December 14, 2023 at 6:00 PM - Truth in Taxation Hearing followed by Regular Board Meeting

Description:  Call to Order. Secretary to the Board will take attendance.

Description:  The next agenda item for the Board of Education is the Truth in Taxation Hearing. All persons desiring to be heard will have an opportunity to present written or oral testimony with respect to the tax levy. The District's fund balances are available in the Annual Financial Report (AFR). The AFR is publicly available in this Board Packet.

At this time, the Board President or designee will open the discussion. The purpose of the Truth in Taxation Hearing is to inform the public that the Board of Education intends to take action to increase the annual tax levy by greater than 105% compared with last year's 2022 levy and provide the public an opportunity to present oral or written comments or testimony.

Are there any comments from the members of the Board of Education?
Allow for any discussion.

We will now move on to written testimony. Is there any written testimony regarding the tax levy?
If there is written testimony, the Board Secretary or designee will read it out loud to enter it into the record. 

We will move on to oral testimony or any public comments concerning the tax levy. Is there anyone present who wishes to provide oral testimony or public comment?
Public comment should only be related to the bonds. There will be a second public comment period during this meeting for other topics.

At this time, all persons desiring to be heard have been given an opportunity to present oral and written testimony with respect to the tax levy. Is there a motion to adjourn the hearing?

Description: 

The Board is asked to approve the Resolution Concerning and Affecting the Tax Levy for 2023 which will result in a reduction in the likely property tax rate. The proposed property tax levy is in the amount of $6,856,827 If the extension (taxes collected) matches the levy, this would represent a 6.54% increase in total local property tax revenues to the District. However, due to the "tax cap" law, the likely extension will not exceed $6,761,827, a 5.07% increase in revenues. Additionally, the likely tax rate will decrease from 4.5592 to 4.2997. The increase in revenue is a result of an increase in property value, not an increase in the tax rate.

Description: 

Individuals wishing to speak during public comment must complete the Public Comment Form and submit it to the Board Secretary prior to the start of the meeting.

Board Policy 2:230. At each regular and special open meeting, members of the public and District employees may comment to or ask questions of the School Board, subject to reasonable constraints. The individuals appearing before the Board are expected to follow these guidelines:

1. Address the Board only at the appropriate time as indicated on the agenda and when recognized by the Board President.
2. Identify oneself and be brief. Ordinarily, comments shall be limited to 5 minutes. In unusual circumstances, and when an individual has made a request in advance to speak for a longer period of time, the individual may be allowed to speak for more than 5 minutes.
3. Observe the Board President's decision to shorten public comment to conserve time and give the maximum number of individuals an opportunity to speak.
4. Observe the Board President's decision to determine procedural matters regarding public participation not otherwise covered in Board policy.
5. Conduct oneself with respect and civility toward others and otherwise abide by Board Policy, 8:30, Visitors to and Conduct on School Property.

Members of the public may speak during this portion of the meeting. Comments are limited to five minutes. Board members will not respond to public comments or questions during "Public Comments". Should total Public Comments approach or exceed a cumulative time of 30 minutes, the Board may suspend additional Public Comments until immediately prior to the Board and Superintendent Comments portion of the agenda.

Description: 

Board Policy 2:220 The President shall designate a portion of the agenda as a consent agenda for those items that usually do not require extensive discussion before Board action. Upon the request of any Board member, an item will be withdrawn from the consent agenda and placed on the regular agenda for independent consideration. 

There will be no separate discussion of these items unless a Board Member so requests, in which event the item will be removed from the Consent Agenda and considered as the first item after approval of the Consent Agenda.

Description:  Regular personnel items.
Approval of wage scale for general maintenance worker.

Description: 

Most policy updates are updates to footnotes etc., due to new legislation. 

Of Note:
2:200 Types of Board Meetings includes new reasons for closed session.  "denial of admission to school events or property"

4:10  Fiscal and Business Management "Present a written report that includes the annual average expenditures of the district’s operational funds for the previous three fiscal years"

4:60 Purchases and Contracts Raises to $35,000 (from $25000) the amount of supplies, materials, or work involved to comply with State law bidding procedure.

