Olympia Community Unit School District 16 Board met Sept. 14.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
Call to Order, Roll Call, and Pledge of Allegiance
The Olympia Board of Education of the Olympia CUSD #16 was called to order by President Kevin Frazier for a regular scheduled meeting at 7:00 p.m. in the Conference Room of the Olympia Administration Office with the following Board Members and Administrators present: Kevin Frazier, Carolyn Hansen, Steve Matter, Lynn Cross, and Mary Springer; Superintendent Dr. Laura O’Donnell and Olympia South Elementary Principal Stacey Rogers. Attending virtually were Board Member Doug Maris and Assistant Superintendent Andy Walsh.
Board Member Shawn Hohulin was absent.
Also in attendance were Olympia Maintenance Director Scott Thornton, Olympia Education Association representative Becky Meissner, and community member Rodney McCray.
Approval of Consent Agenda
A motion was made by Carolyn Hansen, seconded by Steve Matter, to approve the Consent Agenda which included:
A. Approval of Agenda
B. Approval of Minutes, including Executive Session Minutes, from the August 10, 2020 regular scheduled Board of Education meeting
C. Approval of Bills & Financial Reports
D. Approval of the following resignations:
1. Lon Abrams – OHS Boys’ Swimming Coach, effective August 17, 2020
2. Jessica Clarke – OMS Dance Coach (from full stipend to split stipend), effective for the 2020-2021 season
3. Diana Davis – Special Olympics Coach (from full stipend to split stipend), effective for the 2020-2021 school year
4. Shari Brammeier – OHMS Cafeteria Personnel, effective September 4, 2020
5. Anfernee Roberts – OHS Assistant Football Coach, effective September 8, 2020
E. Approval of the employment of the following Education Support Personnel, effective for the 2020-2021 school year:
1. Ashley Alexander – Teacher’s Aide at Olympia West Elementary
2. Kate Campbell – Bus Aide for an Olympia North Elementary route
F. Approval of the employment of the following Extra-Curricular Coaches/Sponsors, effective for the 2020-2021 seasons:
1. Tricia Gale – OMS 8th grade Girls’ Basketball Coach
2. Rachel Pritts – OHS Basketball Cheer Coach
3. Emilie Ruppert – OMS Dance Coach (split stipend w/ Jessica Clarke)
4. Lisa Knuffman & Cody Hendricks – OHS Assistant Speech Coach (split stipend)
5. Kim Logsdon – OMS 8th grade Volleyball Coach
6. Kelsi Meeker – OMS 7th grade Volleyball Coach
G. Approval of the employment of Brenda Johnson – OMS Homebound Teacher, effective for the 2020-2021 school year
H. Approval of the following Transportation actions, effective for the 2020-2021 school year:
1. Add the Stanford/Danvers Shuttle route to Bus Driver Jesse Wheeler’s current hours
2. Transfer Amanda VanEtten, Bus Aide, from a Minier/Armington route to an Out-of-District Special Education route
3. Transfer Dawn Jones, Bus Aide, from an Out-of-District Special Education route to a different Out-of-District Special Education route
I. Approval of a 12-week FMLA leave of absence for Rosemary Rizzolo, as well as an extended sick leave for the remainder of the 2020-2021 school year
J. Approval of Pam Stegeman as a volunteer for the OHMS Nurse department
K. Approval of a student transfer for Anessa Masters, 3rd grade, to attend Olympia North Elementary instead of Olympia West Elementary, effective for the 2020-2021 school year
L. Approval of the 2019-2020 Employee Salary Reports
M. Approval of an Intergovernmental Agreement with the Village of Minier for use of the Minier School Park for outdoor learning programs and related activities
Discussion. Vote: Hansen (aye), Matter (aye), Maris (aye), Hohulin (absent), Cross (aye), Springer (aye), Frazier (aye). Motion carried 6-0.
Communications
There was no Communications Folder.
Administrative Committee Reports
Carolyn Hansen and Superintendent Dr. Laura O’Donnell shared highlights from their recent Communications Administrative Committee meeting. The importance of keeping everyone up-to-date regarding the District’s Covid situation was stressed. Dr. O’Donnell noted that the District’s Covid statistics are updated daily on the Olympia website.
Administrative Reports
Building Principal reports were shared. All Principals commended their staffs for their flexibility, dedication, and going above & beyond their “normal” duties to ensure that all students continue to get a quality education during the Covid days.
Assistant Superintendent Andy Walsh shared some final comments regarding the FY21 Working Budget. He also announced the launch of LifeWorks for all Olympia employees. LifeWorks is an online platform which provides counseling services for anxiety, coping strategies, grief, stress, depression, substance abuse, and separation/divorce. Employees have access to an 800 number 24/7, which is staffed by licensed professionals for counseling services.
Mr. Walsh presented the updated Risk Management Plan for approval. He recommended that a new program be added called Skyward Positive Attendance. This program will allow OHS to create a record in Skyward of all students entering & leaving the building. Students will simply scan their ID badges each time they enter and/or leave the building during the school day. This will not only provide school personnel with an accurate student count at any point throughout the day, but it will also assure parents/guardians that their child has returned to the building if they are supposed to be returning from a blended class.
