Spring 2015 Volume 12 Number 4 A Newsletter for the District 303 Community D303 Parent Satisfaction Hits All-Time High Nearly 2000 Respond to Annual Survey District 303 recorded its highest mark ever in parent satisfaction during the annual Parent Satisfaction Survey. Of the 1,954 responses to the survey, 86% said they were either “mostly” or “very” satisfied with their child’s school. This year’s level of parent satisfaction topped the previous highest mark of 84% which was recorded in 2012-13. This is the third time in the last six years District 303 has reached a new high mark in parent satisfaction. The District has conducted the Parent Satisfaction Survey every year since 1992-93. Inside Message from the Superintendent................ Page 2 BOE Updates......................Page 2 North Drill Team Visits Orange Bowl......................Page 3 Tax Abatement................. Page 3 What Happens After Graduation......................... Page 4 Greater St. Charles Education Foundation... Page 4 D303 Hall of Fame Adds 3 Members.............. Page 5 BOE Election Day..............Page 5 Kick-a-thon.........................Page 6 Calendar Update.............. Page 6 D303 Growth Committee ........................ Page 7 District 303 received its highest mark ever in parent satisfaction at the middle school level, 88%, which topped the previous high mark of 85% in 2012-13. Among elementary school parents, the level of satisfaction is 88%, which matches the high mark reached in 2012-13. The 79% satisfaction mark among high school parents is the second highest mark ever, topped only by the 80% mark from 2013-14. “Our thanks to all the parents who took the survey,” said Dr. Donald Schlomann, District 303 Superintendent of Schools. “The feedback we get from this survey is very important to us, especially the additional comments where parents voice their concerns about some very specific issues. I read each comment that is generated by this survey.” Parents were also asked about their satisfaction with selected programs. The Music program graded the highest at 4.38 on a 5-point scale. Physical Education ranked next highest at 4.27 followed by Special Education at 4.26. The survey was conducted through District 303’s website d303.org during the week of December 8-17, 2014. All District 303 parents were asked to fill out a survey at the proper grade level for each of their children who attend District 303 schools. A Message from the Superintendent One is Too Many In mid-February, we were given the news that one of our District 303 high school students had committed suicide. The school staff responded admirably in helping other students deal with the loss of a classmate. Although, we were a bit out of practice in dealing with a student suicide. Being out of practice in dealing with a teen suicide is a good thing. Seven years ago that wasn’t the case in this District. Dr. Don Schlomann Superintendent of Schools St. Charles CUSD 303 Seven years ago we were averaging about one student suicide per year. At that time, I asked this question, “If we knew there was a sniper on the roof of one of our schools killing one student every year, would we do something about it?” The answer was, “Of course”. But on the subject of student suicide we were pretty quiet. We changed that as a community, beginning with the Summit on Suicide Prevention in 2009. Based on the feedback from that Summit and with the support of the Board of Education, District Administration put in place several additional supports for our students to go along with our Social and Emotional Health curriculum. • Suicide Prevention Specialists at both high schools • Encouraging students to go see any member of our student support teams if they are facing mental struggles • Placing mental health resource contact numbers on the back of student ID’s • Training staff to ask questions of students who might struggling, including “Are you thinking of committing suicide?" – And training them what to do if the answer is “Yes”. But the best preventative measure is each one of us watching out for the kids in our community. If you know someone is having difficulties, you need to tell someone. Tell a teacher, tell the principal, tell the bus driver. Call me and tell me. My office number is (331) 228-4925. My cell number is (630) 485-0248. My email address is [email protected] That’s what community is really all about. People looking out for each other, especially the kids. BOE Update Notable Recent Actions by the Board of Education Elimination of High School Class Rank The Class of 2016 (this year's high school juniors) will be the last class ranked in District 303. The Board approved this recommendation from District Administration based on several factors such as: • Fewer colleges and universities consider class rank for admission. • Students (and parents) play a "numbers game" and avoid challenging classes or take classes on a pass-fail basis. • The meaning of class rank is affected by the total number of students and the quality of the high school. “continued on page 6...” 