LM Nov-Dec 2022

November –December 2022 L adershipMatters

Dr. PJ Caposey

IASA’s 2023 Illinois Superintendent Of The Year

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IASA Professional Development Opportunities Conference Showcase: Tips From Sessions page 9 New Feature !

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Dr. PJ Caposey, superintendent of Meridian CUSD #223, was named the 2023 Illinois Superintendent of the Year by the Illinois Association of School Administrators. Learn about the turrnaround Dr. Caposey led when he arrived 10 years ago. 2023 IL SUPERINTENDENT OF THE YEAR

New! Conference Showcase shares tips from recent conferences, just in case you missed them Ensuring a High-Quality Education for Highly Mobile Children with Disabilities ; a letter from US Dept. of Ed. Elevating Education this month recognizes Heather Friziellie and Gary Tipsord

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IASA Professional Development Opportunities

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LegalCorner

28 18 Members On The Move

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IASA News in Brief

Headline Goes Here

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IASA Calendar of Events

Education Elevat g quia conem il ipicips andiorem faccum incte deliquamus utam rehentur, con con eostiur? Ximperit voluptatqui voluptus ut est et et omniam, ipsaperum fugiaero ommodis ipsam voluptis doleseque as que vitat hillab iurissint enis nusa ent eos quidiae ritati natur anis mincid etur secaepel maio bea niment que ma idero eum deri officie nditias quis eos con pedi blandis mo tendicit eatur, quia sunt assi re, consequamet pa sequo quos nistiis aut quid explaccus ea sae. Officae nam, sitate re, ullendus magnit, officiatur? Int, sequam voluptatis eaquia dem volut offic tet re dunt estis eos ditiscia cumquam et dipiet qui simaio. Et vit aut ommolup tatati ad quamus dolorrorem voluptae. Con nis ab intiunt otatus, commolo ritatii squunte sim et archil in porporisquam a vitatae rferibu stiaect asinis ad q

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if nec., see orig. legal art prototype on pg 9 of summer 2020 issue

Student Residency in the Era of COVID-19 Determining Residency Of course, only a student who is a “resident” of the district can attend tuition-free. Typically, this means that a student is a resident of the district in which his parent or legal guardian resides. There are, however, other factors which may influence the student’s residency. As such, districts must make five critical determinations when registering a student: 1) Whether the student is eligible for special education services.... (continue reading)... replace w/ new COVID-19 has impacted every area of school operations and student residency is no exception. School districts face verifying the residency of newly registered and returning students at the start of each new school year; but 2020 is anything but a usual school year. To help you in this process, we will look at best practice tips for verifying student residency, and the wrinkles involved in verifying student residency during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Volume 10, Issue 10 Nov/Dec 2022 LeadershipMatters 22302 Jason Nevel Director of Social Media and Publications jnevel@iasaedu.org

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2648 Beechler Court Springfield, IL 62703-7305 217.753.2213 800 Woodfield Road, Ste. F109 Schaumburg, IL 60173-4717 847.466.5075

Marjorie Gladish Graphic Designer mgladish@iasaedu.org

1200 West Main Street Marion, IL 62959-1138 618.364.0501

www.iasaedu.org

Scan here with your phone’s QR code reader to get the IASA APP— Don’t have a QR reader? Go to or and search for IllinoisASA.

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Message From the Executive Director Illinois Outpaces Other Stateswith Number of Bills Introduced Each Session

Dr. Brent Clark

The easiest way to illustrate the amount of red tape and regulations school administrators have to navigate today is to show a picture of the Illinois School Code from 1992 versus 2022. The School Code book from 1992 is literally half the size as the School Code book today. A recent article in the Illinois School Board Journal provides insights into why the Illinois School Code continues to grow exponentially. IASB examined how Illinois compares to a handful of other states in terms of how many bills are introduced each legislative session. The findings are staggering. Since January 2021 and the start of the 102nd Illinois General Assembly, 10,022 substantive bills have been introduced in the Illinois General Assembly. The other states examined— California, Iowa, Pennsylvania and Ohio—had less than half of that amount. Digging deeper into the number of bills that impact public education, IASB tracked 1,126 House and Senate bills during the 102nd General Assembly. Of that total, 289 have become law. In contrast, Ohio enacted a mere 101 total pieces of legislation. Like it or not, that’s how lawmakers in Illinois do business. And it’s unlikely a reprieve is coming anytime soon. WhySupport IPAC Democrats maintained their super majorities in both chambers, giving them the ability to pass legislation without bipartisan support. Furthermore, Democrats have historically introduced a higher volume of bills than Republicans, especially when it

