Chester Community Unit School District No. 139 Board of Education met June 18.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
The Board of Education of Chester Community Unit School District No. 139 held their Regular Meeting in the High School Cafetari. President Hammel called the meeting to order at 7:14 p.m. Members present: Mitch Hammel, Trent Vasquez. Via phone: Dan Colvis, Lorin Mott, Tom Welge, Charles Fricke. Members absent: Debi Caraway
A motion was made by Mr. Colvis and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to approve the agenda and items as listed. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
No public comment was presented to the Board.
Presentation on the Early Childhood Block Grant including the Parental Initiative and Pre-K programs by Rachel Marshall and Tara Knop. Programs are fully engaged serving 61 children and 53 families throughout the county in the Preventative Initiative (home visit and early intervention) Program. Both programs have been an important part of getting students prepared early for learning and later in school.
Grade School Maintenance Report:
▪ Construction is going great.
▪ Replaced starter on mower.
▪ 4-5th grade wing has been done for quite some time.
▪ Built a bookshelf for the office closet.
▪ Painted Mrs. Handel’s room, per her request. Had to remove and replace her window sills.
▪ Had electricians run down a short in the old lights outside in the courtyard.
▪ The ‘’ Home of the Junior Jackets ‘’ rug has come apart. In the process of repairing it.
▪ Repainting a few classrooms.
High School Maintenance Report:
▪ Summer cleaning of the high school is going along well.
▪ Half way through cleaning the ventilators, but still have to do all the rooftop units.
▪ Waiting on another quote for sealing the parking lot before turning it over to Mr. Pasero.
▪ We will be refinishing the Colbert gym floor on July 7th and it will be closed until July 15th.
Grade School Athletic Report:
▪ Preparing for the upcoming school year athletic wise, despite the unknown.
▪ Baseball and softball will have tryouts at the end of July / beginning of August.
High School Athletic Report:
▪ Stage 1 of Return to Play for Illinois high school athletics has begun. CHS would like approval to start June 22.
▪ Golf, boys’ basketball, baseball and softball are scheduled for uniform replacement this year.
▪ The IHSA and IADA will provide ZOOM meetings for AD’s around Illinois every Monday to give updates on any changes for athletics due to COVID-19.
Curriculum Report
▪ As a follow-up to our training in May, the EL Team met on June 2nd to continue work on our district’s EL Program Action Plan. Our team has finalized the district plan and made plans to begin working on several items over the summer, including translating registration/office forms, planning for an EL Parent Informational Night and planning for a presentation to teachers regarding our district EL Plan. We will meet at least once more over the summer.
▪ Recently a survey was sent to the participants of the mentoring program to see how this first year went. Mrs. Stegmann will meet with administrators before school starts in the fall to discuss survey results and possible changes to the mentoring program for the 2020-2021 school year.
▪ There are still about 25 students with incomplete grades at the high school. Mrs. Meyer, Mr. Blechle and Mrs. Stegmann continue to work with these students and their parents to get assignments completed by the end of June.
▪ On June 9th, Mrs. Stegmann met with our reading specialist, Lisa Koester, to discuss looking into a phonics program at the grade school for Kindergarten through hopefully grade 4. We made plans to have our Reading Team at the grade school begin researching programs.
Grade School Principal’s Report:
▪ Construction at the grade school is going exceptionally well, as well as we could hope for. The ceiling is up in several rooms, heating and cooling units are all hung and refrigerant lines are being installed, the old library has been divided into two rooms. The school is coming together very nicely.
▪ Registration for the 2020-2021 school year is scheduled for Monday, July 28 from 9-3, and on Tuesday, July 29 and Wednesday, July 30 from 1-7. We are hoping registration will be mostly online this year, except for early childhood, pre- school, and kindergarten (too much information to collect).
▪ We have two blood drives scheduled at the grade school. June 17 from 11-7 & July 9 from 11-4. Those donating in June will receive a t-shirt and a $5 Amazon gift card. They will also check the blood for the presence of antibodies for the corona virus.
