100 Days of School

The kindergarteners at Dawes celebrated their 100th day of school on Feb. 8. Throughout the day they participated in various "100th day of school" themed activities including singing songs and counting games. Pictured above, Karla Cruz, Jayla Turner and Cesar Camillo create a trai

Committee Members Are Not Ready to Fund Technology Upgrades Without a Plan

By Mary Helt Gavin

Members of the District 65 School Board's finance committee appeared to agree at their Feb. 12 meeting that the District's technology system is in need of upgrades.

Paul Brinson, director of information services for the District, said the District will have to decommission and replace 1,456 classroom computers and 100 teacher computers this year.

In addition, the administration proposes purchasing another 87 computers in order to improve the student-computer ratio. The District would like to have a minimum ratio of 3.8 students per desk-computer and would prefer a 3:1 ratio, Mr. Brinson said.

In addition, the administration would like to have about 800 laptops assigned to schools for a "laptop cart," he said, that could be clustered in various classrooms according to need.

In addition to the computers, the administration would purchase software, cameras and other technology enhancements, improve the wiring system and install wireless connectivity within the buildings, Mr. Brinson said.

He added that District 65 allocates only about $75 per student for technology, while the preferred allocation is $250.

The acquisition cost for the enhancements and for bringing the computer-student ratio to 3:1 is about $1.5 million, according to Mr. Brinson's figures. To bring the per-student allocation to $250 would be an additional $4.8 million, he said.

He presented the committee with a working draft of a procurement/replacement schedule for 2006-07 through 2011-12, projecting expenditures of $2.4 million in the present year, $1.9 million next year and about $1.6 million in successive years.

The computers would be leased rather than purchased he said, to avoid costs of disposing of the used ones. He added that his figures were not firm.

Mr. Brinson replied, "I didn't work back to this number; it was in my mind - to put it out so people would have a number to work with."

The administration proposes splitting the proceeds of a $10 million bond issue between additional life safety projects and technology upgrades. The Board recently authorized $20 million in bonds to cover life safety costs but has issued only $10 million in bonds so far.

Finance Director Mary Brown said the Board could re-authorize the second $10 million to be spent so that a portion of the proceeds could be used for technology upgrades.

The District projects about $14.5 million in life safety repairs over the next three years. (See story below.)

Dr. Hardy Murphy, superintendent, told the committee that if the District could use $5 million of the proceeds of those bonds, it would "get the District on a replacement schedule. We finance this through debt so we don't have to go lurching forward."

None of the committee members disputed or objected to the need for technology upgrades.

However, Jonathan Baum and Sharon Sheehan both expressed concern about approving the funding. The objections appeared to be twofold: that the District was supposed to have been following the plan it proposed three years ago and there was no plan presented for the future.

Mr. Baum said, "I don't understand. In the technology plan we approved three years ago it was already recognized that the computers would have to be replaced. Today we have to hurry up and purchase 1,460 computers. What was the plan three years ago to pay for it?"

Mr. Brinson replied, "Because we were funding the plan three years ago out of operating funds, there was no way to pay for all this. The goal all along was to level out our purchases."

Mr. Baum then asked, "Why haven't we spent the last three years figuring out how to pay for this?"

Dr. Murphy replied, "We've been doing other things." He added, "We cannot do this out of operating funds."

Mary Rita Luecke said, "These computers will be leased. Can we use debt to finance them?"

Dr. Mary Brown, the District's finance director said, "We've had a conversation with our bond counsel and he said this fell under appropriate use."

Both Dr. Murphy and Mr. Brinson urged the committee to look at the computer replacements as "replacing tires on your car."

Ms. Sheehan said, "I fully support technology for teaching and learning in the schools. You are asking for authority to spend $5 million. That's 5 percent of our budget. I hear from teachers that they can't use what we have." She added, "I have no sense of a plan. I cannot in good conscience approve $5 million without a plan."

Dr. Murphy said, "A plan will be developed afterward. Give us the money and we'll show you a plan."

Mr. Baum said, "My point is not to cast blame, but this is how we are led to crisis decision-making."

