the illinois school board journal
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A bi-monthly publication of the Illinois Association of School Boards on issues that affect public education.TRANSCRIPT
J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3 Vol. 81, No. 1
CONNECTIONS
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LEARNING
PLUS: RELEVANCE PARADOX • GOOD-BYE • TYPE 75 • CENTENNIAL YEAR
What if there’s another way...
... to build for student success
PLUS: RELEVANCE PARADOX • GOOD-BYE • TYPE 75 • CENTENNIAL YEAR
Happy New Year 2013! For those
of you who might have been
worried about the Mayan calendar
“end of days” prediction on Decem-
ber 21, 2012, it looks like we have
survived. Those of you who have
“triskaidekaphobia” might be enter-
ing the year with a bit of trepidation,
but at least only two Fridays this year
are on the 13th.
Here at the Illinois Association
of School Boards, the number 13 and
the calendar take on a great signifi-
cance this year. December 13, 2013,
marks the 100th anniversary of your
Association. (Pause here to throw
confetti in the air if you wish.)
We are not sure as yet what all
will be planned for the year, but we
do know that 2013 will be special
in a number of ways. And we want
our members to be part of it.
When 25 school board members
met in Quincy, Illinois, to form the
Illinois State School Board Associa-
tion, they probably had little idea
of what the organization would look
like in 100 years … or that it would
survive and grow as it has.
What they did know was that
they wanted an organization that
would be voluntary, that would serve
the best interests of public education
in the state, that would have an impact
on school management issues and
that would help differentiate the roles
of school board members and admin-
istrators.
District membership in IASB is
currently at 99 percent. Many states
… except where membership in a
state association is mandatory …
would be envious of that mark. But
this is not something that we take for
granted.
IASB staff constantly looks for
ways to improve products and ser-
vices for members. At each confer-
ence, division meeting, training
opportunity and event, staff asks for
your input — what you liked, what
you didn’t like, how we might improve,
etc.
If you didn’t take the post-con-
ference survey and have specific items
you would like to discuss, please con-
tact the field services director for
your division. If you want to know
more about any service that IASB
offers or how we might better serve
you, we’re as close as an email or a
phone call.
As the Association enters its 100th
year, the staff who serves you from
the Springfield and Lombard offices
is even more aware that in order to
be successful for another 100 years,
IASB needs to keep evaluating what
it does and how it’s done. Even though
the 2012 Joint Annual Conference
was a success, we held a staff debrief-
ing to get our own views on how we
can do even better in 2013. We did
this last year as well, and a number
of new ideas surfaced and were put
in place, including opening the
Comiskey Room earlier and putting
out programs on Thursday evening
for those who want to start planning
with a program in hand.
While the biggest portion of the
celebration for IASB’s centennial will
most likely occur at the 2013 Joint
Annual Conference, you will notice
increasing references throughout the
coming year. We began late last year
adding a centennial logo to our mail-
ings, and it was featured on a slide
during the PowerPoint presentation
shown before the general sessions at
this year’s conference.
You’ll also see that logo in this
issue on the first of a series of arti-
cles that will highlight IASB’s histo-
ry and try to frame Association events
in terms of what was happening in
the state and the world at the same
time. We want to help you put edu-
cation and the history of the Associ-
ation in a perspective that you can
relate to happenings in your own life
and the life of your school district.
We want to offer you the oppor-
tunity to contribute, too. If you have
pictures of your district from 1913
and would like to share a digital copy,
we would love to be able to publish
them later in the year. If your district
was one that was created in 1913,
we’d like to know about that, too. If
you built a school in 1913 and it’s still
in use today, we want to share it.
One of the most fascinating things
about looking into history is how
much things change, and yet how
much they remain the same. To help
prove that, we are adding a quote
from 1913 that will appear in each
“Tale End” section on the back cov-
er of The Journal. Quick! If you haven’t
already looked, take a peek at what
Thomas A. Edison said in 1913 about
how education would be revolution-
ized by the mid-1920s because of his
invention of the motion picture cam-
era.
Education may not have been
revolutionized by his invention, but
go ahead and smile just a bit if you
remember being excited when a pro-
jector was in the classroom when you
were in school. Now think about stu-
dents in your classrooms learning
from videos on their own laptops.
Things change and yet some reac-
tions will always be the same.
Vol. 81, No. 1
J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 3
ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL(ISSN-0019-221X) is published every other month by the Illinois Associationof School Boards, 2921 Baker Drive, Springfield, Illinois 62703-5929, telephone217/528-9688. The IASB regional officeis located at One Imperial Place, 1 East22nd Street, Lombard, Illinois 60148-6120, telephone 630/629-3776.