Lastly, Mr. Walsh announced that the USDA has extended their waiver to provide free meals for all students across the United States for the remainder of 2020. All student breakfasts and lunches have been free and will continue to be until the end of the first semester, or until funding for this program is depleted. And, Mr. Walsh also announced that he had just received notification that the USDA has decided to revise the waiver’s beginning date to the first day of student attendance, so all breakfast/lunch money previously paid this year will be refunded.
Superintendent Laura O’Donnell provided an updated District Enrollment for Board members. The Enrollment number of 1,717 includes students attending in-person classes, online, and out-of-District. Parents will be given an option in November to determine their student attendance preference for the 2nd semester.
Dr. O’Donnell announced that there has been a significant increase in dual-credit enrollment. She noted that this can be attributed to marketing, waiving the dual-credit fees, and making dual-credit courses for 2019-2020 blended in format. She also shared that research shows college enrollment increases from students who have had dual-credit classes.
Dr. O’Donnell shared that she had recently met with the Olympia Education Association and created some detailed guidance for remote learning should the District have to move to that format for a period of time. It is proposed that under these guidelines, teachers would work on campus Monday, Wednesday, & Friday, and have the option to work remotely on Tuesday & Thursday. It is also recommended that Special Education students attend in-person classes on Monday, Wednesday, & Friday, along with the teachers.
Dr. O’Donnell presented the 2020-2021 Strategic Plan updates which focus on students’ success in college, career, and life. She noted that many accomplishments have been made, but they will be watching for additional opportunities for growth throughout the year, and will use that information when updating next year’s Strategic Plan.
The Metrics Committee is comprised of representatives from the Board of Education, parents, staff, the District Nurse, Olympia Education Association, and Olympia Education Support Personnel Association. Dr. O’Donnell shared highlights from the recent committee meeting where they determined which metrics will be considered as indicators for the District to consider a change in learning formats – hybrid learning (a combination of in-person & virtual instruction) or remote learning (all or most students learning virtually).
Due to a joint statement released by the Illinois Federation of Teachers (IFT), Illinois Education Association (IEA), Illinois Principals Association (IPA), and Illinois Association of School Administrators (IASA) regarding the evaluation process for 2020-2021, Dr. O’Donnell shared that Olympia’s Joint Committee met and determined that formal evaluations for 2020-2021 will be waived for tenured staff. Year 1 & Year 2 non-tenured staff will go through the formal evaluation process, and Year 3 & Year 4 non-tenured staff will complete the formal evaluation process unless they earned a summative rating of Excellent for their 2019-2020 evaluation.
Dr. O’Donnell presented 5 previously-viewed revised Board Policies for approval. She also presented 9 new Board Policy revisions which are being revised to align with a new policy regarding Title IX Sexual Harassment Grievance Procedure.
Lastly, Dr. O’Donnell recognized 4 Board Members for continuing their Board development through the Illinois Association of School Boards. Kevin Frazier and Carolyn Hansen received recognition for maintaining their Master Board Member status, Doug Maris has received his Level II Master Board Member status, and Lynn Cross has received his Level I Master Board Member status.
Other Business
In other business, Carolyn Hansen announced that the 2020 Minier Christmas Parade is being planned for Saturday, November 28. This year’s parade theme will be “It’s An Olympia Spartan Christmas”.
Action Items
A motion was made by Mary Springer, seconded by Kevin Frazier, to approve the FY21 Working Budget as presented by Assistant Superintendent Andy Walsh.
Discussion. Vote: Springer (aye), Hansen (aye), Matter (aye), Maris (aye), Hohulin (absent),
Cross (aye), Frazier (aye). Motion carried 6-0.
A motion was made by Carolyn Hansen, seconded by Steve Matter, to approve the following revised Board Policies: 2:220, 7:40, 7:190, 7:340, and 7:345.
Discussion. Vote: Hansen (aye), Matter (aye), Maris (aye), Hohulin (absent), Cross (aye), Springer (aye), Frazier (aye). Motion carried 6-0.
A motion was made by Kevin Frazier, seconded by Carolyn Hansen, to approve the Waiver for Limitation of Administrative Costs Resolution as presented by Assistant Superintendent Andy Walsh in a separate Public Waiver Hearing.
Discussion. Vote: Hansen (aye), Matter (aye), Maris (aye), Hohulin (absent), Cross (aye), Springer (aye), Frazier (aye). Motion carried 6-0.
A motion was made by Steve Matter, seconded by Doug Maris, to approve the Metrics Committee recommendations regarding metric benchmark levels that would warrant a change to hybrid or remote learning.
Discussion. Vote: Matter (aye), Maris (aye), Hansen (aye), Hohulin (absent), Cross (aye), Springer (aye), Frazier (aye). Motion carried 6-0.
A motion was made by Carolyn Hansen, seconded by Lynn Cross, to approve the updated Remote Learning Plan incorporating K-12 Committee recommendations and the State’s guidance.
Discussion. Vote: Hansen (aye), Cross (aye), Matter (aye), Maris (aye), Hohulin (absent), Springer (aye), Frazier (aye). Motion carried 6-0.
Opportunity for Public Input
Mr. Rodney McCray addressed the Board regarding his concerns with the online learning format.
Executive Session
There was no Executive Session.
Adjournment
A motion was made by Steve Matter, seconded by Carolyn Hansen, to adjourn the meeting at 7:56 p.m. Motion carried by unanimous vote.
http://olympiail.apptegy.us/o/district/browse/102512
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