March2020LM

March 2020 LeadershipMatters Pioneering the Transition toSolar Energy

Prevent School Emergencies Before They Take Root page 10 Members On The Move page 13 Education Elevat g page 4

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IASA “flipped the switch” on a new, on-site solar energy project that will serve as a demonstration site for school districts and other public bodies. FUTURE GREEN: PIONEERING THE TRANSITION FOR SCHOOLS TO SOLAR ENERGY

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Highlighting Educators Who Are Elevating Education

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Education Elevat g

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IASA News in Brief

Prevent Emergencies Before They Take Root— With CrisisGo Student Threat Assesment Manager

Series Part XV: Making a Difference

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IASA Calendar of Events

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13 Members

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On The Move

Volume 8, Issue 3 March 2020 LeadershipMatters 20047 Jason Nevel Director of Social Media and Publications jnevel@iasaedu.org

Education Elevat g

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 Coronavirus Reminds Us Providing Safe and Healthy Learning Environments is Our Top Priority

Dr. Brent Clark

As the leader of a school district, a superintendent is ultimately responsible for providing safe and healthy learning environments for students and staff. Over the past month, the spread of the coronavirus in the U.S. has been a reminder that nothing is more important than that. Hopefully, the toolkit on the coronavirus we emailed has been helpful as you prepare your district for a possible pandemic. The situation is evolving rapidly, so I encourage you to stay on top of any new guidance offered by the Illinois Department of Public Health and Centers for Disease Control. In addition, AASA continues to update guidance and materials on its website, including a pandemic flu checklist for K–12 administrators. At IASA, we will continue to share updates and provide support for school leaders as news and information on the possible spread of the coronavirus becomes available. In the meantime, let’s hope this situation gets better before it gets worse. There’s no need to panic, but it’s critical you are prepared. On the legislative front, the Illinois School Construction Task Force released its final report. We wrote about it in Capitol Watch .

I would add this capital program is seriously worth taking a look at. It’s been 20 years since Illinois has had a largescale statewide construction program, which this one is gearing up to be. You don’t want to miss out on this opportunity because another one might not happen for quite some time. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to read the task force’s report and discuss your capital needs with your architect, school board and community. It’s also never too early to think about a financing plan—even though the task force recommends extending the timeline school districts have to secure financing for a local match to two years. To close, it’s that point in the school year where the basketball season has ended, spring sports are beginning and students and staff are naturally beginning to lose some of the enthusiasm they had earlier in the year. As leaders, it’s crucial to reinforce the message to staff that everyday matters. The home stretch is just as important to the learning process as the first quarter. Our students deserve our best effort.

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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.

Dr. Lori James-Gross, Unity Point CCSD#140

Dr. KenWallace, Maine Township HSD#207

Who: Dr. Ken Wallace, superintendent What: Founder of the Chicago Coaching Center; founding partner of the Illinois Personal Learning Network; president of the Executive Board of Illinois Digital Educators Alliance; speaker at conferences; public education advocate. Where: Maine Township HSD #207, Cook North Region

Who: Dr. Lori James-Gross, superintendent

What: Partnership for Resilience Board of Directors; The Harvard Graduate School of Education By All Means project. Where: Unity Point CCSD #140, Shawnee Region When: Resilient Southern Illinois since

2018; Illinois Partnership for Resilience and Pilot school for Harvard University’s By All Means project since 2018. Why: As a young teacher in San Antonio, Texas, Dr. James- Gross learned to focus on developing the whole child— providing an educational experience beyond just academics. “The students had significant needs that had to be met before we could direct our attention toward teaching and learning on a daily basis,” she says. “The importance of building relationships with students and making sure they have both a voice and choice in their education, and that we are a partner in that process, has always stayed with me.” Unity Point CCSD #140 began creating individualized student success plans that focused on the development of the whole child soon after Dr. James-Gross was hired as superintendent 14 years ago. Since then, the district has been involved with several initiatives to build upon that work and share it with others.

