaul University, University of Illinois at Chicago, and Loyola University funded by a Department of Homeland Security grant.  The goal of this community wide initiative is to create a "multidisciplinary community support team" to support local entities and their threat assessment teams, enhance communication regarding threats among partners in the community, provide professional development, tools, and advise on challenging cases.  In March, the Village of Fox Lake formally approved that participation and are requesting we consider approving as well.  Details have been included for your review.  Chief Deservi and/or Brian Mullen, Director of Safety and Security, may be present to share further details and/or answer any questions you may have.  Recommend approval of the Memorandum of Understanding as presented.
 

Description:  The Community Youth Network (CYN) Counseling Center is a Lake County nonprofit community counseling agency.  They are a comprehensive mental health center that provides counseling, assessment, specialized treatment, prevention programs, case work services, and community education.  We have partnered with CYN in past years to provide mental health support to students in need and assist us in proactively providing mental health supports.  CYN will designate a social worker to be on campus one day per week to run social-emotional groups based on identified need, as well as provide additional support for struggling students and students in crisis.  Recommend approval of a one-year agreement for CYN to provide one day of counseling services per week at a cost of $14,500. 
 

Description:  The Lake County Health Department (LCHD) and Community Health Center provide assessment and counseling services related to substance use and abuse.  We are requesting to continue our partnership with LCHD to provide these valuable services to our students.  Recommend approval of a one-year agreement for LCHD to provide 3.5 days of counseling services per week at a cost of $56,873. 

Description:  The Special Olympics team is requesting to attend the State competition June 20-21 in Bloomington, Illinois.  The two coaches will travel with 6 student-athletes.  Total costs for the District are approximately $1,397.62.  Recommend approval of the overnight trip request as presented.

Description:  The administration is recommending approval of the co-curricular sponsors for the 2025/26 school year as presented.
 

Description:  Recommend approval of the fall coaching staff for 2025/26 as presented.
 

Description: 
2024/25 Personnel
Recommend accepting the resignation letters from the following individual(s):

• Danny Brito, Freshman Boys Basketball Coach, effective immediately
• Addison Karmis, Safety Officer, effective immediately
• Michael Schneider, Assistant Baseball Coach, effective at the completion of the 2025 baseball season
• Logan Weber, Freshman Boys Assistant Basketball Coach, effective immediately

2025/26 Personnel
Recommend the employment of the following individual(s):

• Ellen Skolar, Divisional Administrator, $100,000/yr., 2025/26
• Gavin Smyth, School Counselor, MA Step 0. 2025/26
• Jessie Maloney, Transitions Program Job Coach, $19.17/hr., 2025/26
• Roger Lass, Girls' Head Basketball Coach
• Delia Molnar, Part-time Barista, $15.00/hr., 2025/26

Notification of an FMLA request from the following individual(s):

• Leonard Grodoski, English Teacher, September 2 - 19, 2025
• Michele Keenan, Health and Wellness Teacher, beginning April 23, 2025 - October 3, 2025
• Carlos Patlan, Building and Grounds, May 1 - May 9, 2025, and May 19 - June 13, 2025
• Shelly Svoboda, Science/Foreign Language Teacher, August 21, 2025 - November 14, 2025

Description:  I am updating the Five-Year Financial Projections to include the items on the 5-Year Capital Plan.  I will have the projections at the meeting for your review and discussion.
 

Description:  The 2025/2026 Tentative Budget is being recommended to be put on display for the statutory 30 days.  We are entering numbers into the financial software, so I will bring those reports with me to the meeting.   As well, I will have a short presentation for you on the tentative budget at the meeting.  As there is not 30 days between May and June meetings, so we will hold the hearing and request for approval in July.
 

Description:  In January of this year, Tom Furlan, our Director of Technology issued a Request for Proposals for Copier Equipment and Service due to our current contract coming to an end.  We posted this on our website, emailed it to vendors who had reached out to us previously and sent it to the incumbent vendor as well.  We received three proposals by the due date.  In March, the three were narrowed down to two, the incumbent Gordon Flesch Company and Impact Networking.  A committee made up of Tom Furlan, Barry Sessoms, Joe Veronese, Luke Blaszczyk and Lily Wu met with the two finalists. 

Based on criteria including:  price/value of eligible services/equipment, experience with provider, device functionality expectations, support service and delivery, strength of proposal and an overall ranking, the committee is recommending a 36-month lease for the 18 copiers with the option to renew for an additional 36-months with the incumbent, Gordon Flesch Company.  The recommended lease is Proposal #1 with a monthly lease of no more than $5,385.37.  Additional costs per month are the usage fees, or per copy price.  This is billed monthly.  Recommend approval of the copier equipment and service lease as presented.
 

Description:  The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) has released the preliminary 2025 Financial Profile Designation for the District based on the 2023-24 Annual Financial Report Data.  I’m happy to say we are receiving a 3.65 out of 4.00, with a status of Financial Recognition.  I’ve included the information from ISBE for your review.