comes to issues like curriculum, school discipline, meals and reporting requirements. While public education was spared in this most recent veto session, I expect the trend to continue in the 103rd General Assembly. At IASA, we can’t prevent lawmakers from introducing bills. However, we can fight to block or amend those unfunded and curricular mandates that surface every year. An essential tool to get legislators to listen to our challenges and support our mission is a well-funded IPAC. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to donate to IPAC. Your $100 donation is used by IASA to make strategic campaign contributions and pay costs associated with attending legislative outings and events. Attending these events increases our face-to-face time with legislators, enhancing our overall advocacy efforts. NearingHalfwayPoint of School Year Now that Winter Break is on the horizon, we are nearing the halfway point of the school year. I remain enthused by the positive reports I continue to hear from administrators across our state. I want to commend you for making this school year rewarding and impactful for students across our state. As we know, our students needed districts to step up and provide extra support. Educators answered that call and helped many students get back on the right track. Keep up the great work and try to relax and recharge over the Winter Break. You definitely deserve some time off with your families and loved ones.

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IASA’s 2023 Illinois Superintendent Of The Year

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Dr. PJ Caposey Superintendent, Meridian CUSD#223

By Jason Nevel IASA Director of Social Media and Publications

cash bonds were put on but they were petitioned off the ballot. We’re in a relatively anti-tax community. Therefore, it became a really difficult process of educating our community. Fortunately, we were able to pass the first referendum by putting a sunset on it. Our community said we believe you that things are bad. It was an interesting blessing and a curse. It was great because it forced us to triple check every expenditure and make sure it aligned with our mission and vision. We told our community the additional revenue is not a Band-Aid. We need it forever to be competitive. Even today with that revenue, we’re funded at less than 80 percent of what the state of Illinois calls adequate. We had to go back out to referendum in the midst of a pandemic and a divisive presidential election. We did whatever we could to spread the message and make sure voters were as informed as possible. Thankfully, the referendum passed, and we are able to have sustained revenue, which will allow us to have sustained success. Howmuchof a focuswas thereon technology anddatabeforeyouwerehired? When I arrived we literally did not have email that was functioning. We’ve had quite a massive technological shift. Within that shift, we realized our internal systems were quite weak. We had data because everyone has data. We just didn’t have any systematic form or fashion of putting it together, and we certainly didn’t have any form or fashion of using it to actually improve. One of our first missions was to find

Dr. PJ Caposey, superintendent of Meridian CUSD #223, was named the 2023 Illinois Superintendent of the Year by the Illinois Association of School Administrators. An independent panel selected Dr. Caposey for Illinois Superintendent of the Year based on the significant turnaround he facilitated in Meridian CUSD #223, a district of about 1,400 students in Ogle County. IASA spoke with Dr. Caposey about the state Meridian was in when he arrived and the successes the district has achieved the past 10 years. WhatwasMeridianCUSD#223 likewhenyou werehired10yearsago? Meridian in our region is known as an incredibly strong district. However, it hit crisis shortly before I was hired. I was the fifth superintendent in three calendar years. There was also a financial crisis. One of my first board meetings I had to reduce 10 percent of our overall staff, which was over 25 people. Things were coming unglued. One of the things I had to do was restore hope and pride and bring us back to the tradition of excellence that has denoted Meridian prior to my arrival, and I think we’re back there now. Canyoudescribe the financial crisisyour district facedandhowyouwereable toovercome that? When I arrived, we were averaging a $1 million deficit per year. We had less than three months cash on hand and were very close to taking out tax anticipation warrants to make payroll. It became clear we needed to slice expenditures and create additional revenue. We went out to referendum. Interestingly, the referendum we put on the ballot had just been defeated prior to me being hired. Additionally, working

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IASA’s 2023 Illinois Superintendent Of The Year

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how can we use the data to make instructional decisions and operational decisions that solve problems and move us forward. Howhaveyou infusedyour districtwith technology? Again, when I arrived 10 years ago, we did not have working email or storage capacity for our teachers. There

the only district in the region whose high school has been recognized six consecutive years by US News and World Report for outstanding academic achievement. Additionally, when we break down schools that have that extended success based on their expenditure per pupil, we are about the lowest funded school in the state that has achieved that success. The second area we care about is getting kids at least one experience with a college level class before they walk across

our stage. The fact that 85 percent of our graduates leave with some successful college credit course is an incredibly important stat to us. Lastly, I believe the best thing we can do is to intervene early when people are struggling. We have a disproportionate emphasis on our K–5 achievement because we believe, if we catch them there, we will have ultimate success. We’re seeing the manifestation of that with dramatic curricular shifts in ELA and math. As the world has talked about learning loss, and all the negative effects of the pandemic, we are

was nothing in terms of a cloud or shared storage drive. We had a lot of work to do. We were able to turn that ship around pretty quickly by partnering with other districts. We did a lot of catch up for about four years and, once we stabilized, we needed to figure out our vision for the future. At that point, we did not have ubiquitous wifi in our buildings let alone ubiquitous wifi in our community. The thought of being 1:1 was contentious and full of debate as to