The JOURNAL is supported by the duesof school boards holding active member-ship in the Illinois Association of SchoolBoards. Copies are mailed to all schoolboard members and the superintendentin each IASB member school district.
Non-member subscription rate: Domes-tic $18.00 per year. Foreign (includingCanada and Mexico) $21.00 per year.
PUBLICATION POLICYIASB believes that the domestic processfunctions best through frank and opendiscussion. Material published in the JOUR-NAL, therefore, often presents divergentand controversial points of view which donot necessarily represent the views orpolicies of IASB.
James Russell, Associate Executive Director
Linda Dawson, EditorGary Adkins, Contributing EditorDiane M. Cape, Design and
Production ManagerDana Heckrodt, Advertising Manager
T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S
Cover by Corbin Design, Petersburg
March/April Dual credit growthMay/June Education abroad
COVER STORY
10 | What if there’s another way …Educational settings to foster student successClassroom configurations can help teachers reach more students by better supporting educational tasks.
Jason Lembke and Douglas Ogurek
14 | … To build for student successActivating a connection between learning, environmentEducational leaders need to invest in learning environments that prioritize creativity and innovation.
Kerry Leonard
FEATURE STORIES
4 | Centennial celebration …Today’s Association began with 1913 Quincy meetingEarly history shows the Illinois Association of School Boards began with the same purpose and mission it follows to this day.
Linda Dawson
6 | Honest, you can be an effective leader Honesty, morals and ethics play a big role in effective leadership.
Greg Reynolds and Dennis White
16 | 80th Joint Annual Conference Lights the Way
24 | Good-bye, Type 75; Hello, endorsementsChanges are underway to make principal preparation more rigorous.
Howard Bultinck
28 | Does your district have progressive discipline policies?A structured, proactive approach to discipline at the secondary level shows great promise.
Martin D. Felesena
T O P I C S F O R U P C O M I N G I S S U E S
REGULAR FEATURES
Boiler Room . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
Practical PR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Milestones . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Ask the staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Inside back cover
2 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
Mr. Keck recently attended a
workshop on the future of
school architecture, held at a hotel
neatly situated next to a golf course.
(School executives like to blend work
with play.)
I was curious as to what the speak-
er had to say. I might be retired by
the time “new” architecture replaces
our “old” buildings, but I wondered
what type of facilities future custo-
dians might end up havin’ to keep
clean.
I asked Keck about this, and he
suggested we go out for coffee after
work to discuss the issue. He looked
more serious than usual.
We went to Eugene’s, just across
the street from the new shopping mall.
Eugene’s is an interestin’ place … the
kind of coffee shop where people order
stuff like double caramel, mocha,
decaf lattes with whipped cream,
priced at around $6 for an amount of
coffee that wouldn’t keep a squirrel
awake. (I prefer Steve’s Café. The cof-
fee’s lousy, but it’s strong and only
costs a buck.)
“Well, Gus,” he began. “It was
a very eye-opening workshop.”
“How so?”
“It wasn’t what I’d expected to
hear. You know, the population of any
nation general creeps upward over
time. True, now we’re in an economic
slump, and married folks think twice
before having more kids when the
job market is shaky, but we’ll even-
tually recover and the work force will
be stable again. So, I expected to hear
that we’ll continue as we have over
the past century … adding more wings
to the schools and building brand new
buildings as the population rises again.
But, I was surprised to hear what
he had to say … that schools will be
far smaller than they are now.”
“How can that be?” I asked.
“It’s all connected to the com-
puter revolution, Gus. You know,
right now, a small percentage of peo-
ple work out of their own homes
because most of what they do all day
is sit at a computer. Companies real-
ize that this type of work can be done
anywhere, so why make these
employees come to some remote
office building to put in a day’s work?
The speaker thinks the number of
employees working at home will
increase over the next 50 years or
so. He predicted that, by 2050, the
number of people working at home
might be as high as 20 percent of the
workforce.”
“How does that relate to the
schools?”
“Simple, Gus. These people might
opt for home schooling, to be closer
to their kids. Not the kind of home
schooling you and I are familiar with,
where the parents teach their own
children, but state-generated home
schooling.”
“State-generated?”
“That’s right. He predicts that
the educational delivery system we
have now will continue as is, but only
until the end of the sixth grade. At
the seventh-grade level, however, the
parents will be offered two options.”
I wiped the whipped cream off
my nose and continued to listen with
great curiosity.
“The first option will be to con-
tinue sending their children to school
for the conventional delivery system
… sitting in an actual classroom, sur-
rounded by their peers, listening to
the teacher.”