Dr. Murphy said, "There may have been issues we didn't address. As an administration and a Board, we should have addressed it."

Ms. Sheehan said, "So you put the Board members in a position of accountability of the Superintendent versus letting the schools open next year with quality computers."

Dr. Murphy said, "This is just a maintenance issue."

Ms. Sheehan reiterated, "I think you should have a plan."

Dr. Murphy responded, "It doesn't work like that. Sometimes the real world is a little meaner."

Mr. Brinson said he "hoped to have a draft plan by the end of the month."

The matter will be discussed again at the next finance committee meeting, scheduled for March 12.

District 65 Committee Discusses Life Safety Projects For Seven Schools

At the Feb. 12 meeting of the District 65 finance committee, members discussed funding life-safety projects for seven of the 16 schools in conjunction with spending on technology upgrades for all the schools in the District. The total three-year package proposed by OWPP, the company that would perform the work, amounts to about $14.5 million: $3.5 million this year; $4.5 million in 2008; and $6.5 million in 2009.
Because OWPP proposes a combination of projects that fall under the "required" as well as the "recommended" categories, the committee members asked the company to bring to the March 12 meeting a list of work in each category for each project.

Life safety projects
The state mandates that public school buildings meet certain standards to ensure the safety of the students. Among these standards are adequate heat and means of entry and exit. OWPP would repair or replace the boilers at Lincoln, Lincolnwood, Bessie Rhodes, King Lab, Kinglsey, Park and Walker schools. "We'll put in equipment that is more efficient and easier to maintain," said Keith Hammelman of OWPP, adding, "Energy-saving boilers pay for themselves in a very short time."

OWPP also proposes to reconfigure the entrances and front offices of some District schools as matters of security, even though this type of repair does not fall under the state's mandates. Over the three years OWPP proposes modifying the entrances and relocating some offices within the buildings, at Park, Walker, Dawes and Dewey schools
For economic reasons, OWPP proposes to do both required and recommended work on each building at the same time rather than doing the required work and then returning for the recommended work.

While all the committee members endorsed the proposed "required" projects, they felt they needed more specific information about what "required" projects might be deferred in favor of the "recommended projects."

Referring to a recent $10 million bond issue for the specific purpose of life-safety projects and noting that the proposed package was $14.5 million, Sharon Sheehan said, "We have to be able to assure the public that the first $10 million will include all the 'required' items."
Mary Rita Luecke added, "We have to look at what we are not doing because we are doing this. But I do understand the importance of doing as much in one school as possible."

Committee members expressed the hope that after the March 12 discussion they would have a recommendation to the full Board for its March 19 meeting. That would give OWPP sufficient time to solicit bids for the summer and late fall work.

ESL/Bilingual Approval Classes Offered

Teachers seeking ESL (English as a Second Language) or bilingual approval may sign up for courses offered by the Illinois Resource Center and provided through Naitonal-Louis University.

The first class, Foundations of Language Minority Education, will be held 4:30-8:15 p.m. on Feb. 26 at the Joseph E. Hill Education Center, 1500 McDaniel Ave. Classes continue through May 14. For more information or to obtain a registration form, call Dr. Judith Yturriago at 847-859-8038.

WordMaster Champs at Nichols

Two teams of students representing Nichols Middle School recently won highest honors in the WordMasters Challenge - a three-part national language arts competition for more than 225,000 students annually.

Competing in the difficult Blue Division of the challenge and supervised by Judith Artwick, the school's seventh- graders tied for eighth place among 293 school teams participating in this year's first meet, held in December. At the same time, the school's eighth-graders tied for seventh place in the nation among 304 competing teams.
Five of the school's students won highest honors for individual achievement as well: Seventh grader Sammy Straus and eighth graders Chris Corttier, Elijah Doetsch, Max Fink and Matthew Foster all earned perfect scores in the meet, where nationwide only 59 seventh-graders and 118 eighth-graders did so.