When the pandemic hit, we were the only district in the region with significant numbers of teachers who were Google certified because we had pushed that direction for a long time.

not in that position. We have sustained and are in a position to grow beyond where we’ve ever been before. That’s a testament to our innovation, our thoughtful and intentional purchasing plans and the hard work of our teachers. What hasyour district done tobetter prepare students for lifeafter graduation? One of the things we found in internal analysis was that we had counselors who were doing incredible work but, as the social emotional needs of kids accelerate, they had much less time to offer guidance with college and career. On top of that, the time they did have typically went toward college preparedness. Fundamentally, we knew that was not

whether it was a sound expenditure. The board supported my recommendation, and we were able to go that direction. When the pandemic hit, and other districts were struggling to figure out what was going on, we were the only district in the region with significant numbers of teachers who were Google certified because we had pushed that direction for a long time. What academic gainshasyour district experiencedunder your leadership? I would say there are three prongs of our academic achievement we’re really proud of. The first is we’re

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operating with our vision and mission in mind. We deployed resources and created a department for college and career preparedness and established a coordinator position, who has done a ton of outreach for us. Our students headed to the workforce now have many more experiences getting hands on opportunities, exploring factories, the trades and other capacities because of our outreach in that area. What aresomeof the

The thing I’m most proud of is we offer our own mini institute over the summer. We believe our teachers have a great amount of expertise, so we created a Meridian University over the summer in which we pay teachers to prepare, to deliver and attend in order to have voluntary professional development and drive us toward our goals over the summer.

What additional social- emotional supportshas Meridianprovided to students? As soon as we arrived on sound financial footing, one of the things that the Board and I agreed on was we need to do more to serve our traditionally under-served kids. When we looked at it, we had students struggling with SEL, and we had special education students being served adequately but not necessarily appropriately. We made

communitypartnerships your district has formed? The issue for us is less than 1 percent of our total EAV is through commercial, industry or business. There are no real partnerships to be had. We’ve had to be creative and strategic to reach outside of our district to form internships, externships and intra-ships to get students access to programs most kids

The fact that 85 percent of our graduates leave with some successful college credit course is an incredibly important stat to us.

an investment to bring in two new counselor positions into the district. We’ve also added special education positions throughout the district so caseloads could be smaller and kids get more individualized attention. In addition to that, we’ve become a Leader in Me district. We’ve been working through that for seven years. It was the teacher voice that made it clear that was the direction we needed to go. We use it as our character ed and social- emotional platform that we build everything off from. We’ve had outstanding quantitative and qualitative results from it.

in small, rural communities don’t have. As a result, we’ve had a number of kids go into somewhat niche professions and have been able to be really successful right out of high school. What professional development doesyour district offer for teachers? When I arrived, professional development was not allowed. Even if you paid for it yourself, you couldn’t leave. We’ve tried a couple of things. We try to ensure what we bring in is directly aligned to our data and directives. I think far too often districts get distracted. We’ve also wanted to allow people to explore what they are interested in as well. We have sent people all over the country to explore the things they want to.

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Aspiring Superintendent Academy

An Immersive Learning Experience To Prepare You For The Superintendency June 26–June 30, 2023

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They prepare you for the unexpected and demystify the superintendency. I came in with imposter syndrome and a little intimidated, but this programmade me realize I could do it. The person I came in as is different from the person that is leaving. —Matt Condon, Principal, Morton Grove SD #70

What Is The IASA Aspiring Superintendent Academy And Who Should Participate? IASA’s Aspiring Superintendent Academy is an immersive learning experience like no other in the state for educators considering the superintendency. Participants engage in active learning experiences and gain insights from respected practitioners about how to be an effective leader and leverage the position to change the lives of students. The fast-paced program features numerous simulations, reflection time and the creation of meaningful artifacts that reflect the current expectations of the job of superintendent. Mock interviews with professional search firms also help prepare you to land that first job. If you want a modern view of the superintendency beyond what is taught in graduate school, register today for IASA’s Aspiring Superintendent Academy! Target Audience: Central office staff, directors, principals, assistant principal and deans. Watch: Click here to watch a video of past participants discussing their experience.

• Grow your professional learning network • Gain immersive learning experience four days/nights • Attend working/networking dinners • Conduct mock interviews with a professional search firm • Earn Illinois Administrators’ Academy Credit • Build relationships that will last your career and your lifetime Why Should I Participate In The IASA Aspiring Superintendent Academy?

Application Deadline Fri., March 17, 2023

Contact Kristy Ponsler 217–753–2213 or kponsler@iasaedu.org Click for More Information/Application Questions?