“What’s the second option gonna
be?” I asked.
“Well, that would be keeping your
kids at home, turning on the TV, and
selecting the appropriate grade lev-
el on the state’s education channel.
Gus, the custodi-
an at Eastside
Grammar, is the
creation of
Richard W.
Smelter, a retired
school principal,
now a Chicago-
based college
instructor and
author.
Virtual classrooms, robotcustodians? Say it ain’t so!
by “Gus”
B O I L E R R O O M
In our state, the program would be
generated in Springfield. The teach-
ers would simply instruct the kids
from the state’s ‘virtual classrooms.’”
“How would attendance be mon-
itored?”
“Every parent would be given a
numerical password, which they
would enter daily via their home com-
puter. At the end of each week, a short
quiz would be taken by the home-
schoolers, one quiz per subject. The
kids would simply enter their respons-
es on their laptop, and then email
them to Springfield. The state’s com-
puter system would grade each quiz,
enter the grades into their system
and forward the results to the par-
ents over the Internet. At the end
of each semester, the state would
issue a report card to the parents par-
ticipating in the program.”
“What if a student had a ques-
tion?”
“The speaker skirted around that
issue. Anyway, he predicted that as
many as 15 percent of parents would
opt for the state’s delivery system.
He said that by the year 3000, this
might grow to as high as 35 percent
at the middle school level … maybe
even higher at the high school lev-
el.”
“That means that the number of
kids actually attending their local
school would drop by at least a third,
Mr. Keck.” (I always like to impress
people with my math skills.)
“And that translates into the need
for fewer classrooms. Many rooms
would simply be closed down. Build-
ing larger schools, or adding new ones,
would go the way of the dinosaurs.
Just make sure the existing schools
are structurally sound and the class-
rooms still in use are up-to-date.
School architecture would be a fad-
ing career option.”
“What if the parent liked the cur-
riculum offered by their local school
district better than the state’s cur-
riculum?” I asked.
“The speaker predicted that stan-
dardized tests would eventually be
geared to the state curriculum. Local
school districts would then choose
the state curriculum, in order to fare
well on the standardized tests. School
district curriculum directors would
go the way of school architects. You’d
have a better chance finding work as
a blacksmith!”
“What about extra-curricular
activities ... like bein’ on the high
school basketball team or in the band?”
“The local school district would
have to allow state homeschoolers to
participate. After all, their parents
still pay taxes.”
“What about kids makin’ friends
at school?”
“Good question, Gus. Maybe the
state homeschool parents could bunch
up the kids … you know, they could
all meet at one parent’s home each
day. That way, they’d make new
friends.”
“So, the whole neighborhood
would have a lotta mini-schools and
the local schools would slowly turn
into ghost towns, like in the Old West.
Sounds sad, Mr. Keck. Not much need
for many school janitors.”
“Probably no need for any, Gus.
By that time, robots will do all the
cleaning.”
“And one of these fancy coffee
drinks will cost about $15.”
“You got it, Gus. Isn’t progress
wonderful?”
“Yeah … well, it may be fulla
somethin’ … but it ain’t wonder.”
PresidentCarolyne Brooks
Vice PresidentKaren Fisher
ImmediatePast PresidentJoseph Alesandrini
IASB is a voluntary association of local boards ofeducation and is not affiliated with any branch ofgovernment.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Abe LincolnRoger Edgecombe
BlackhawkJackie Mickley
Central Illinois ValleyThomas Neeley
Cook NorthPhil Pritzker
Cook SouthTom Cunningham
Cook WestJoanne Zendol
Corn BeltMark Harms
DuPageRosemary Swanson
EgyptianJohn Metzger
IlliniMichelle Skinlo
KaskaskiaLinda Eades
KishwaukeeMary Stith
Lake CountyJoanne Osmond
NorthwestBen Andersen
ShawneeRoger Pfister
SouthwesternJohn Coers
Starved RockSimon Kampwerth Jr.
Three Rivers / TreasurerDale Hansen
Two RiversDavid Barton
Wabash ValleyTim Blair
WesternSue McCance
Chicago BoardJesse Ruiz
Service AssociatesSteve Larson
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 3
4 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
It was a presidential inaugural year.
It had its tragedies — floods, wars
and mine explosions — that caused
loss of life. And it was filled with firsts
… the first drive-up gas station, the
first income tax deductions, the first
Billboard Top 10, the first published
crossword puzzle, the first woman to
parachute from an airplane and the
first stainless steel products.
It was 1913, a year that also saw
the first convention and the creation
of an organization known as the Illi-
nois State School Board Association.