2 Issue 11 Spring 2015 D303 BOE Continues Commitment to Abate Taxes North Drill Team Performs at the Orange Bowl Abatement total over last 3 years is $5.4 million Did you know the St. Charles North Drill Team has been to more consecutive college bowl games The District 303 Board of Education approved a tax levy resolution at the March 2015 meeting which will abate than the football teams at noted powerhouse $1.03 million to the taxpayers of District 303. Three years schools such as Michigan and Penn State? ago, the Board made a commitment to forgo the full levy to which the District is entitled by law and abate a The North Stars performed in the halftime show “Little portion of the levy while at the same time maintaining Big Town” at the Orange Bowl on January 1, after the high standard of education available to the appearing at the Liberty Bowl in Memphis the year before. students of the District. “These are great trips for the girls on the team,” said Coach In total, the BOE has abated $5.4 million over the Nancy Prentiss. “They get the feel of what it is like to last three years. For the owner of a $300,000 home perform on a national stage and in front of a huge live in District 303, the total of the abatement means $300 audience.” Team members also get to work under the has been left in their pocket to spend as they see fit. direction of nationally recognized choreographers in Nearly every other school district in the area has levied groups of about 35 students which is a rare experience. to the full amount allowed over the last three years. The halftime performance is the product of lengthy In their financial decisions, the Board is seeking to find practice sessions leading up to the game. Practices last the balance between providing an outstanding about four hours each of the three days before the education for the students of District 303, while also game. The Orange Bowl trip was paid for by a seeking the lowest impact possible on the taxpayers who combination of drill team fundraisers, the North provide the resources for that education. H.S. athletic department, and the drill team members and their families. More specifically, the District 303 Board seeks to provide an above average education for students at a price near the state Both last year in Memphis, and this year average for per pupil spending, along with a balanced budget. To in Miami, the North Drill Team performed maintain those goals, District Administration will need to cut about at a game involving the Mississippi State $1.3 million in order to maintain a balanced budget. football team. The Bulldog athletic department might be wise to help get the District 303 maintains the top financial health rating from the North Drill Team booked for the halftime Illinois State Board of Education, while in the classroom, District 303 show at the College Football Playoff students perform well above the state average. In the most recent Championship Game next January in rankings of American high schools by U.S. News, St. Charles North Glendale, AZ! H.S. and St. Charles East H.S. are the two top performing high schools in Kane County and are among the top ten high schools in Kane and DuPage counties. 3 83% of D303 students in the Class of ’13 enrolled in college (2 year or 4-year) the fall after H.S. graduation (96% of the Class of ’11 returned for a 2nd year) 60% By the Numbers: D303 Students in College For most District 303 students, their educational journey continues after they receive their high school diploma. With the help of the National College Clearinghouse, here are some of the numbers regarding how many D303 students go to college, where they go, and how many graduate. 45% of the D303 Class of ’08 graduated from college within 5 years 63% What Happens After Graduation? of the D303 Class of ’09 graduated from college within 4 years Top College Destinations for D303 students 2 1 Elgin Community College University of IllinoisUrbana/Champaign 3 Northern Illinois University 4 Illinois State University of the D303 Class of ’06 graduated from college within 6 years 5 University of Iowa Greater St. Charles Education Foundation News On February 21, over 200 people attended the 2015 St. Charles Educational Foundation Annual Jazz Event. Proceeds from the 2015 event will be used to directly benefit District 303 students. During the dinner portion of the event, the Foundation honored the three newest members of the District 303 Distinguished Alumni: Capt. Edward Wardford (‘79 Navy intelligence), Julie Mann (‘85 broadcast journalism), and Stephen P. Full (‘87; stage and television actor). They were selected for the high level of contributions they have made in their respective fields. During their acceptance speeches, we learned all three believe D303 was instrumental to the success they achieved in college and in their professional lives. All three spoke of the impact their various teachers had on them and how