▪ The schedule for next year is in the process of being finalized. We need to have a scheduling committee meeting to receive teacher input. We have removed the elective hour and added three minutes to each class period for grades 6-8.
▪ We are in the process of cleaning and organizing several areas around the school. The boilers and all piping in the mechanical room will be removed. The room will become the primary storage area for custodial supplies, allowing us to free up other areas.
High School Principal’s Report:
▪ We are still working with some students to get their work completed for the remote learning period.
▪ Students came in to drop off books and get items from their lockers May 19 and 20.
▪ The 2020-2021 schedule is almost complete.
▪ Scholarships have been turned in and sent out to the committees. They are due back to the school by July 1.
▪ We will start working this month on creating the online forms for the online registration process.
▪ Graduation is scheduled for August 2.
Superintendent’s Report:
▪ Received a FOIA request from the University of Wisconsin asking for policies relating to LGBTQ students, staff and gender for an academic study.
▪ Invitation and consideration of accepting into the Cahokia Conference for the high school.
▪ Next board meeting.
▪ As of April closeout: 86% of revenues, 85% of expenditures; cash-on-hand = 87 days
▪ We have had an increase in the number of employees accepting the health insurance benefit.
▪ Our CARES Act Funding allotment was roughly $210,000. Mr. Pasero is proposing much of this to go towards the purchase of computer equipment to facilitate our remote/blended learning needs, as well as facemasks that is anticipated will be required for students and staff in the fall.
▪ Replacement of current goal posts and a net on the football field in poor condition would be a cost of $6,985.
▪ Requesting to proceed with summer driving hours. A maximum of 72 hours is needed at $25 per hour to get caught up with driving that was unable to be completed during the spring.
▪ Refining our remote learning efforts so that we are better prepared in August.
▪ The Consolidated District Plan has been submitted. No major changes from last year, but needs board approval. This is the state’s way of trying to combine the many grant documents into a single “plan”. Included are: Title I, II, & III; IDEA- Part B Flow Through; and ECBG.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Fricke to enter into executive session at 8:31 p.m. for (A) the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees of the public body, and (B) collective negotiating matters between the public body and its employees or their representatives. Upon roll call Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Welge to return to open session at 8:31 p.m. Upon roll call Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Colvis to approve the consent agenda and items as listed. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
▪ Minutes of the May 18, 2020, regular meeting and executive session;
▪ Bills in the amount of $435,407.59 and payroll in the amount of $415,777.67;
▪ Financial reports.
After conducting the second reading, motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to adopt the 2020-21 Chester 139 Extracurricular Code of Conduct. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Fricke to adopt the 2019-20 Amended Budget of Chester Community Unit School District 139 as presented by Superintendent Pasero. Upon roll call Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Colvis and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to approve the submitted textbook listing as surplus for disposal and/or donation. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to approve summer driving as recommended by administration. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to approve plan “Phase 1 - Return to Play”, allowing in-person conditioning for high school athletes for the remainder of summer 2020. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
For the 2020-21 school year the district will be implementing online registration for returning students through their Skyward Family Access accounts. Walk-in registration will be held July 27, 28 and 29 for new students to the district and for those who are not able to register online. Motion was made by Mr. Colvis and seconded by Mr. Fricke to approve registration dates
for the 2020-2021 school year as proposed by administration. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Fricke and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to approve registration fees and meal prices for the 2020-21 school year as recommended by Mr. Pasero. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Registration Fees Breakfast / Lunch / Milk Price
Early Childhood. $32.00 Breakfast (CGS) $1.00
Grades K-8. $50.00
Grades 9-12. $80.00.