A November 18, 1913, archived
article from The Quincy Whig (the
forerunner of today’s Quincy Herald-
Whig) announced that 122 invita-
tions had been sent to school boards
in Illinois to call for a three-day meet-
ing to be held at the Hotel Newcomb
in Quincy on December 11-13.
This may seem like a small num-
ber of school districts to invite, but
local school boards had not been in
existence for all that long. School
boards were originally provided for
by a new state constitution in 1870.
And travel to a meeting in 1913 would
have been a much longer and chal-
lenging process than today.
The program touted that many
prominent educators would attend,
including Francis G. Blair, state super-
intendent of public instruction, who
was to give the Thursday evening ban-
quet address.
An historical summary, published
by the Association on its 80th anniver-
sary, noted that 25 school board mem-
bers met and elected Joseph W. Wall,
a board member from Quincy, as the
first Association president.
Other school board members
who attended the meeting, accord-
ing to The Quincy Whig, were: Robert
J. Christie Jr., Quincy school board
president; H.H. Cleveland, Rockford;
Anna Rynearson, Peoria board sec-
retary; Hettie L. Thompson, Gales-
burg; and J.T. Montgomery, Charleston
Superintendents mentioned
included C.H. Maxwell of Moline and
Hugh S. Magill Jr. of Springfield.
Interestingly, the topics for dis-
cussion read very much like board
members might expect at any cur-
rent Joint Annual Conference in
Chicago.
• School board problems and how
best to solve them
• Standardizing school accounting,
school statistics and office methods
• School boards and vocational
education
• Wider use of school plants — legal
uses of school buildings
• Prerogatives of the superintendent
• Teacher salaries — teaching effi-
ciency
While there were a number of
luncheons and banquets, it also is
interesting to note that near the end
of the convention on Saturday, Otto
A. Ward, the Quincy district’s super-
visor of physical culture, led the group
in exercise.
Proposed purpose
As is true today, IASB began with
a stated purpose in mind. Today’s
mission, “excellence in local school
governance and support of public
education,” is reflected in the early
purpose of the Association from 1913.
Linda Dawson is
IASB director/
editorial services
and editor of The
Illinois School
Board Journal.
Centennial celebration …
Today’s Association beganwith 1913 Quincy meeting
by Linda Dawson
Part I — 1913-1932This is the first in a year-long series that will detail the history
of the Illinois Association of School Boards from its inception in 1913
through its 100th anniversary on December 13, 2013.
F E A T U R E A R T I C L E
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 5
The organization was created to:
• Be a purely voluntary movement;
• Serve only the best interests of the
public school system of Illinois;
• Secure a uniformity of action on
matters pertaining to school financ-
ing and management;
• Improve the methods of account-
ing for school funds; and
• Bring about the simplification of
school laws and a more definite
differential of functions between
the school board and the school
superintendent.
Membership in the Association
is still voluntary. Currently, 99 per-
cent of Illinois’ 863 districts are mem-
bers of IASB.
“From inception, IASB has been
a member driven organization,” said
Roger Eddy, IASB’s current execu-
tive director. “Although there have
obviously been changes in public edu-
cation and certainly the role of pub-
lic education over the past 100 years,
the fact that the Association is a mem-
ber-driven organization is the same
today as it was 100 years ago.
“And, the fact that 99 percent of
school districts in Illinois are mem-
bers of IASB speaks volumes as to the
strength of that member-driven com-
mitment.”
Early days
Because the Association had no
regular staff until 1928, there are
few records available for those first
15 years. And during the first four
years of the Association’s existence,
the country and the world were
focused on World War I in Europe.
Those involved in education in Illi-
nois were focused on the estab-
lishment of a state pension fund for
teachers (1915).
By 1920, there were 1.2 mil-
lion students enrolled in Illinois pub-
lic schools and 38,000 teachers. That
year, the state appropriated $6 mil-
lion for K-12 public education. Illi-
nois ranked 23rd in the country with
27.5 percent of state and local funds
supporting education, and 38th in
the amount of per student tax sup-
port ($1.47).
In 1927, the legislature created
a state aid formula designed to equal-
ize expenditures per pupil. This, for
the first time, allowed greater state
aid to poorer districts, with each dis-
trict receiving $9 per pupil and up
to $25 per student extra for districts
with low evaluations, according to
the Illinois State Board of Educa-
tion.
The Association’s first perma-
nent office was established in the
Urbana Public Library building in
1928. A.D. McLarty became the first
staff member and was named part-
time executive secretary, but it would
be another 15 years before the Asso-
ciation hired its first full-time exec-
utive director.
The first school board conven-
tion was held November 21-22, 1928,
in Urbana. Subsequent conferences
were held in Peoria, Decatur, Spring-
field, St. Louis and Chicago.