4:130 Free and Reduced-Price Food Services.  The district must annually determine if it will participate in the program.

5:120 Resignations states "teachers who resign with less than 30 days notice prior to the first student attendance day of the following school term will b deemed to have resigned during the school year."

5:250 Leaves of Absence Greatly reduces the language in regards to COVID-19 Paid Administrative Leave

7:190  Align notification duty to 105 ILCS 5/27

Approve Changes to:

2:150 Committees; 2:20 Powers and Duties of the School Board; Indemnification; 2:200 Types of School Board Meetings; 2:220 School Board Meeting Procedure; 4:10 Fiscal and Business Management; 4:130 Free and Reduced-Price Food Services; 4:160 Environmental Quality of Buildings and Grounds; 4:30 Revenue and Investments; 4:40 Incurring Debt; 4:55 Use of Credit and Procurement Cards; 4:60 Purchases and Contracts; 5:170 Copyright; 5:190 Teacher Qualifications; 5:200 Terms and Conditions of Employment and Dismissal; 5:210 Resignations; 5:220 Substitute Teachers; 5:250 Leaves of Absence; 5:285 Drug and Alcohol Testing for School Bus and Commercial Vehicle Drivers; 5:30 Hiring Process and Criteria; 5:330 Sick Days, Vacation, Holidays, and Leaves; 5:90 Abused and Neglected Child Reporting; 6:15 School Accountability; 6:210 Instructional Materials; 6:230 Library Media Program; 6:30 Organization of Instruction; 6:50 School Wellness; 6:60 Curriculum Content; 7:160 Student Appearance; 7:190 Student Behavior; 7:270 Administering Medicines to Students; 7:285 Anaphylaxis Prevention, Response, and Management Program; 7:290 Suicide and Depression Awareness and Prevention; 7:50 School Admissions and Student Transfers To and From Non-District Schools; 7:60 Residence; 7:70 Attendance and Truancy; 8:30 Visitors to and Conduct on School Property; 8:70 Accommodating Individuals with Disabilities

Description: 

The Superintendent is placing his evaluation before the Board:

The Board and the Superintendent shall meet during December and January of each annual period to discuss and evaluate their working relationship, rapport, and understanding, as well as progress toward established goals and objectives for the school district.  No later than February 1 of each year of the Superintendent's Contract, the Board shall evaluate the Superintendent’s performance and a written evaluation of that performance shall be given to the Superintendent...It shall be the duty of the Superintendent to cause review of the Superintendent's performance to be placed before the Board of Education at its regular December meeting.

Description: 

The Board will move to closed session for the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees, specific individuals who serve as independent contractors in a park, recreational, or educational setting, or specific volunteers of the public body or legal counsel for the public body, including hearing testimony on a complaint lodged against an employee, a specific individual who serves as an independent contractor in a park, recreational, or educational setting, or a volunteer of the public body or against legal counsel for the public body to determine its validity. However, a meeting to consider an increase in compensation to a specific employee of a public body that is subject to the Local Government Wage Increase Transparency Act may not be closed and shall be open to the public and posted and held in accordance with this Act. 5 ILCS 120/2(c)(1).

Description: 

11-22-2023; kcasey@sorillinois.com; Katharine Casey; Science of Reading Illinois. Requesting information related to literacy curricula.
12-04-2022; pjlee.team@gmail.com; Patrick Lee; Change the Air Foundation. Requesting air quality testing results.
SMART PROCURE; Recurring.

Description:  11-20-2023 WCIA. Third grade assignment leads to more inclusive playground at Rantoul school. https://www.wcia.com/news/third-grade-assignment-leads-to-more-inclusive-playground-at-rantoul-school/ 
11-22-2023 News-Gazette. Teacher of the Week: Samantha Launius, fifth grade, Eastlawn Elementary, Rantoul. Attached.
 

Description:  The Board is provided a monthly report detailing student in-school suspension, out-of-school suspensions, and placements in CARE. Due to the student record data contained in this report, this report remains confidential.