FAST FACTS:

$1,750 per participant (program costs, resource materials, meals, and lodging) COST? ✓

Classes will be held at the IASA Headquarters 2648 Beechler Court, Springfield, IL 62703 217–753–2213 WHERE? ✓

June 26–June 30, 2023 (First day is an evening networking welcome reception. Remaining days will be 8am to 4:30pm) WHEN? ✓

Nearly 1/3 of participants have been hired as superintendent within five years of attending this academy VALUE? ✓

conference showcase

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Tips

You Can Use

Just in case you missed it... Education conferences are a tremendous opportunity to learn about innovative strategies and best practices in schools. However, it’s not always possible to attend every session you want. In this new feature in Leadership Matters, IASA highlights conference breakout sessions you may have missed. The article is not intended to offer a comprehensive review of each presentation, but rather provide you with 5 tangible tips from the presentation that you can use in your district.

Lessons Learned from Joint Annual Conference and INSPRAConference

Joint Annual Conference Keys to a Successful Admin Pro/Superintendent Partnership

style of performing tasks. If something rubs either party the wrong way, don’t be afraid to ask the other per - son about it, rather than let it fester. Chances are the superintendent or administrative professional is happy to make the change and never knew what they were doing was bothering you. 4 Understanding Email Habits: Superintendents re- ceive hundreds of emails and may be slow to respond or not read each email word for word. If this is the case, try to avoid sending emails to the superintendent that are long and have multiple questions. If the matter is urgent, communicate in a different way. 5 Serve on Leadership Team: Consider elevating the administrative professional to your District Leadership Team, so he or she will be in the same meetings and receive the same correspondence as you. Making this promotion will help the superintendent and administra - tive professional be on the same page.

This presentation highlights four key areas that define the most productive superintendent and administrative professional relationships. Explore tenets of positive relationships through stories and humor and leave with concrete strategies to use back at work on Monday. Panelists : PJ Caposey, Ed.D., Superintendent, Meridian CUSD 223; Elaine Nicholson, Coordinator to the Superintendent and Board of Education, Meridian CUSD 223. 1 Closed Session Privacy: Trust and respect between a superintendent and administrative professional does not happen overnight. One way to gain respect is for the super - intendent to not pressure the administrative professional to reveal information in closed session when he or she is not present or vice versa. 2 Make Expectations Clear About Availability: The admin - istrative professional routinely fields requests from people who want to schedule meetings with the superintendent. It’s important the superintendent and administrative profession - al are on the same page about availability when it comes to meeting with staff, board members, community members or vendors. For example, a call from a vendor is not as urgent as a call from a staff or board member. 3 Don’t Avoid the Conversation: The superintendent and administrative professional each have their own particular

Joint Annual Conference Best Practices in Crisis Communications

Crises, big and small, happen in our schools every day. This session highlights keys to crisis communications, including roles and responsibilities of board

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...continued conference showcase

Just in case you missed it...

INSPRAConference Superintendent Transition: Communicating to Internal and External Stakeholders

members and strategies to support and engage the administration and community during times of stress and uncertainty. Panelists: Denise Barr, Director of Communications and Public Engagement, Crystal Lake CCSD 47; Kathy Hinz, Ed.D., Superintendent, Crystal Lake CCSD 47; Erica Loiacono, Director of Community Engagement and Communications, Wheaton Warrenville CUSD 200; Jeff Schuler, Ed.D., Superintendent, Wheaton Warrenville CUSD 200. 1 Develop a Crisis Communications Plan: As part of any crisis communications plan, identify who will communicate what, when and how. Also, develop message templates for anticipated scenarios and appoint a media spokesperson. 2 Respond Quickly: In the event of a crisis, try to respond to the situation within one to two hours of the incident. Only communicate what you know and stick to the facts. Prioritize an internal com - munication over an external message. 3 Use a Google Doc: If you need to provide mul - tiple updates about a situation, consider using a Google Doc. A Google Doc can be easily updated in real time and the link doesn’t change. Be sure to set the Google Doc in Viewer Mode so it can - not be edited by others. 4 Monitoring Social Media: People in your community will often post information on social media. If your district does not have a commu - nications department or someone available to monitor social media posts, consider developing a partnership with a staff or community member so he or she will alert you if something concerning is posted on social media. 5 Alternate Phone Greeting: Consider creating an alternate phone greeting for receptionists if there’s a crisis and provide access to all messag - es (with most recent message at the top) for those answering phones to refer to.