Subsequent issues of The Illinois
School Board Journal in 2013 will
look at the development and growth
of the organization, culminating in
November/December with a look
toward the future.
ReferencesHistorical events for Year 1913,
http://www.historyorb.com/events/date/
1913
Illinois Association of School Boards,
Historical Summary, 1993
Illinois State Board of Education,
http://www.isbe.net/news/2004/
Illinois_education_timeline.pdf
News and Events of 1913, http://
infoplease.com/year/1913.html
The Quincy Whig, November 18,
1913
Comparisons1913 2012
Federal spending $0.72 billion $3,563 trillion
Consumer Price Index 9.9 231.4
Unemployment 4.3 percent 7.9 percent
First-class stamp 2 cents 45 cents
“Although there have obviously been
changes in public education and cer-
tainly the role of public education over
the past 100 years, the fact that the
Association is a member-driven orga-
nization is the same today as it was
100 years ago.”— Roger Eddy
Executive DirectorIASB
6 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
F E A T U R E A R T I C L E
Afavorite son of Illinois once said:
“If we could first know where
we are, and whither we are tending,
we could then better judge what to
do, and how to do it.”
We believe Abraham Lincoln was
saying that without direction an indi-
vidual could wander aimlessly and
perhaps never reach his or her objec-
tive. The complexity in leading a
school district cannot be minimized,
nor will shortcuts hasten achieving
goals.
Leadership has been debated on
many fronts and goes by many names:
charismatic, situational, transfor-
mational, autocratic and democrat-
ic.
Leadership should not be static;
the best leaders morph constantly to
match the mission of the organiza-
tion with the needs of those who fol-
low. Good leaders influence others
to do their job and do it well. In its
simplest form, leadership is one per-
son’s ability to influence other peo-
ple’s thoughts and actions.
Lincoln, Mahatma Gandhi, Mar-
tin Luther King, Franklin Delano Roo-
sevelt, Winston Churchill, John
Wooden, Nelson Mandela, Albert
Schweitzer and Thomas Edison are
used to measure today’s leaders.
But Joseph Stalin, Vlad the
Impaler, Idi Amin Dada, Ruhollah
Khomeini and Adolph Hitler also rose
to be effective, powerful leaders. Long-
held standards of traditional leader-
ship were placed in jeopardy by their
actions and uncompromising bru-
tality. Leadership cannot be described
simply as being able to influence oth-
er people’s thoughts and actions.
Effective leadership
Honesty, morals, ethics and val-
ues are necessary for effective lead-
ership, as well as avoiding intimidation
or behaviors associated with power
or position.
Typically, leaders use intrinsic
or extrinsic rewards by providing
increased responsibility, improved
working conditions, programs that
acknowledge accomplishments, new
fringe benefits and pay increases
as ways to effectively influence oth-
ers.
In 1992, Stephen Covey stated
that the most effective way to create
positive and effective influence is
through communicating powerful
ideas in simple, direct credible lan-
guage. Written and spoken language
then becomes a primary tool to reach
the needs of the individual and the
mission of the school district.
Leaders who are perceived as
trustworthy, competent and vigor-
ous are more likely to be seen as cred-
ible sources for information. People
want to believe in their leaders. And
when leaders fail to understand how
they influence climate and culture,
it can be devastating!
Unethical behavior in business,
politics, religion and society seems
to have no end, and we never seem
to run short of leaders making self-
serving decisions that compromise
the mission of the organization.
So, based on today’s standards,
are ethics, morality, high standards,
values, character, credibility and
trustworthiness necessary traits to
be an effective school leader?
Yes! And if school boards define
skill expectations for their educa-
tional leaders, why not define expec-
tations of values, ethics, standards,
morality, honesty, credibility and
trustworthiness?
Most leaders recognize the impor-
tance of ethical behavior, and they
have a clear understanding of trust-
worthiness and honesty. School admin-
istrators and school board members
display their philosophies in their
actions every single day. It is impos-
sible to act in a void and avoid dis-
playing a framework of thought and
deeds.
Greg Reynolds is
a visiting assistant
professor at
Southern Illinois
University-
Edwardsville.
Dennis White is a
former Illinois
school superin-
tendent who
now teaches in
the School of
Advanced Study,
University of
Phoenix.
Honest, you can bean effective leader
by Greg Reynolds and Dennis White
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 7
Leaders who are willing to join
forces — administrators, school board
members, faculty, staff and commu-
nity — to work for the greater good
of schools, community and children
are in great need.
Hard work
Leadership is hard work; it’s dif-
ficult physically, mentally and spir-
itually.