Others at the school who achieved outstanding results in the meet include seventh-graders Elliot Chanen, Dina Ennab, Emily Fishkin, Eleanor Goerss, Nikki Freihofer, Eli Friedman, Mary Gilore, Jack Hanson, Josh Isenstein, Stephanie Midyan, Amelia Nawn, and Margaret Port; and eighth- graders Hayley Chill, Sabrina D'Haiti, Colin Emrich, Linnea Garcia, Brian Grodsky, Kellan Hanrahan, Isaac Herman, Dhwani Janin, Sean Lavelle, Sarah Maloney-Frank, George Mencoff, Tommy Rorlee, Trevor Santoro, Jessica Shatkin, Allison Slaughter, Catherine Sosa, Sarah Tannenbaum and Briana Unruh.

The WordMasters Challenge has been administered for the past 20 years by a company based in Allendale, New Jersey, which is dedicated to inspiring high achievement in American schools. The students will participate in two more WordMasters meets during the coming months, and medals and certificates will be awarded in June to those who achieve and/or improve the most in the course of the year.

African-American Youth Achievement Awards

The 10th Annual African-American Youth Achievement Awards, honoring Evanston students who pay homage to African-American pioneers through their daily actions, is set for Feb. 23 at Evanston Township High School, 1600 Dodge Ave. This community-sponsored event is a Black History Month initiative.

The following students from District 65 schools, Evanston Township High School, and Pope John XXIII School will be recognized:
Bessie Rhodes: Caleb Chalmer and Rachel Chery
Chute Middle School: Mark Johnson and Zenani Greenwell
Dawes: Chevelle Clark and Kyle Johnson
Dewey: Julian Smith and Kara Roseborough
King Lab: Kyrani Reneau and Kent Strong
Kingsley: Akeino James and Taylor Louis
Lincoln: Marcus Johnson and Zandile Lavisa
Lincolnwood: Blake Hansen and Dezree Price
Nichols: Allison Slaughter and Timothy Huff
Oakton: Jonathan Monroe and Johanna Dezil
Orrington: Michaela Harris and Sherman Salter
Pope John XXIII: Paulina Thomas and Michael Efughv
Walker: Alexis King and Matthew Henry
Washington: Stephen Chaney and Taylor Galvin
Willard: Sean Sullivan-Freeman and Emerald Morales
Evanston Township High School:
Courtney Hammell, Philip Bateman, Aryn Terry, Erik Abron, Caitlin McEwen, Steffan Bradley Miller, Ashton Steward and Michelle Weeks

"Wild, Wild, Wildkit" Booster Benefit.

The Evanston Township High School Boosters will present "Wild, Wild, Wildkit" on March 24 at the Unitarian Church of Evanston, 1333 Ridge Ave. The benefit, which will raise funds for all extracurricular activities at Evanston Township High School, includes both a silent and a live auction, some foot-stomping country rock music, dinner and drinks. Topping the auction list are a barbecue dinner for 20 provided by new District 202 Superintendent Eric Witherspoon and ETHS staff, a cocktail party for 40 women at the Tucker Gallery, dinner for two at the Quince at The Homestead, and a weekend package for two at the historic Hotel Burnham.

For the second year, the ETHS Boosters are selling car/cash raffle tickets, with the winner having the opportunity to choose between a new 2007 VW Rabbit provided by the Autobarn of Evanston or $15,000 in cash. The winning ticket will be drawn the night of the benefit. Only 400 raffle tickets are being sold and may be purchased for $100 apiece or $250 for three at the ETHS Athletic Office or by calling Stella Wilson at 847-866-6717.

Concert at ETHS

The Evanston Township High School music division will present a Winter Festival Concert at 7 p.m. on Feb. 27 in the high school's Auditorium. A true festival of music, both choral and instrumental, will be presented. The ETHS bands, orchestras, and choral groups will offer selections for all tastes and ages. Tickets, available at the door, are $2 for adults, $1 for students, and free to senior citizens.

Esande

Esande, the dance company of Evanston Township High School, will present its annual concert on Feb. 23, 24 and 25 in the ETHS Auditorium.

This exciting student dance program will have a variety of dance styles including ballet, jazz, modern, hip-hop, and Latin choreographed by students and faculty.