When: Chicago Coaching Center founded in 2016; Illinois Personal Learning Network founded in 2019. Named president of the Executive Board of IDEA in February 2020. Why: The Chicago Coaching Center was conceived as a way to build upon the instructional coaching model at Maine Township HSD #207 and offer training to educators across the state. Maine Township HSD #207 is one of the leaders in instructional coaching after the high school district evolved to “all in” coaching in fall of 2014, where every staff member is partnered with an instructional coach. “Kids come and go but adults stay,” says Dr. Wallace. “Their practices and knowledge needs to continue to grow and change so they can continue to best serve our students.” The different workshops, offered in the summer at Northern Illinois University Naperville Conference Center, are

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James-Gross ... cont’d. Unity Point CCSD #140 joined the Illinois Partnership for Resilience (PfR), a collaboration between the Illinois Education Association and the Illinois Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics to better equip school and communities with the knowledge of how to respond to trauma. Eighteen districts are part of the Southern Illinois Resilience cohort, which meets monthly to discuss best practices. Because of her involvement with PfR, Unity Point CCSD #140 joined Harvard University’s By All Means initiative in 2018 to be a case study for a smaller rural district. The initiative seeks to craft policies that break “the iron-law correlation between socio-economic status and education outcomes.” Harvard will study Unity Point CCSD #140 and share the results and methods with districts across the country.

Wallace ... cont’d.

available for new instructional coaches and current instructional coaches looking to further develop their craft. The coaching center also develops curriculum for instructional coaching certification programs. The Illinois Personal Learning Network was founded in 2019 as a way for superintendents and chief academic officers to network and advance the support of personalized learning in Illinois. The group is organizing the first AASA National Personalized Learning Summit October 7 at Maine Township. Last month, Dr. Wallace was named president of the Executive Board of Illinois Digital Educators Alliance. He has written in Leadership Matters and presented at conferences about re-examining career and college advisement. On his Twitter feed, Dr. Wallace shares leadership and motivational messages for educators.

Heartfelt Thanks To The Generous Sponsors of IASA’s Reception at the AASA National Conference on Education—

For Helping Us Honor Dr. Kevin Blankenship , 2020 Illinois Superintendent of the Year. Your Support is Sincerely Appreciated.

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Solar Panel Installatio

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FutureGreen: Pioneering the Transition for Schools toRenewableEnergy

Taped on the back of a 3 feet by 4 feet wooden prop that looks like a light switch currently stored in the basement of IASA’s office in Springfield is a piece of paper with a chart. The wooden prop was used at a press conference last month announcing IASA “flipped the switch” By Jason Nevel IASA Director of Social Media and Publications

in turn could help districts keep dollars in the classroom and reduce property tax burdens.

IncreaseTheNumberOf RECs The problem—which IASA hopes will be fixed this legislative session—is state incentives needed to make on-site solar projects affordable are limited and don’t meet the demand. In addition to announcing the IASA headquarters in Springfield will serve as a demonstration site for school districts to visit and learn more about on-site solar panel installation, IASA is urging the General Assembly to increase the number of Renewable

on a new, on-site solar energy project that will serve as a demonstration site for school districts and other public bodies. The initiative is the first and signature project of the Future Green Energy Consortium, a not-for-profit Illinois organization designed

onat

to bring renewable energy options and savings to Illinois school districts and other public bodies.

Energy Credits (RECs) for onsite renewable energy development. Furthermore, IASA is urging the General Assembly to put public bodies, like school districts, at the front of the line to ensure the greatest amount of savings to local governments and the state. We hope these changes are included in the newly introduced Clean Energy Jobs Bill, which, if approved, would update the Future Energy Jobs Act of 2016. “The goal of Future Green is to provide school districts across the state another pathway to reduce the property tax burden on residents and keep dollars in the classroom, all while being environmentally responsible,” said IASA Executive Director Dr. Brent Clark. “However, that goal

Future Green is a joint initiative of IASA, Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) and Illinois Association of School Business Officials (IASBO). Each time a school district, or public body, begins generating renewable energy on site via solar panels, the plan is for the wooden light switch prop to travel there—and another row on the Future Green chart to be filled in. The hope is that chart won’t have many blank rows within the next few years. For school districts, Future Green is a win-win. There is no upfront cost and districts can immediately reduce energy costs—even without on-site solar panel installation—which

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Empower Your Students to Continue Learning All Summer Long

Learn more! Visit our Illinois Summer Learning webpage for more information and to register for a webinar on program details. renaissance.com/illinois-summer-learning $1 per student for reading and/or math practice products. Cost to participate is $1 per student, based on the enrollment of the school. inyON Anytime, anywhere reading practice on any device. Online or offline. With thousands of digital titles available 24/7, students always have access to something engaging to read at home or on the go-all summer long! View our video: ®

g Freckle Engaging math practice at each student's individual level. With a wide variety of differentiated, standards-aligned activities, students can keep growing their math skills over the summer. View our video: ®