The complexity of decision mak-
ing and a constant pressure to “do
more with less” place today’s school
district leaders in a position of poten-
tial failure on a daily basis.
School leaders must possess nec-
essary skills such as relevant expe-
rience, sound judgment, strategic
planning and policymaking, but they
cannot be expected to be expert or
possess technical command of each
area or department within a complex,
multifunctional school district.
An administrator with experi-
ence only in curriculum or school
finance or history is at significant risk
of failure if he or she depends on a
singular level of expertise for cross-
sectional decision making.
To be successful, administrators
require extensive and relevant expe-
rience in policymaking, organiza-
tional planning, public relations,
student services, school finance, cur-
riculum, school law, teacher and staff
relations, communication, trans-
portation, and perhaps, most impor-
tant, exceptionally good people skills.
School board members can draw on
their combined and varied experi-
ences, as well as the competencies
of their administrators to be suc-
cessful.
Leadership is judged based on
actions and behaviors. The leader
can be the school visionary but, if
values, ethics, trust and honesty are
absent, these five elements will nev-
er be realized. Establishing a strong
vision to build an effective team starts
by establishing core values and nev-
er breaking them.
If, in fact, they are values — core
values of ethical behavior, trustwor-
thiness, honesty, etc. — they define
a leader. Collective values define the
culture, good or bad, functional or
dysfunctional, of any group, team,
faculty or school board.
The most effective teams respect
and identify closely with core values.
Where conflict and animosity arise,
it’s usually because a team member’s
values get trampled on and a core val-
ue of respect for others’ opinion is
lacking.
During points of conflict, true
leaders must have clear and unde-
niable skills of communication, log-
ic, reasoning and fact-finding, but
they also should possess the quali-
ties that define the core values of the
group.
What is said, what is done
Members of the team can’t see
into the heart of the leader to deter-
mine thoughts and feelings. Thus, a
leader is left with what actually occurs,
what actually is said, and what per-
ceptions are established … for bet-
ter or worse.
Steven Covey claimed, “… what
we are communicates far more elo-
quently and persuasively than what
we say or even do.” If actions and
deeds match thoughts and attitudes,
trustworthiness emerges, and con-
stituents are the beneficiaries.
The staff and community may
not be able to see trust, but they know
what it is … they feel it, and it is unmis-
takable if trust is broken.
In The Leadership Challenge,
James Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner
state: “What leaders say they do is
one thing; what constituents say they
want and how well leaders meet these
expectations is another.”
Kouzes and Posner began con-
ducting worldwide research on leader
expectations more than 30 years ago.
Each time, they emphasize will-
ingly as the key word. What leader-
ship behaviors would the respondents
follow, not because they are forced
to do so via policy or procedures,
rather following because they want
to?
The results are startling because
they have been consistent from con-
tinent to continent and have not
To be successful, administrators require extensive and relevant
experience in policymaking, organizational planning, public rela-
tions, student services, school finance, curriculum, school law,
teacher and staff relations, communication, transportation, and
perhaps, most important, exceptionally good people skills.
8 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
shown a significant variance by demog-
raphy, organization or culture. The
same four characteristics of honesty,
vision, inspiration and competency
have been in lock step year after year.
As a school board member, super-
intendent, principal or assistant admin-
istrator, having a clear picture of what
constituents aspire from those who
lead provides the ground work for
effective decision making.
In Getting to Yes: Negotiating
Agreement without Giving In, Roger
Fisher and William Ury claim that
good agreements are wise and effi-
cient, and improve relationships.
Wise agreements satisfy the par-
ties’ interest and are fair and lasting.
A person’s willingness to confi-
dently follow a leader into battle, the
board room, front office or any crit-
ical situation will only occur if they
can assure themselves that the leader
is worthy of trust.
The setting makes no difference;
followers want to be confident in their
leaders and confidence comes from
leaders possessing strong character
and solid integrity.
In Trust Rules: The Most Impor-
tant Secret, Duane C. Tway defines
three constructs of trust as “ … the
capacity for trusting, the perception
of competence and the perception
of intentions.” He goes on to define
the practice of ethical leadership as
treating everyone with fairness and
honesty. Thinking about ethical
behavior is simply not enough;
thoughts have to be directly con-
nected with action.
Leaders face complex multi-
faceted problems each day. It can be
easily argued the most serious work-
place problem that leaders face is lack
of trust, due to the loss of compe-
tency, compassion and core values.
If leaders fail to allow their val-
ues to be identified through their acts
and behaviors, mistrust will be a by-
product. Lack of trust then can cre-
ate enough skepticism to halt
productivity, thereby placing the
advancement of every facet of an edu-
cational program in jeopardy.