The program will also feature choreography by guest artists Ryan Miller (Melissa Thodos Dance Company), Jamie Horban, Shannon Battaglia and Diana Salinas.

Curtain is at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 23 and 24 and at 3 p.m. on Feb. 25. Tickets are $8, available at the door, 1600 Dodge Ave. Special discounted tickets at $4 for senior citizens and children under age 12 are available for the Sunday matinee.

ETHS is handicapped accessible through the Auditorium entrance on Dodge Ave. Parking is available in the lot across from this entrance.

ETHS Kudos

ETHS History teacher Cathleen Martin is among 24 educators from across the U.S. to be chosen for a 10-day study tour to Saudi Arabia in March. The participants will investigate aspects of Saudi society focusing on education, industry, history and culture, and global relations. This study program is sponsored by Aramco and administered by the Institute of International Education. Cathleen is the second ETHS history teacher to participate. Aaron Becker went last year.

Seventeen students have been named finalists in the National Merit and National Achievement Scholarship Programs. The two Achievement finalists are Philip Bateman and Robin Calhoun. The 15 Merit finalists are Sonya Burns, Martha Burson, Elliot Damashek, Reuben Doetsch, Louis Hellman, Liana Hershey-Nexon, Miriam Marks, Glenn McFadden, William Niemira, Kathleen O'Leary, Ben Simon, Ariana Strandburg-Peshkin, Emily Studenmund, Anna Waymack and Alexandra Wich.

The ETHS Chess Team placed fourth at the IHSA State Tournament Feb. 10 and 11. ETHS faced 120 teams from across the state in two days of intense matches. Two students, seniors Tony Howell and Andy Day, both received first-place medals, and seniors David Singham and Todd Summers placed 5th and 21st, respectively, in individual competition. The teams is coached by science teachers Ken Lewandowski and Dan DuBrow.

Three ETHS seniors - Elliott Damashek, Nick Salter and Ben Simon - are semifinalists in the Loyola Junior Science and Humanities Symposium. Their research papers will be presented on March 3 before a panel of professors; and finalists will be announced that afternoon. Elliot's research involves calculations with Einstein's general theory of relativity. Nick worked on the use of network theory. And Ben studied how a "rogue" star interacts with binary star systems.
At the IHSA Sectional tournament Feb. 9-11, three ETHS student speakers advanced to the final round. Alex Driscoll competed in radio speaking; Grace Yarnoff competed in original oratory; and Emma DeGrand competed in special occasion speaking.
The ETHS Worldwide Youth in Science and Engineering academic team took second place in regional competition and qualified for sectionals, which will be held on March 9. Five seniors of the 14-member team won individual medals.

ETHS music students were recently on the air. Several jazz band members were interviewed last week on WBEZ's "8:48" radio program, and four more performed the Chicago Bears fight song on the morning program on WGN-TV, Channel 9.

202 Board Discusses Fees, Budgets and Open Meeting Act

By Jennie Berkson

Issues relating to the budget, fees and legal matters came together at the District 202 Board meeting on Feb. 12.
The Board announced that it will postpone its decision on a proposed activities fee while soliciting further community input. Administrators introduced a new approach to budgeting. And a candidate for the Board challenged the sitting Board's compliance with the Open Meetings Act.

Activities fee
The idea of imposing an activities fee on Evanston Township High School students has been a lightning rod for Board and public criticism in recent weeks. Expressing concerns about their understanding of the budget, the Board was reluctant to make a decision about imposing additional fees. And despite Board and administration assertions that e-mail and other response to the fee had been positive, public comment at the Jan. 23 meeting was negative, supporting the decision to postpone.

Values-based budget
Attempting to clarify the budgeting process for the future and make it more meaningful, William Stafford, ETHS chief financial officer, introduced a new format: values-based budgeting. Mr. Stafford discussed various types of budgets used in the public sector, including line-item budgeting, the District's current method.

Although, said Mr. Stafford, "we don't think line-item budgeting assists in making decisions," ETHS has used it because it is required by the state. When ETHS moves to values-based budgeting, it will comply with the law by providing a line-item budget separately, Mr. Stafford said.