Additional High School Fee Charges: Lunch
• Drivers Education. $75.00 K-6 $2.00
• Rhetoric/Composition I & II. $45.00 7-8 $2.20
• Parking Pass. $15.00 9-12 $2.35
• Yondr Phone Pouch. $15.00
• CCSI (per semester). $ 5.00 Milk $.40
Athletic Fees Adult
CGS & CHS. $40.00 per student, per sport Breakfast $1.50
Lunch $2.85
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Colvis to accept the bid as submitted from The Paper Corporation at $24.38 per 10 ream case. It was noted that the recommendation of the Paper Corporation bid was due to the determination of paper quality, look, and feel and operation through the copy machine. Upon roll call Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Fricke to approve the Cares Act Application as presented. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Mott to approve the Consolidated District Plan as presented by Superintendent Pasero. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Fricke to accept the first reading of the 2020-21 Grade School Student/Parent Handbook. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Colvis and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to accept the first reading of the 2020-21 High School Student/Parent Handbook. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Colvis and seconded by Mr. Welge to approve goal posts and netting improvements for the football field in the amount of $6,985. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Fricke and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to approve payment to contractors and subcontractors, A&W Plumbing, for completed HVAC project work at the grade school in the amount of $491,444.77. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Mott to approve payment to Bel-O-Sales for completed HVAC work at the high school in the amount of $35,802.90. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to secede from the Black Diamond Conference and enter into agreement with the Cahokia Conference, no later than the 2022-2023 school year. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Fricke and seconded by Mr. Welge to accept the resignation of Chris Toledo as high school boys’ assistant basketball coach. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to employ Chris Toledo as high school girls’ head basketball coach for the 2020-21 school year. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Colvis to employ Ben Hunter as high school assistant golf coach for the 2020-21 school year. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Fricke to employ Alyssa Keith as high school assistant volleyball coach for the 2020-21 school year. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Colvis to employ Kailey Mena as grade school cheer coach for the 2020-21 school year. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to approve the reassignment of Lucy Phillips to 7-hour grade school cook. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to approve the reassignment of Tammy Brockhouse to 6-hour grade school cook. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Fricke and seconded by Mr. Colvis to approve the reassignment of Jennifer Singletary to 4-hour grade school cook. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to approve the reassignment of Christa Howie to District Office Secretary for 8 hours per day at $16.21 per hour, effective July 1, 2020. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Fricke and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to employ Cherri Holley as 7-hour grade school secretary, effective June 1, 2020 at $9.25 per hour. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to employ Emily Millburg as high school agriculture / FFA teacher for the 2020-21 school year. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Welge and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to approve a 3.78% wage increase for secretaries and cafeteria personnel for the 2020-21 school year, reflecting the average teacher increase. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to approve a $1.50 wage increase for the high school head cook for the 2020-21 school year. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Colvis and seconded by Mr. Fricke to approve a $0.17 wage increase for the high school head custodian for the 2020-21 school year as recommended by administration. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Fricke and seconded by Mr. Vasquez to approve the $10.00 per hour minimum wage rate for non- certified employees as mandated by law to meet the minimum wage requirement effective July 1, 2020. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Colvis and seconded by Mr. Fricke to approve a 3.78% wage increase for early childhood block grant positions for the 2020-21 school year. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Fricke to approve the $10.00 per hour beginning wage rate for non- certified employees and substitute positions as listed effective July 1, 2020, as mandated by law to meet the minimum wage requirement. Upon roll call Mr. Fricke voted aye, Mr. Mott voted aye, Mr. Colvis voted aye, Mr. Welge voted aye, Mr. Vasquez voted aye, Mr. Hammel voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
o Non-Certified Positions
▪ Certified Paraprofessional
▪ Cafeteria Aide
▪ Cook
▪ Principal Secretary
▪ Guidance Secretary
o Substitute Positions
▪ Custodian
▪ Cook
▪ Cafeteria Aide
▪ Paraprofessional
▪ Principal Secretary
▪ Guidance Secretary
▪ District Office Secretary / Bookkeeper
▪ Nurse
Motion was made by Mr. Vasquez and seconded by Mr. Colvis to adjourn the meeting at 8:56 p.m. Upon roll call all members voted aye. 6 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent; motion carried.
The next REGULAR MEETING of the Board of Education will be held on Thursday, July 16, 2020, at 7:00 p.m. in the Chester Community Grade School Library, 650 Opdyke Street, Chester, IL 62233.
https://www.chester139.com/UserFiles/Servers/Server_105222/File/June%2018,%202020%20Regular%20Mtg%20Brief.pdf
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