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For more details, please contact: Kim Walsh I kim.walsh@renaissance.com I (847) 687-7409

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Renewable ... cont’d.

cannot be fully realized until the Future Energy Jobs Act of 2016 is updated to allow for more public bodies to take advantage of the savings and benefits that come from on-site renewable energy development.” CommittedToHelpingMembers SaveMoney The initiative with Future Green, in a way, is nothing new for IASA. We have tried to help member school districts lower utility costs for more than 20 years. It was created after the passage of the Future Energy Jobs Act (FEJA) in 2016, which shifted the state’s focus and goals more toward renewable energy sources. IASA, IASB and IASBO leaders were looking for a way to best utilize the new law to benefit member districts.

Future Green works with a program manager to develop and manage the renewable energy purchasing consortium, along with the development, financing, construction and operation of the renewable energy projects. It has a non-paid Board of Trustees, representing IASA, IASB and IASBO. Chances are, you have additional questions about how the program works and what steps you should take. If so, we encourage you to contact Future Green using the information below. And, of course, come visit IASA headquarters and see our solar panels—and large, wooden light switch prop— for yourself.

To learn more about the different ways joining Future Green can save your district money, visit future-green.org or email Haj Young at haj@future-green.org.

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Prevent Emergencies BeforeTheyTakeRoot Technology StreamlinesThreat Assessments

Story submitted by CrisisGo.

Take a second to think about all your safety resources and protocols you’ve implemented for school safety. What keeps your students and staff safe every day? Is it enough? School districts can build a protective environment, and CrisisGo can help create a framework for quickly responding to and resolving emergencies as they arise. However, there will always be threats looming in the distance; which is why it’s so important to be proactive about school safety and leverage the most advanced resources possible to eliminate threats before they can become emergencies. Here’s how CrisisGo can help in these situations. Prevent EmergenciesBeforeTheyOccur Reporting safety risks is key for preventing future incidents and learning more about threats to schools. The use of student threat assessments (also known as behavioral assessments) allows your district to utilize a flexible, problem- solving approach that treats risks seriously and methodically while treating students with dignity and respect.

Student threat assessments are designed to keep schools safer and help complex students overcome the underlying sources of their feelings leading to threats like gun violence, suicide, drug use, physical abuse, criminal activity and dropping out of school. Conducting thorough student threat assessments can be a complex process, but they can greatly bolster the safety of any school district. While many districts will need some help to pull it all together, technology can play a huge role in assisting with the process and procedures surrounding student threat assessments. StreamlineWorkflowswithTechnology As safety risks continue to grow, technology and safety strategies have likewise been developed to help deal with the growing number of threats to our safety. There are several different approaches, but a commonality of successful threat assessments is being able to keep all parties united through clear communication and a functional flow of information and steps that need to be taken.

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Emergency ... cont’d.

CrisisGoCanHelp CrisisGo’s Student Threat Assessment Manager provides an effective and secure framework for managing the full scope of student threat assessments, allowing your school district to conduct thorough student threat assessments with the ease and reliability of a trusted digital communication platform. When it comes to student threat assessments, you want to make sure you have a system that allows your district to effectively identify mutual risks, block the path to violence, and coordinate support. You can learn more about CrisisGo’s solution at http://bit.ly/2PmUGHv.

Most assessments are conducted by teams, which means collaboration and coordination is vital to conducting a successful assessment. Many assessments are done with paper-based materials, and an individual assessment can be work-intensive, requiring hours of time investigating the threat, documenting the findings and reporting the outcomes. A large volume of assessments can make it challenging for a school threat assessment team to manage multiple cases over a school year. Technology can help your student threat assessment teams with collaboration, threat report collection, investigations processes, information collection and law enforcement coordination, allowing your teams to manage their investigations and related workflows more efficiently. Furthermore, technology allows your student threat assessment team to easily develop a comprehensive targeted violence prevention plan that aligns to your schools’ processes and procedures for providing student threat assessments.

Send your school videos to jnevel@iasaedu.org. We want to highlight what’s going on in your school districts on our magazine’s Videos from the Districts page. Got Great School Videos?