those teachers inspired them to achieve. They spoke of the quality of facilities available to them as students, Stephen Full specifically commenting that the auditoriums in D303 are better than many of the stages onwhich he has performed during his professional career. All three spoke of the resources D303 provided to them while in school with Julie Mann commenting that her work for the award winning St. Charles X-Ray student newspaper started her interest in the news. The GSCEF raises money that goes directly back into D303 to give our current students the same opportunities the three alums had. The money raised has been spent on approximately 30 grant requests each year that range from advanced 3-D printers for engineering students to reading supplies for Kindergarten. Planning for the 2016 Jazz Event has already started and you are invited to be a part of it. Join the GSCEF as a volunteer and/or a board member. The annual Jazz Event is the foundation’s biggest fundraising effort and features live and silent auctions with dinner and dancing for adults and performances by both the East H.S. and North H.S. jazz bands. For information on how to volunteer, call Deborah Mulrooney, President of the Foundation, at 630-945-5240 or e-mail [email protected]. 4 Issue 11 Spring 2015 D303 Hall of Fame Adds 3 Members Class of '15 Honored at Jazz Event Three new names have been added to the list of District 303 Distinguished Alumni. The three new members were inducted as part of the festivities at the Greater St. Charles Education Foundation’s Jazz Event fundraiser on Saturday, February 21. (Left to right, Edward Warford , Julie Mann, Stephen P. Full) April 7 is BOE Election Day The members of the Distinguished Alumni Class of 2015 are: Stephen P. Full (St. Charles H.S. ’87). Mr. Full is an Emmy nominated actor who lives and works in Los Angeles. Stephen currently provides the voice for Stan, the main character in the Disney Channel’s “Dog with a Blog”. He has a long list of credits to his name including appearances on such shows as “CSI”, “CSI: New York”, “Cold Case”, “Bones”, “iCarly”, and “Hannah Montana”. 9 Candidates Seeking 3 Seats on Board On Tuesday, April 7 District 303 voters will select from among nine candidates to fill three seats on the District 303 Board of Education. All candidates are seeking four year terms on the Board. Three of the candidates are seeking re-election. Julie Mann (St. Charles H.S. ’85). Ms. Mann is the managing editor for WBBM Newsradio, which is the top-rated all news station in the Chicago market. Under Julie’s leadership WBBM continues to solidify its position as the dominant, 24-hour a day source of breaking news and information in the region. The following is a list of the candidates for the three open seats on the Board of Education. Stephen Bruesewitz, Kathleen Hewell, Capt. Edward Warford, (St. Charles H.S. ’79) Capt. Warford is retired from Richard Leidig, Lori Linkimer, Judith the U.S. Navy. He was serving as Chief of Naval Operations, Director of Navy McConnell, Nicholas Manheim, Information Dominance Corps and Director of Naval Intelligence Staff at the Jennifer Reeder, Michael Vyzral, and Pentagon in Washington DC at the time of his retirement. From 2007-2010, Lowell Yarusso. Capt. Warford served as Defense Intelligence Agency Chairman to the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Washington, DC. The three candidates selected by the voters will be sworn in to their The Distinguished Alumni Award is given District 303 graduates who have positions on the Board in May. The demonstrated a high level of achievement in their field of endeavor or in newly elected members will join their contributions to their community. Do you know someone that you current Board members James feel deserves to be nominated? Submit a nomination to Jim Blaney at Gaffney, Edward McNally, Corinne Pierog, [email protected]. and Steven Spurling, to form the seven member District 303 Board of Education. 5 Kick-a-Thon Sets Another Record East and North Drill Teams Raise Over $100K 2014-15 School Calendar Update We have used three emergency days during the 2014-15 academic year. As of March 13, the last day of school is scheduled for Thursday, June 4, but that could change if more emergency days are used. As agreed to in the District’s contract with the The total for Kick-a-Thon 2014 was announced in December and the Sears Centre, high school drill teams for St. Charles East H.S. and St. Charles North H.S. passed two graduation is scheduled milestones- Most money ever raised, and for the first time the total topped for Sunday, May 24. $100,000. During a 21-year lifetime, the Kick-a-Thon has grown from a grass roots effort to raise funds for cancer research to the premier fund raising initiative by high school students in St. Charles. Kick-a-Thon has now reached the stage where major milestones are passed almost every year. The exact total - $100,021.14. The Drill Team members at both schools concentrate on their competition