Presented by Dr. Jenna Woodland, superintendent of Evergreen Park ESD #124; Alex Mayster, Executive Director of Communications, Naperville CUSD #203 (former Communications Director at Evergreen Park ESD #124). View presentation. 1 Control the narrative: School districts should draft the press release announcing the hire of a new superintendent to control the narrative of what the district wants said about the hire. Do not rely on the media or someone else to describe the superintendent’s background. 2 Connect themes in press release to superintendent survey: Generally, a community survey is conducted during the superintendent search process that asks the public for characteristics they want to see in a new school leader. The press release should connect the responses to the new hire to make the public feel like their input was important in the search process. 3 Webinar to introduce new superintendent: In addition to an in-person community event, a webinar to introduce the superintendent to the community should be consid - ered. In the webinar, you can gather questions ahead of time and only ask the questions you want the superin - tendent to answer. The chat and Q&A features should be disabled when taking this approach. 4 Invite special guest to first Institute Day: On the first Teacher Institute Day, invite a special teacher from your childhood to help tell the story of why you are excited and a good match to be superintendent of the new district. Having an educator tell your story will resonate better with teachers. 5 Create a video to introduce yourself: Another way to tell your story and background to staff and stakeholders in your new district is to create a video showcasing your story, your passions and goals for the district. The video should not be longer than 3 minutes.

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LegalCorner

Chad Watkins IASA Associate Director/General Counsel

To help school leaders navigate complex matters, IASA has partnered with leading law firms throughout Illinois to provide districts with critical guidance during the 2022–23 school year. In every issue of Leadership Matters, the

IASA Legal Corner will showcase an article written by attorneys who specialize in legal matters related to education. It is our hope you find the content insightful, timely and helpful in addressing the critical matters you face.

U.S. Department of Education Issues Letter to State Special Education Directors Regarding HighlyMobile StudentsWith Disabilities

By Courtney N. Stillman, an attorney with Himes, Petrarca & Fester To address concerns about evaluations and services provided to mobile students with disabilities, the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) issued a letter to State Special Education Directors on November 10, 2022. Highly mobile children are migratory or homeless children, military children, or Youth in Care, who frequently change school districts. Children suspected of having a disability and needing special education must be timely evaluated. OSERS emphasized that if a child transfers to a new school district during the same year that a previous school district is conducting a special education evaluation, the new school district may not delay the evaluation or extend the evaluation time frame to implement Response to Intervention/MTSS. The new district must promptly request student records from the previous district because exchange of these records is critical to coordinating and completing the assessment. OSERS strongly encouraged schools to complete evaluations of highly mobile children within expedited time frames (e.g., within 30 school days to the extent possible), consistent with the child’s individual needs. When a student with a disability moves into a new school district within the same state, the receiving district must provide services

comparable to those the child received in the previous district until the receiving district either adopts the previous district’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) for the child or develops a new IEP for the student. If a student transfers to a new district from out of state, the new district must provide comparable services to the previous IEP until the new district conducts its own evaluation, if determined necessary, and develops a new IEP. In its letter, OSERS explained that the requirement to provide comparable services applies to Extended School Year (ESY) services and not only to services that the student would receive during the regular school year. The letter, Ensuring a High-Quality Education for Highly Mobile Children, also provides various resources for schools serving highly mobile students. If you have questions about this letter, evaluations or providing comparable services, please contact your HPF attorney. Himes, Petrarca & Fester was established over 70 years ago. The firm provides legal counsel and advice in multiple areas that include School Law, Litigation, Labor Relations & Collective Bargaining, Students’ Rights & Special Education, Employment Discrimination, Student Records, Employee Discipline, Finance & Elections, Construction Law, Boundary Disputes & Proceedings, Annexation & Detachment and Municipal Law.

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Education Elevat g We continue our series highlighting tremendous educators across Illinois who have given their time and energy to ele- vating the superintendency and public education as a whole. Each month, we will feature two educators who are going the extra mile and truly making a difference beyond their school districts and local communities. While we are aware of many of the contributions administrators are making, we are open to any suggestions for someone to feature next month. To make a recommendation, contact Jason Nevel, IASA Director of Social Media and Publications, at jnevel@iasaedu.org or by calling 217–753–2213.

Heather Friziellie Fox Lake GSD#114

Gary Tipsord LeRoy CUSD#2

Lake County Superintendent Association Developed 5 Essential Strategies of Focus; Helped pass a referendum to enhance facilities and improve teaching and learning; President of Who: Heather Friziellie, superintendent What: Co-authored three education books; Consultant for Solution Tree, providing her the opportunity to work with school districts across the country;

Who: Gary Tipsord, superintendent What: Vision 20/20 with focus on Evidence-Based Funding; Professional Review Panel; IASA Board of Directors; IASA Governmental Relations and Advocacy Committee; HEAT Academy; Helping design non-traditional classrooms for students Where: LeRoy CUSD #2, Corn Belt Region

