by Olivia Ervin

The Staunton Community School District #6 Board of Education met in the unit library at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 22, with board members Jain, Rhodes, Legendre, Renner, Green, and Best present; Lamore was absent. Also present were interim superintendent Kelly, Principal Allen, Principal Hughes, Nancy Werden, and members of the community.

The CUSD #6 administrative team presented to the board a proposal regarding the implementation of a summer school program at Staunton schools for students who are in need of extra academic support. They also want to begin the process of establishing summer school as a mitigation strategy to prevent failure rather than a remediation strategy for students who have already failed. An added bonus of summer school would be reducing the impact of "summer slide."

Elementary and junior high students who have received a failing grade in language arts or math during the first semester of school and have not made satisfactory progress during the third quarter will be considered for summer school attendance. Other factors considered will be standardized testing data, tier placement in the RTI program (interventions that have already been attempted to support students who are struggling academically), attendance, and teacher recommendation. High school students in need of summer school will be considered along similar guidelines but will be learning as a means of credit recovery so they have the opportunity to graduate on time.

Summer school for elementary and junior high students will be held May 30 through June 23, Monday through Thursday, from 8 a.m. to noon. High school credit recovery will have an extended timeline.

Funding for this program will come from ESSER III grant money, and will pay for teachers, paraprofessionals, administrative assistant, bus drivers, supplies, and materials.

The board approved the summer school program. Invitations to participate will be mailed on April 19 with the last day to register being May 13.

High School Principal Vince Hughes, assisted by McKendree University grad student Tim Klein, followed the summer school proposal with information regarding the SAT. It has been determined that students at Staunton High School are scoring slightly below the national and state average on the SAT, with the median student score at SHS being 969. Interventions are to be put in place to help students achieve high scores, such as prep courses through Kahn Academy, specific prep courses for Tier 3 students (highest level of academic interventions) that simulate the testing environment, and Saturday school.

The testing will be held at Net Church in Staunton, which allows for small groups of Tier 3 students and other students with learning difficulties to be given academic support without disrupting students who are completing the test without support.

Dr. Poonam Jain asked if the mitigations were going into place due to COVID or if student performance had been declining prior to the pandemic. Hughes responded that in 2017 SHS students had scored above average on the SAT, and in 2018 and 2019 they scored below average but were "approaching" average.

Clayton Green asked why students were taking the SAT when colleges in the Midwest have historically used the ACT as an entrance criterion. There seemed to be no clear answer why the shift had taken place, other than perhaps a political situation during the previous governor's tenure.

Interim Superintendent Michael Kelly then gave his report, starting with the recent use of emergency days and e-learning days during severe weather experienced through the beginning of February. As of the time of the meeting, two emergency days and two e-learning days had been used; the district is allowed five of each. Kelly said he has been trying to determine what happens if weather causes a use of emergency or e-learning days, citing a potential previous existence of "Act of God" days in which school closures do not result in an extended school year.

Kelly specifically explained that emergency and e-learning days are not the same as remote learning, which is a result of COVID rather than weather or other extenuating circumstances.

Kelly then went on to explain to the board that the recent investigation into the school's insurance revealed that only $60,000 of the district's $300,000 worth of music equipment is insured, and that technology is also under-insured. Attempts to rectify the situation are ongoing.

The board voted to hire Loy Miller Tally, PC, as the district’s external auditor for an amount not to exceed $10,000.

The bus bids were discussed, with the ultimate decision being to purchase two buses without air conditioning after March 1, at which time the district will know if EPA funding will contribute to the purchase. The decision to go without air conditioning was made after information regarding the difficulty and expense of repairing the A/C systems, and their propensity to fail.

The fuel bid for Staunton, Gillespie, Bunker Hill, and Mt. Olive was discussed, with it being noted that last year only M&M Service Company sent in a bid for fuel. Board members were encouraged to tell fuel companies that the district is looking for other companies to contract with.

In unfinished business, the board discussed the financial situation surrounding dual credit classes with Lewis and Clark Community College. Last year the district absorbed the fees associated with participating in the dual credit program, but has remained undecided if doing so is feasible.

Dori Rhodes inquired if students at SHS were eligible for financial aid from L&C, or if the college would waive fees for students in precarious financial situations. The answer was unknown, but a member of the administrative team stated that they would inquire on behalf of the students.

Ultimately the board voted to cover the dual credit fees for students who qualify for the free and reduced lunch programs. It was also stated that this agreement will be made clear at the time of registration, so students who need assistance are not deterred from enrolling in dual credit courses.

In new business, the 2022-2023 school calendar was discussed. Kelly reminded the board that school improvement days must have a specified use before being placed on the calendar. He suggested they be used for professional development around the use of technology in the classroom.

The board then discussed hiring a superintendent and junior high principal for the 2023 fiscal year. Kelly suggested that the board use the Illinois State Board of Education to conduct a free external search, since two of the last three superintendent candidates chosen without ISBE did not meet expectations. He also suggested that the board hire the superintendent prior to the principal, that way the new superintendent could start building his/her administrative team.

“It’s time,” said Kelly, “At the end of the day, we are here to serve children...let’s hire an instructional leader. You can build an understanding of taxes and such from there.”

In the final order before closed session the board approved a bid proposal to install a new switch board, after the previous one took eight hours to return to normal function after a shutoff. The new switchboard will also be enclosed for safety reasons.

After closed session the board accepted the resignations of Austin Sherfy, junior high basketball coach; Brooke Dugger, junior high cheerleading coach; and Carlee Bushnell, high school cheerleading coach.

The board approved the employment of Steve Moore as 8th grade boys’ basketball coach; Zac Niswander as substitute aide; and Michael Pernika as substitute custodian.

The board will meet again on March 21.