seasons during the winter, and then begin making their plans for Kick-a-Thon 2015. While the fundraising efforts last for several months, the actual Kick-a-Thon event featuring the community kickers will take place at the East vs. North football game on Friday, October 16 at St. Charles East H.S. BOE Update ...continued from page 2 2015-16 School Calendar - The Board approved the 2015-16 School Calendar which features the last day of school scheduled on the Friday prior to Memorial Day. The first day of school will be Wednesday, August 19. Winter Break is December 21 - January 1. Spring Break is March 28 - April 1, 2015. The last day of school is Friday, May 27, 2015 as long as no emergency days are used during the 2015-16 school year. Get the CUSD 303 App today! Or follow us on: Norris Rec Center Feasibility Study - The Board rejected a proposal which would have spent $6,000 on a study that would have developed a recommendation on the future of the portion of the Norris Recreation Center which formerly housed racquetball courts. The $6,000 cost represents half of the cost of the study. The Norris Rec Center would have paid for the other half. 6 Issue 11 Spring 2015 Sign up for ENews D303 Growth Committee Completes Fact Finding Findings Will Lead to Needs Assessment The Growth in District 303 Committee wrapped up their One of the best ways information gathering meetings in February but they are still to keep up with the waiting for a key piece of information. Before issuing their final events around findings, the group is awaiting an updated student population projection by the District 303 is by District’s demographer Dr. Charles Kofron. signing up for District 303 ENews. In the past, Dr. Kofron’s projections have been based on the most up-to-date live birth It's simple to sign up: data within the District provided by the Illinois Department of Public Health. However, Just go to the Dr. Kofron has not been able to access the live birth data for 2011 and 2012. Access to District 303 website that data is expected to be granted later this spring. d303.org and click on Dr. Kofron did create projections based on the available data and projects District Subscribe to enrollment in the 2024-25 school year to be between 9792 and 11, 879. District 303 enrollment for E-News in 2014-15 is 12,868. Dr. Kofron has served as the District’s demographer for the last decade and when he the News has had complete access to the live birth data, has made enrollment projections that have been within menu. 2% of the actual enrollment numbers. The enrollment projections are the basis for the decisions on hiring of teachers and on use of school buildings. The Growth Committee also heard presentations from the municipalities that have residents living within District 303. The following is a summary of those presentations. • No growth will occur from West Chicago, as there is no further property zoned for housing developments in the D303 portion of the city. • Campton Hills has very limited growth opportunities due to village’s approach to preserve open space and promote low-density housing, along with significant challenges due to water and sewer infrastructure costs. • South Elgin’s presentation indicated a desire for a more aggressive residential growth plan but options to do so in District 303 boundaries remain limited. • St. Charles’ plan indicated that there was limited open space available for growth, but that measured residential growth was likely over the next decade. • Kane County projects the majority of their future growth in the center of the county running north and south (an area that is not located in District 303). The information gathered by the Growth Committee is to be used by District Administration to assess facility needs for the future. The following community members donated their time and expertise to serve on the D303 Growth Committee: Mr. Steve Catlin, Mr. James Chimienti, Ms. Val Grohe, Mr. Rich Kitick, Father David Peck, Ms. Gina Rizza, Ms. Anne Ward, Mr. Chris Woelfer. 7 NONPROFIT U.S POSTAGE PAID ST. CHARLES, IL PERMIT NO. 104 A Newsletter for District 303 Community 201 S. Seventh Street St. Charles, IL 60174 ECRWSS Postal Patron Please note: Because District 303 mails its publications by postal route, some individuals who do not live in District 303 may receive this mailing. Calendar of Events Tuesday, April 7 Board of Education Election Sunday, May 24 High School Graduation Monday, April 13 Board of Education Meeting- Administration Building Monday, May 25 Memorial Day- No Classes (Offices Closed) Thursday, April 16 Elementary School Parent/Teacher Conferences Thursday, June 4 Last Day of School (As of March13 if no additional emergency days are used) Friday, April 17 School Improvement Day- No Classes Monday, May 11 Board of Education Meeting- St. Charles East H.S. Monday, June 8 Board of Education Meeting- Administration Building Wednesday, August 19 2015-16 First Day of School
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