When: Superintendent of LeRoy CUSD #2 since 2006 Why: Throughout his career as a superintendent, Gary Tipsord has operated with the belief that we have a responsibility to serve children whether they are within the walls of the schools we lead or those throughout the state. “The opportunities I’ve been a part of, and the decisions we made both in LeRoy and around the state, have been enriched or invented by the professionals that I’ve been able to engage with as a result of the IASA,” Tipsord said. “Our students in LeRoy have certainly been impacted by the leadership of superintendents throughout the state of Illinois. I’ve been blessed by those people, and the role they’ve played to elevate our profession” When IASA and other education groups organized Vision 20/20, Tipsord jumped at the opportunity to serve on the Vision 20/20 Committee and participate in the building of a blueprint for improving public education in Illinois. His focus on

Where: Fox Lake GSD #114, Lake Region When: Superintendent of Fox Lake GSD #114 for six years Why: When Heather Friziellie served as director of educational services for Kildeer Countryside District 96, the district had success closing learning gaps when it integrated special education into district wide Professional Learning Community (PLC) practices—a concept that has historically not always been practiced in school districts. “We were finding we were doing these things that did not cost money and produced measurable growth for all students, particularly students with IEPs,” Friziellie said. “We wanted to share our work with others because we found other districts were not operating that way.” Friziellie and her co-authors from Kildeer Countryside District 96, Julie Schmidt and Jeanne Spiller, wrote Yes We Can!:

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Education Elevat g General and Special Educators Collaborating in a Professional Learning Community in 2016. The book provides tips and strategies to create a more uniform education system for all learners and encourages all educators to take collective responsibility in improving outcomes for students with special needs. Friziellie ... cont’d.

she wrote on women in leadership focuses on having crucial conversations when in points of conflict to get to a better place of resolution. As superintendent of Fox Lake GSD #11, Friziellie is proud to have led a successful referendum that has provided sustained funding to enhance facilities and improve teaching and learning throughout the district. Fox Lake GSD #114 also takes great pride in building connections with the community, and will soon bring back a program that offers Spanish-speaking adults in the community the opportunity to come to the school and receive English language instruction at no cost. “We want to offer that outreach and make sure our Spanish- speaking families feel valued in our school district,” Friziellie said. Lastly, Friziellie developed 5 Essential Strategies of Focus for Fox Lake GSD #114 based on research principles and serves as President of the Lake County Superintendents Association. that requires a more permanent solution. We wrestle with trying to get that right and ensuring a commitment to the purity of the model.” Tipsord has also served on the IASA Board of Directors since 2017 and is currently chair of the IASA Governmental Relations and Advocacy Committee, which works to ensure that legislative positions, public positions of IASA, and governmental communications accurately reflect the interests of administrators and students across Illinois. Furthermore, he is among a group of educators in McLean County that is trying to launch the HEAT Academy, which focuses on expanding non-traditional student learning opportunities through partnerships with business/industry experts in the areas of Health, Engineering, Agri-Business, and Technology. “It’s incredibly exciting work because it has the potential to break cycles of poverty in our kids who are at the most risk,” Tipsord said. Within the walls of LeRoy CUSD #2, Tipsord is also proud of the learning spaces and programs developed for students not best served in a traditional environment. LeRoy CUSD #2 has developed unique programming for unique needs at the elementary, junior high and high school levels. “These are unique designs to address the needs of students who were historically underserved,” Tipsord said. “The only way that commitment happens is a collaboration between our district administration and Board of Education to create a better product that is more aligned to the needs of the students we are responsible to serve.”

Tipsord ... cont’d. the committee was school funding and finding an alternative formula to General State Aid. “Being able to do that made sense from the way I see the business side of public education and how that marries the core responsibility we have as educators to be in service to kids throughout the state of Illinois,” Tipsord said. “I am blessed to work for a Board of Education that sees that responsibility similarly and gives me the freedom to participate in this valuable work.” The main challenge Tipsord and other Vision 20/20 members faced was bringing together divergent school districts around the principles of Evidence-Based Funding—an idea Illinois adapted from the research of Picus Odden & Associates, which focused on funding resources needed to provide every student an equal opportunity to perform at high levels. “Illinois’ distribution model for EBF is genuinely unique and created a critical distinction between the implementation of the model in Illinois and other states.” Tipsord said. “Dr. Michael Jacoby (Executive Director of the Illinois Association of School Business Officials) deserves a lot of credit for his work in developing that.” Tipsord continues to be a leading expert on the mechanics of EBF. He serves on the state’s Professional Review Panel, which is tasked with studying if the formula is working as intended or needs to be modified. “I think a challenge continues to be looking at education post COVID,” Tipsord said. “We want to be extremely careful about making a permanent change to the model to respond to what can be seen as a momentary deficit in learning. However, it’s also possible COVID has caused a more permanent change The lessons in the book are still used by schools during Institute Days and other professional learning opportunities. It was published by Solution Tree. Friziellie serves as a consultant for the company and provides professional development for school districts across the country. Solution Tree also hosts an Institute over the summer that attracts upwards of 2,000 educators. Friziellie is one of the keynote speakers at the event. In addition, Friziellie has co-authored two other books: Professional Learning Communities at Work and High Reliability Schools and Women Who Lead . The chapter

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Professional Development Leadership and Transformational Academy—and two cohorts set to launch in early 2023—ISAL and Elevate IASA Superwomen. As always, take a look through the next few pages to see dates, information and links for registration. If I don’t see you before the holidays, I hope you have a wonderful and relaxing Winter Break.