SushilUpadhyayula HighSchoolInnovator

Monthly e-magazine of LeadershipMatters

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Why should I participate in the IASA Aspiring Superintendent Academy? • Professional learning network • Immersive learning experience five days/nights • Working/Networking Dinners • Access to screening interviews with state/national search firms • Illinois Administrators’ Academy Credit • Relationships that will last your career and your lifetime. Each day of the Aspiring Superintendent Academy will feature a different accomplished superintendent and other professionals from across the Midwest. Participants will produce/experience a usable artifact during every module. Examples may include but are not limited to: video creation, crisis planning, legal issues, principal evaluation, simulation of school board meeting, state of district address, welcome back speech, budget presentations, PTA meeting, resolution of an ethical dilemma, and much more. “ “An incredible experience I won’t soon forget.” “ “This is summer camp for aspiring superintendents... an intense immersion into the work of school leaders that will transform your career.”

Preparing for the job of the 21st Century Superintendent

July 13–17 2020

Presented by: Michael Lubelfeld, Ed.D. Nick Polyak, Ed.D. Courney Orzel, Ed.D.

Have you ever wondered what you didn’t learn in graduate school but may need to know in order to be an effective leader? If you are thinking about becoming a school superintendent, then #ASuperWeek in July 2020 is for you! Registration Information The registration fee for the five day Learning Academy is $1,650. Tuition includes a daily continental breakfast and lunch, resource materials and lodging for the entire week, Sunday–Thursday (check- out Friday). The Learning Academy will run from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. each day, at the IASA headquarters, 2648 Beechler Court, Springfield, IL. IASA will make lodging arrangements for participants at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 3000 South Dirksen Parkway in Springfield.

How to Apply

video more information

In addition to applying, you must email your District Superintendent’s letter of support to: marney@iasaedu.org.

apply now

Questions? Contact Melissa Arney, Illinois Association of School Administrators Phone: 217–753–2213 | email: marney@iasaedu.org

Application Deadline: Sun., March 15, 2020

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LISTED CHANGES WILL BE EFFECTIVE START OF 2020–2021 SCHOOL YEAR Members On The Move

Who’s moving, who’s brand new, who’s retiring? Here’s an easy way to keep track of who’s where!

Known New Superintendents 35

Known Transferring Superintendents

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Click on each square to see a list of names for the upcoming school year.

Known Retiring Superintendents

Known Superintendent Vacancies

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Please know that every attempt has been made to achieve accuracy on these lists. If we have not yet learned of your new role or that of a fellow superintendent,

please send the information to Misti Murphy at mmurphy@iasaedu.org, and we will include it in next month’s issue of Leadership Matters.

See IASA’s Job Bank to post or apply for educational positions in Illinois.

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2019–2020 SENATE BILL 7 Performance Rankings Tool SOFTWARE IS NOW AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE

All Illinois School Districts are working to comply with the requirements of education reforms. For years, the Illinois Association of School Administrators (IASA) has worked to provide support via the Senate Bill 7 Performance Rankings File. This program gives districts a method of managing district positions aligned to local qualifications, teacher’s credentials, and performance ratings. The program compiles this local data and creates reports needed to comply with Senate Bill 7. The 2019–2020 file has been enhanced with updates in response to user ideas, and is ready for you to purchase and download. The cost of using this software has never increased and the annual licensing fee is $275 for members and $550 for non-members.

Find the access request form at http://www.iasasurveys.org.

Please note that previous versions of the IASA Senate Bill 7 Performance Rankings File are no longer supported. Also, the service method for the 2019–2020 software will be via email only.

This software was originally reviewed by the Senate Bill 7 teams from the Illinois Federation of Teachers (IFT) and the Illinois Education Association (IEA). The 2019–2020 version of this software builds on the knowledge gained from hundreds of users.

NewsInBrief

AASAElectionToBeHeldThis Spring An election will be held this spring for the expiring terms on the AASA Governing Board. Two AASA seats from Illinois will be be coming open for the Northcentral and Northeastern super regions on June 30. IASA will be sending out additional information to members later this month on the election. AASA Governing Board members have dual responsibilities. They represent their home state on the Governing Board and they report the work of the Governing Board to their home state affiliate. Through the Governing Board elected representatives, members have a voice in AASA decision-making. The AASA Governing Board meets twice per year: AASA National Conference and summer. The current Illinois AASA Governing Board Members and terms are as follows: IASA Northcentral Super Region • Dr. Andrew S. Wise, Superintendent of Olympia CUSD #16 (Term expires 6/30/2020) IASA Northeastern Super Region • Dr. Arthur Fessler, Superintendent of Community Cons. #59 (Term expires 6/30/2021) • Dr. Judith Hackett, Superintendent of Northwest Suburban Special Education Organization (Term expires 6/30/2022) • Dr. Jennifer Kelsall, Superintendent of Ridgewood CHSD #234 (Term expires 6/30/2020) IASA Southern Super Region • Dr. Steve Webb, Superintendent of Goreville Comm Unit #1 (Term expires 6/30/2022)