New or experienced school dis-
trict leaders must be well-versed in
the traditional skill sets associated
with success. It is no longer possible
for success to prevail without effec-
tive credible communication that
enhances believability.
The most successful school dis-
STAFFOFFICE OF THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTORRoger L. Eddy,Executive DirectorBenjamin S. Schwarm, Deputy Executive Director
Meetings ManagementPatricia Culler, Assistant to the Executive DirectorCarla S. Bolt, Director-designeeSandy Boston, Assistant Director
Office of General CounselMelinda Selbee, General CounselKimberly Small, Assistant General Counsel
Executive SearchesDonna Johnson, DirectorDoug Blair, ConsultantDawn Miller, ConsultantThomas Leahy, ConsultantDave Love, Consultant
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICESJennifer Feld, Associate ExecutiveDirector/Chief Financial Officer
Production ServicesDiane M. Cape, Senior Director
ADVOCACY/GOVERNMENTAL RELATIONSBenjamin S. Schwarm, Deputy Executive DirectorDeanna L. Sullivan, DirectorSusan Hilton, DirectorZach Messersmith, Assistant Director
AdvocacyCynthia Woods, Director
BOARD DEVELOPMENT/TARGETING ACHIEVEMENT THROUGH GOVERNANCEAngie Peifer, Associate Executive Director
Board DevelopmentSandra Kwasa, DirectorNesa Brauer, Consultant
Targeting Achievement through GovernanceSteve Clark, Consultant
COMMUNICATIONSJames Russell, Associate Executive DirectorGary W. Adkins, Director/EditorialLinda Dawson, Director/EditorialJennifer Nelson, Director, Information ServicesGerald R. Glaub, Consultant
FIELD SERVICES/POLICY SERVICESCathy A. Talbert, Associate Executive Director
Field ServicesLarry Dirks, DirectorDean Langdon, DirectorPatrick Rice, DirectorJeff Cohn, DirectorBarbara B. Toney, DirectorLaurel DiPrima, Director
Policy ServicesAnna Lovern, DirectorNancy Bohl, ConsultantAndrea Dolgin, ConsultantJackie Griffith, ConsultantWayne Savageau, ConsultantBrian Zumpf, Consultant
IASB OFFICES
2921 Baker DriveSpringfield, Illinois 62703-5929217/528-9688 Fax 217/528-2831
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JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 9
trict leadership understands and prac-
tices a credible, moral and trustworthy
manner while displaying high stan-
dards and values. But most impor-
tantly, leadership must maintain
honesty at the heart of thoughts, acts
and behaviors.
The job of a good leader is to
extend trust first. Not a blind trust
without expectations and account-
ability, but rather “smart trust” with
clear expectations and strong account-
ability built into the process.
The best leaders recognize that
trust impacts the organization all
the time: every relationship, every
communication, every work pro-
ject, every organizational venture
and every effort in which they are
engaged.
It is reasonable to expect that as
long as mission, philosophy, goals
and objectives are in alignment, cou-
pled with honest and trustworthy
behavior, the collective intelligence
of the organization will rise, and chil-
dren will be in an educational insti-
tution that can truly meet their
needs.
References
Stephen R. Covey, Principle-
Centered Leadership, Simon and
Schuster, Fireside Book, New York,
1992
Roger Fisher and William Ury,
Getting To Yes: Negotiating Agree-
ment without Giving In, Houghton
Mifflin, New York: Penguin Books,
1981 (1991)
James Kouzes and Barry Z. Pos-
ner, The Leadership Challenge, Jossey-
Bass, 2008
Duane C. Tway, Trust Rules: The
Most Important Secret, dissertation,
1993
Using technology toenhance your
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10 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
C O V E R S T O R Y
Jason Lembke
(jlembke@legat.
com), director of
K-12 education
for Legat Archi-
tects Inc., Chica-
go, is a member
of the Architec-
ture Institute of
America and a
LEED accredited
professional.
Douglas Ogurek
(dogurek@legat.
com) is commu-
nications manag-
er at Legat and
also a LEED
accredited
professional.
What if there’s another way …
Educational settingsto foster student success
by Jason Lembke and Douglas Ogurek
Students, parents, board mem-
bers, teachers, and adminis-
trators participated in a recent high
school facility master plan visioning
session, where architects and plan-
ners shared research and discussed
the link between classroom design
and student performance.
One young man, an honors stu-
dent, sat with his arms folded. “I don’t
see the point of this,” he said. “I learned
just fine in the classroom that you
say is inadequate.”