Dr. Courtney Orzel IASA Associate Director of Professional Development

IASA is proud and honored to help strengthen the work of superintendents across Illinois and prepare future leaders. We are currently offering six academies through our Leadership Strand, five evaluator academies, an academy focused on collective bargaining, an academy focused on Health Life Safety, Webinars with Women and the workshop PERA, Evaluations and SB7/RIF: Putting it all Together . In addition, we have two cohorts underway—Level Up

IASA Offering Initial and Retraining Academies for Principal Evaluation Need Evaluator Training?

IASA is currently offering initial principal evaluation and evaluator retraining academies. These academies are designed to fulfill Illinois State Board of Education requirements. To learn more about dates and requirements, click the link at right.

info•register

PERA, EvaluationsandSB7/RIF: Putting It All Together

The evaluation, retention and dismissal of your staff is really a series of interconnected steps that create a cycle that must be followed each year. In this three-hour workshop, the presenters will focus on the components of this cycle. Information will be shared on each step of the cycle, including the PERA Joint Committee, the SB7/RIF Committee and the timelines in which each of these committees must complete their work. Participants will also review the pertinent documents from their own districts relevant to this cycle. Time will be given for Q and A. Presented by Ralph Grimm and Pat Durley. Upcoming dates: January 12, January 18, January 19 and January 24. info•register

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The Power of Positive Leadership AA 3730 The research is clear. Being a positive leader is not just a nice way to lead. It’s the way to lead if you want to build a great culture, unite your organization in the face of change and adversity, develop a connected and committed team and achieve superior goals. Great leaders understand that to succeed, you succeed with people–and this training shows you how. You’ll learn skills to enhance your leadership capability and leave with a practical action plan to bring out the best in yourself and your team. While leaders always need to display positive leadership, in our current situation it is crucial Presented by Dr. Kelly Stewart Upcoming dates: February 22 and April 25. info•register Leadership Strand Based on the proven principles from Jon Gordon’s best-selling book, The Power of Positive Teams (POPT), we’ll share proven strategies and practices to help you build a stronger, more united, and connected team. POPT is an interactive program that gives teams the necessary tools to: Create a positive team culture fueled by a shared vision and greater purpose; Activate the competitive advantage of positivity in day-to-day teamwork; Enhance team grit to overcome challenges and create solutions; Generate team alignment and engagement; Foster team caring and inclusivity; Drive continuous improvement; Leave a team legacy of greatness; Address and remove team negativity to improve team communication and clarity; and Build team trust and unity. Presented by Dr. Kelly Stewart. Upcoming dates: January 9 and March 14. info•register The Power of Positive Teams AA 3927 Leadership Strand

Leadership Strand Adaptive Leadership: Dealing With Change AA 1825

Quality schools utilize the practice of continuous improvement. Student growth and learning should never be stagnant. There are always new practices and strategies being discovered that will enable students to be more engaged and to learn better. However, teachers are not necessarily quick to change their practices to what many might perceive as “the latest trend,” although these practices have demonstrated improved learning for students. How do we, as administrators, challenge and encourage teachers

to be open-minded to new practices and strategies for learning? Administrators have a responsibility to know and understand how to implement change so that they may convey these practices to those with whom they work to be the best teachers possible for their students. Presented by Dr. Gary Zabilka Upcoming dates: January 26 and March 16 info•register

continued...

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PD ... cont’d.

Problem-Solving and Collective Bargaining Using an Interest-Based Approach AA 3782

Professional Development

Collective bargaining in your district does not have to be an adversarial process. This IASA academy can help administrators, board members and association (union) members better understand how a collaborative approach to solving problems can help your school district amicably reach results that will be lasting and durable.

Specifically, the course provides participants information on the three main components of Interest-Based Bargaining: Training, “Communication Lab” and Bargaining. Presented by Ralph Grimm and Pat Durley Upcoming dates: February 7 and February 9 info•register

Health Life Safety Compliance An Administrator’s Guide to the Fundamentals AA #3700 Offered Online via Zoom

Professional Development

IASA’s Health Life Safety Compliance Academy: An Administrators Guide to the Fundamentals returns in 2023 with two more sessions! Participants will develop strategies to reduce your district’s liability, engage stakeholders, learn the financial do’s and don’ts, as well as undertake a deep dive into your current 10 year HLS surveys and IWAS. This academy is activity- and collaboration-filled, where participants learn “the meat and potatoes” of health life safety and

compliance in Illinois. In addition, participants receive useful take back summary and guidance documents. Presented by Ralph Grimm and Pat Durley Upcoming dates: March 9 and May 31 info•register

Leadership Strand Why Your Why Matters AA 1445

IASA’s popular leadership academy strand focusing on your Why returns with five new sessions. Whether you’ve experienced a Why session before, or you’re taking Why Your Why Matters for the first time, register today and join your colleagues around the state to network, collaborate and reflect on why being an educator is the most important profession on Earth! The first of five sessions will be held virtually on December 6. The series continues with four more sessions, both online and virtually, through June 22, 2023.