Mr. Stafford said values-based budgeting will allow the Board to "make decisions on what will have the least negative impact on kids' opportunities to learn." In addition, he said, such an approach will provide for "a solid knowledge of budgeting terms and budget status" and will help Board members "think through the philosophy of using reserves carefully."
The complete conversion to values-based budgeting will take several years, Mr. Stafford said, although the process will begin with the next budget cycle. "We can make major innovations this year to help you make strategic decisions," he told the Board. By 2009 the budget will include such components as departmental goals and objectives, along with performance measures, which are not currently noted in the budget.

"If we have a values-based budget in place, does it give department chairs more or less flexibility?" asked Board president Ross Friedman. "It will give department chairs more direction," replied Mr. Stafford. "It will make sure we're on task at all levels. They will have to be creative towards a goal. It will show how goals in a department are related to Board goals."

Open meetings question
During public comment, Boris Furman, a former Board member who is currently making a third attempt at re-election, challenged the current Board to "convene a series of special meetings to educate themselves and the public and to provide an open and public forum on . . . three topics: budget priorities, the budget and requirements of the Open Meetings Act." In fact, the Board has been holding outreach meetings with faculty, staff and the public since last fall, publicizing them at Board meetings and in a variety of venues, including the RoundTable.
At the same time, Mr. Furman accused the Board of "flagrant and direct violation of Illinois state law" when they changed the regularly scheduled Jan. 22 Board meeting to the next day "with less than three days' notice." He claimed that such a change requires a 10-day notification.

District officials dispute his contention. The Jan. 22 meeting was rescheduled to allow Board members to attend the funeral of a long-time District employee, whose wife was a long-serving former administrator.

Notice of the change was posted on Jan. 18, they said, in accordance with the requirements of the Illinois Open Meetings Act. According to page 35 of the "Guide to the Open Meetings Act" published by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, "this [the 10 days' notice] requirement appears to relate to a permanent change in the regular meeting schedule and not to the rescheduling of a single meeting, which may be done within 48 hours' notice."

In an e-mail to Board members, administrators and the media last week, Mr. Stafford wrote, "It was clear to me, as secretary of the Board, and to our attorneys, that the January 23, 2007, Board meeting was a properly called and noticed meeting under the Illinois Open Meetings Act."

Contacted later for comment, Mr. Furman responded that he was "just going to have to accept that it is reasonable for the School Board to rely on Madigan's interpretation."

ETHS, Oakton to Collaborate on Training Police Officers and Firefighters

By Jennie Berkson

"We think this will be an opportunity to catch the interest of young men and women," Sam Hunter, division chief of the Evanston Fire Department told the District 202 School Board. "We want to be able to hire Evanston residents."

Chief Hunter was referring to a new program in partnership with the Evanston Police and Fire departments, Oakton Community College (OCC) and the Applied Sciences and Safety departments at Evanston Township High School. In this program, high school students will be able to earn six OCC credits that can be applied toward either a fire science or law enforcement associate's degree or certificate program.
"This is a critical issue, police recruitment," said Frank Kaminski, ETHS safety director and former Evanston police chief. "There used to be thousands of people applying for a few jobs. Now there are many jobs and not many applicants."

Shelley Gates, Applied Sciences Department chair, said students enrolled in the program will attend a practicum class during first period at ETHS. Tuesdays and Thursdays during periods 9 and 10 they will attend an OCC class offered on-site at ETHS. On Wednesdays, students will participate in Community Emergency Response Team training taught by the Evanston Fire Department staff.

"I am very excited about this career-to-work program and the expeditious manner in which you got it up and running," said Board member Mary Wilkerson. "If I have achieved nothing else during my time on the Board," she said, "this program will have been enough."
Board member Missy Fleming asked how the program will be evaluated. "That's a big concern," said Ms. Gates. "It's a pilot, and we are working closely with Oakton. It's not something we've had a discussion about yet."

Ms. Gates told the Board she would like to recruit at least 20 students for the program. "Kids have already been coming to the office to ask about it." The school sent a letter to parents at the end of January, announcing the Law Enforcement/Fire Safety program along with other Applied Sciences and Technologies Department offerings.