The College Board announced last month that Illinois ranks No. 1 among all states for charting the largest year-over-year increase in the percentage of public high school graduates scoring a 3 or higher on at least one Advanced Placement (AP) Exam during high school. Illinois’ rate of graduates scoring 3 or higher grew by 4 percent from 2018 to 2019. In the Class of 2019, 28.4 percent of students scored a 3 or higher on an AP Exam, compared to 27.3 percent in the Class of 2018. Latinx students in all grades are driving Illinois’ gains in AP Exam participation and success. The proportion of Latinx students taking AP exams grew by 3.8 percent, accounting for 26.7 percent of all AP Exam takers in 2019—up from 25.7 percent in 2018. ISBE’s 2019 Illinois Report Card showed four years of continuous growth in students’ access to and success in Advanced Placement. Statewide, students of color made up 48 percent of total students enrolled in AP courses in 2019—up 6 percentage points from just three years ago. At the same time that the state has expanded access, Illinois has raised its pass rate on AP Exams by 2.3 percentage points since 2016. The College Board also announced that 23 Illinois high schools have earned the AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award for expanding young women’s access to AP computer science courses. IllinoisRanksHighon AdvancedPlacement Exam

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 Dr. Donald E. Weber, Senior Vice President, Corporate Relations/ISDLAF+ at 630–657–6435. To check daily rates, visit the ISDLAF+ website at www.isdlafplus.com.

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Series Part XV

MakingaDifference: ANewYear,More Progress

FiveMoreSchoolDistrictsShare HowEBFBenefitsTheirStudents

Auburn CUSD #10

North Greene CUSD #3

By Jason Nevel IASA Director of Social Media and Publications

Wabash CUSD #348

In August 2018, we launched our Making a Difference series to better understand how Evidence-Based Funding is helping Illinois students. We profiled 50 school districts and one thing was abundantly clear from our conversations with superintendents. The state’s investment into public education is making a difference. STEM programs were created, social workers and counselors hired, class sizes reduced, electives restored and student safety improved, all as a result of just two years of additional state funding.

Eldorado Unit #4

Johnston City CUSD #1

This month, we continue our series on how school districts across the state are using Evidence-Based Funding dollars to improve student outcomes. The series this time around, however, has a new wrinkle. In addition to learning how the dollars have already made a difference, superintendents share what continued support of the Evidence-Based Funding Formula would mean for their school districts going forward. Telling these stories is important as IASA continues to advocate for the EBF formula to be properly funded over time. You can also find an interactive map on our website with the stories of all 80 schools we have profiled so far.

Auburn CUSD #10

“We are heading in the right direction,” Superintendent Darren Root said. “This formula has proven to prioritize the education of school districts that do not have the local tax base to support equality throughout the state.” EBF dollars have been used to hire a social worker, which has provided students with another level of social-emotional support. The district also hired a librarian to better support student’s reading. In addition, the district has begun replacing outdated textbooks for more modern, digital versions and invested the dollars to add to the district’s technology inventory. Lastly, EBF was needed to help fund the purchase of four new buses in the district’s aging bus fleet.

Enrollment: 1,337 FY18: $427,008 FY20: $346,058 Type: preK–12 FY19: $316,231 How EBF has made a difference The passage of EBF has helped Auburn CUSD #10 dig out of the hole that was created by proration in General State Aid and late payments to school districts. To get by during that time, the district cut 42 employees over three years. Despite the reductions, Auburn CUSD #10 was still living on an annual deficit budget of $500,000 to $600,000 per year. EBF closed the budget deficit, and Auburn CUSD #10 has now begun to invest dollars back into students and district operations.

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Continued support of EBF would... Continued support of EBF would make it easier for Auburn CUSD #10 to comply with mandatory increases to the minimum wage and minimum teacher salaries without cutting vital programs or reducing staff.