Presented by: Dr. Courtney Orzel, IASA Associate Director of Professional Development. Upcoming Dates: • March 13, online; ; • June 8, in person (Springfield); • June 20, Schaumburg; • June 22, online

info•register

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Leadership Strand

Learning Leading Living

&

Women in Leadership:

AA 3665

Presented by: Dr. Orzel. Upcoming dates: • February 9 (IASA Office in Springfield) • June 5, 2023 (online)

IASA’s Women in Leadership Academy returns with a new version that focuses on facing our fears, increasing our confidence and, as always, networking, supporting and connecting with leaders across Illinois. Participants will leave with practical ways to build your PLN, support others in the field and gain a greater sense of work-life blend. All leaders—men and women—are encouraged to join this experience. Register today and join your peers from across the state for an inspiring, fun and important leadership academy!

info•register

New IASA Academy

THE UNFINISHED LEADER: A School Leadership Framework for Growth & Development AA#3896

School of Professional Development

This academy serves as a guidepost to help leaders understand they are works in progress and to help create a vision for their individual futures. To be the best version of yourself you have to be driven deeply by something. You must believe that you have an impact to make and a legacy to leave. You must know that the work will never be done. If you care deeply about making an impact—and you are willing to do anything for your students and

community—admit that you are unfinished and strive to get better every day. Presented by: Dr. Michael Lubelfeld, superintendent of North Shore SD #112, and Dr. Nick Polyak, superintendent of Leyden CHSD #212. Upcoming Date: April 20 info•register

... Webinars Women

Is The Superintendency For Me? Experienced female leaders share advice, answer questions in five-part series

The Illinois Association of School Administrators and Illinois Principals Association are proud to once again partner on a five-part series designed to support female educators considering the superintendency. Participants will listen and learn from a panel of five distinguished female superintendents. In each session, the panelists will discuss their experiences and share advice on what it takes to land that first job and how to be successful in a leadership role. A facilitator will help lead the conversation, and time will be reserved for participants to submit questions. Upcoming dates: • February 1 • April 19 • June 6

info•register

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NewsInBrief

InRemembrance

DeadlineExtension for 2023 Teacher of theYear&Those WhoExcel AwardsApplications ISBE has extended the deadline for all 2023 Those Who Excel & Teacher of the Year applications to Dec. 9. All applications (including supplemental materials like letters of recommendation) must be submitted by Dec. 9 at 11:59 p.m. Nominations are not required and only upon successful submission of application materials will applicants be eligible for an award.

RenewAmerica’s Schools Grant Program Libertyville-Vernon Hills High School District 128. He spent the last 18 of those years as superintendent before retiring in 1998. Gossett served as IASA President in 1997. We are sad to share Donald Gossett passed away on October 27. Gossett worked as an educator for 33 years at Libertyville High School and

JosephE. Hill Superintendent of theYear Congratulations to Dr. Devon Horton, superintendent of Evanston/Skokie School District 65. Dr. Horton was named the Joseph E. Hill Superintendent of the Year by the National

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has announced that applications are open for the Renew America’s Schools grant program. This initial funding round will award up to $80 million of the $500 million program, and is available to public schools to perform energy improvements in the highest-need K–12 districts across the country. The Renew America’s Schools program is a first-of-its-kind investment, and will support the implementation of infrastructure improvements with a focus on local education agencies (LEAs) that qualify as rural and/or high poverty. Eligible projects can include a variety of energy improvements such as new heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC). The deadline for applicant concept papers is Jan. 26, and full applications are due April 21.

Alliance of Black School Educators. The award is named after the first Black superintendent of District 65 and one of the founding members of NABSE. It honors current superintendents who “have demonstrated a quality of leadership that resulted in significant positive outcomes for students of African descent.” Horton became the superintendent of District 65 at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in June 2020. Click here to learn more.

ISDLAF+MonthlyUpdate Click here to view the most current ISDLAF+ rates, economic indicators and general economic news brief. To obtain additional information regarding this IASA sponsored service, contact Fenil J. Patel, Senior Vice President, Investment Services/ISDLAF+ at 630–657–6437, or email: fpatel@ pmanetwork.com. Website: www.pmanetwork.com.

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