Johnston City CUSD #1

Enrollment: 1,148 FY18: $499,158 FY20: $344,485 Type: preK–12 FY19: $302,734 How EBF has made a difference Additional state funding has resulted in lower classroom sizes, additional academic and social-emotional support for students, a new math curriculum, the option of summer school and the chance for middle and high school students in Johnston City CUSD #1 to learn robotics. “The impact has been huge,” said Superintendent Kathy Clark. “We are investing in our students and planning for the future. Instead of talking about how we can trim programming and serve more kids with fewer resources, we are improving and expanding our student offerings.” Johnston City CUSD #1 has hired additional teachers at the elementary, middle and high school levels, filling positions that were previously cut due to a lack of available funds. The elementary schools now have a full-time PE teacher for the first time. Elementary teachers have been hired to keep classroom sizes below 20 students at the K–4 buildings. At the middle school, two additional teachers have helped keep classroom sizes in check while an additional math teacher has been hired for the 20–21 school year at the high school to increase the level of support for students and create an additional math offering. In addition, new state funding allowed the district to hire paraprofessionals at the elementary and middle schools to provide more support for students who struggle to meet academic benchmarks. Furthermore, the district invested EBF dollars to better support an influx in the number of students who arrive at school having experienced some form of childhood trauma. That has included hiring two full time social workers, adopting a new social-emotional curriculum and hiring an assistant principal. “We have a lot of kids who have unmet physical and emotional needs,” Clark said. “This often interferes with their ability to learn. You have to address that first.” Lastly, EBF allowed the district to replace its K–4 math curriculum, offer a credit-recovery program over the summer and provide robotics programming to middle and high school students. Continued support of EBF would... Continued funding of EBF would also allow Johnston City CUSD #1 to expand middle and high school offerings, especially in the area of career and technical education.

Eldorado Unit #4

Enrollment: 1,149 FY18: $556,099 FY20: $331,121 Type: preK–12 FY19: $383,469 How EBF has made a difference The passage of EBF has transformed Eldorado Unit #4. The district stretched its dollars to offer full day preschool, restore art at the elementary school, hire a second music teacher, hire three teacher aides, add a truancy interventionist and support transportation and building needs. “EBF saved our district,” said Superintendent Ryan Hobbs. “We had a barebones operation during proration. It was stressful because people’s careers were on the line. We now have some peace of mind and can invest dollars back into our kids.” The dollars Eldorado Unit #4 received through the Early Childhood Block Grant weren’t enough to offer preschool full time. EBF allowed the district to hire two additional preschool teachers and expand the program, greatly benefiting early learners and parents in the community. Art and music programs at the elementary school have also been restored—marking the first time in over 20 years the district could offer the programs to students. “It’s been so great for our younger students to have that opportunity,” Hobbs said. “Unfortunately, it was one of those things that were cut years ago for budgetary reasons.” The addition of a truancy interventionist is also helping the district boost its attendance rates, which in turn has led to some academic gains. Lastly, the district used EBF to help with the purchase new school buses and pay for some maintenance projects. Continued support of EBF would... If the General Assembly continued to fund EBF, Eldorado Unit #4 could lower elementary and preschool class sizes by hiring additional teachers. The district would also like to update math, reading and other curriculum to make sure students are learning from materials that are updated and aligned to Illinois Learning Standards. Lastly, the district would continue to invest in technology and purchase new Chromebooks to move closer to 1:1.

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Series Part XV

In addition, the district would like to hire full time art and music teachers at the elementary school to provide students with more opportunities. Difference ... cont’d.

Wabash CUSD #348

Enrollment: 1,500 FY18: $289,290 FY20: $230,761 Type: preK–12 FY19: $128,762 How EBF has made a difference An increase in state funding allowed Wabash CUSD #348 to address critical needs and bring back positions that were slashed due to proration in general state aid. The staff hires include a new assistant principal/special education coordinator, kindergarten teacher, first grade teacher and dean of students at the high school. The assistant principal/special education coordinator filled a huge need, not only providing more support to the district’s special education students, but also helping the principal, who was overtaxed overseeing nearly 400 students and 51 faculty and staff members. “There was just too much for the principal to handle,” said Superintendent Dr. Chuck Bleyer. “We were very fortunate to find the right person to fill both positions and help us address some of the gaps we had.” The additional teachers were needed to address a growth in the district’s early learning population. Kindergarten classrooms have remained around 20 students per classroom instead of ballooning to 28 students. First grade classrooms are also more manageable. Lastly, the dean of students was hired as part of an overall restructuring at the junior high and high school intended to streamline administrative operations. “EBF has allowed us to manage personnel much more effectively instead of looking at everything through the lens of pennies and dollars,” Bleyer said. Continued support of EBF would... Continued commitment from the state would allow Wabash CUSD #348 to continue to add teachers and keep classroom sizes down. The district will need to hire a second grade teacher next year, third grade teacher the following year and fourth grade teacher the year after that to accommodate the large group of early learners as they advance through the system. In addition, EBF dollars could be part of the pool of funding needed to construct a new school building.

North Greene CUSD #3

Enrollment: 881 FY18: $236,569 FY20: $194,454 Type: preK–12 FY19: $112,670 How EBF has made a difference The passage of EBF allowed North Greene CUSD #3 to address critical needs that would have otherwise gone unmet. The additional state dollars were used to hire a special education coordinator, an additional social worker, full-time math interventionist and junior high STEM teacher. Having someone dedicated full time to special education has not only been beneficial for students who rely on those services, but it also frees up building administrators to focus more on the needs of all students and staff. “We have a high special education population, and our principals were spending too much time in special education meetings and not in classrooms,” said Superintendent Mark Scott. Adding a second social worker has also gone a long way into providing better social-emotional support for students. Before, the district had one social worker for more than 800 students. The district is already seeing some academic gains after it hired a math interventionist to provide more support for elementary students who are not at grade level. Lastly, the STEM teacher at the junior high has provided students with enrichment opportunities that were previously unavailable. “We are able to provide services that we identified as high need, and if not for EBF dollars, we wouldn’t have been able to do that,” Scott said. Continued support of EBF would... Additional state funding will allow North Greene CUSD #3 to invest dollars back into its teachers and meet the $40,000 minimum teacher salary. The district currently does not have the financial resources to keep up with the salary increases mandated by legislation.

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Superintendency

SAVETHEDATE! Sept.30–Oct.2,2020

CONFERENCE 56th

Dynamic KeynoteSpeakers

CelebratingWomen In Leadership Early BirdAcademies Breakout Sessions

Receptions

Ignite—Best Practices Exhibits •Networking Professional Development

Special Strand Just for New Superintendents

SCHOOL SERVICE MEMBERS: Take Advantage of Excellent Marketing Opportunities!

Clickhere to:

ReserveaBooth HostaHospitalitySuite forAttendees SponsoranEvent,Meal orGeneral Session

Calendar of Events IASA Event Professional Development Event

Click here to view the IASA interactive Calendar of Events online.

Legislative Event Region Meeting (Contact your Region President for details)

March 2020

April 2020

Tues. March 3 Shawnee, Blackhawk

Wed.–Fri. Apr. 1–3 GA Session Thurs. Apr. 2 Corn Belt Fri. Apr. 3

Tues.–Thurs. March 3–5 GA Session Wed. March 4 Two Rivers Thurs. March 5 Corn Belt

Teacher Evaluator Training House Session Teacher Evaluator Training

Evidence-Based Leadership: Using Data to Drive Improvements Fri. March 6 Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF... Mon. March 9 Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF... Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF... Tues. March 10 Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF... Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF...

Sat. Apr. 4

Tues. Apr. 7 Wed. Apr. 8

Abe Lincoln, Shawnee Cook West, DuPage, Illini

Thurs. Apr. 16 Central IL Valley Fri. Apr. 17 Kaskaskia

Tues. Apr. 21 Board of Directors Meeting Tues.–Fri. Apr. 21–24 GA Session Wed. Apr. 22 Wabash Valley Thurs. Apr. 23 Kishwaukee Fri. Apr. 24 Three Rivers, Southwestern

Wed. March 11 DuPage, Illini Thurs. March 12 Cook South Fri. March 13 Cook North, Kaskaskia

Tues. March 17 Primary Election

Tues.–Thurs. Apr. 28–30 GA Session Wed. Apr. 29 Two Rivers

Wed. March 18 Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF... Wed.–Fri. March 18–20 GA Session Thurs. March 19 Central IL Valley Fri. March 20 Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF... Mon. March 23 Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF... Tues. March 24 Get Prepared: Leveraging...EBF... Tues.–Fri. March 24–27 GA Session

Wed. March 25 Wabash Valley Tues. March 31 GA Session

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LM March 2020