No doubt that young man was
telling the truth: he learned well,
despite the classroom’s shortcomings.
What that student didn’t consider
was the student behind him. Perhaps
she had trouble absorbing the cur-
riculum in the educationally inade-
quate classroom. Perhaps physical
characteristics like lighting, seat-
ing, available workspace, size, acoustics
and configuration did not afford her
the same opportunity to shine.
This illustrates a basic truth that
every educator and stakeholder should
consider: districts cannot easily achieve
the complex task of reaching more
students by ignoring individual activ-
ity and ergonomic preferences with-
in the classroom.
As an influential
resource in the
learning process,
the classroom
itself can help
teachers reach
more students by
better supporting
educational tasks.
What if there
is another way?
What if the class-
room set up for
small group pro-
jects in first peri-
od algebra transforms into a space
that supports peer presentation in
the next? Imagine a classroom as flex-
ible as a Broadway stage. The inter-
changeable settings waiting in the
wings support the actors and activi-
ties on stage. Where would Romeo
and Juliet be without the balcony in
Verona? Likewise, classrooms
equipped with interchangeable edu-
cational settings can better foster
learning and student success.
Districts and educational plan-
ners now stand at a crossroads in
terms of educational settings and
maximizing students’ 21st century
skill development. The challenge of
creating well-suited learning envi-
ronments is all the more impacted
by contemporary methodologies like
the flipped classroom, blended instruc-
tion, e-mentoring, peer-to-peer stu-
dent support and a focus on evolving
STEM curricula.
Cure for the common classroom
Illinois districts continue to align
their curricula with the Common
Core State Standards, which reveal
what to do, but not necessarily how
Students in a math class asked, “Why can’t we all stand?”This illustrates the importance of what working adults havethe freedom to do: move around to suit the task and createcomfort.
Cop
yrig
ht L
egat
Arc
hite
cts
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 11
to do it. Among the concepts gaining
momentum are technology integra-
tion, group work, project-based learn-
ing, cross-curricular activities and
one-to-one computing.
Many districts are responding by
harnessing the latest technology and
learning methods research to alter
their delivery methods. The trans-
formations in teaching and learn-
ing beckon for a transformation in
the setting.
Education begins with engage-
ment. A five-sided classroom lay-
out gives shape to one district’s
instructional model, which empha-
sizes inquiry-based, collaborative
learning. A teacher positioned at the
center has wireless control of screens
positioned around the room. Engaged
students have devices to contribute
to the information on the screens.
A traditional four-sided class-
room can employ similar technolo-
gy in small group activity clusters. In
both examples, the teacher can coach
and mentor without dictating while
flexible furniture allows for rapid
reconfiguration.
The flipped classroom
As tablets and netbooks replace
textbooks, and inquiry and problem
solving overtake rote learning, the
“flipped classroom” concept contin-
ues to challenge educators’ ability to
use aging classrooms. In the “flip”
paradigm, the student uses technol-
ogy (e.g., home or school comput-
er, tablets, DVD player, netbooks) for
an introductory lesson — perhaps in
place of homework — outside the
classroom. Then she rejoins her class-
mates and mentor-teacher to explore
the topic through a variety of phys-
ical classroom settings.
This year, Havana High School
in Havana CUSD 126 became one of
the nation’s first schools to “flip” every
classroom.
“I think people in general learn
by doing, not by being told how to
do,” said Superintendent Patrick M.
Twomey. “The flipped environment
quadruples the amount of time stu-
dents can actually do things with the
content.”
Technology in the classroom also
gives students more control over the
pace at which they absorb materi-
al.
Michael B. Horn, executive direc-
tor of Innosight Institute, a non-prof-
it think tank for education and
innovation, said technology offers an
“exciting way to bolster student learn-
ing as it allows us to customize an
education for each child according
to his or her distinct learning needs.”
Many schools implementing or
considering flipped classrooms face
facility challenges: their classrooms
are designed and furnished based on
teaching styles popularized in the
1950s and ’60s. Rows of heavy, fixed
desk and chair combinations are not
well-suited to interactive learning
models.
The emphasis on creating more
success for more students affords lit-
tle class time for moving around
old furniture. Furthermore, such
rooms in “original” configurations
are likely underpowered to sustain
charging stations for the demands of
one-to-one computing and interac-
tive whiteboards now prized for pre-
sentation and collaboration.
Makeover with benefits
America’s Schoolhouse Council
(ASC, www.americasschoolhouse.
com), a consortium of educational
Planning for a “Flip This Classroom” makeover at Glen Crest Middle School involved Dunn and DunnLearning Styles research, professional development for teachers, and tailored design strategies.
Cop
yrig
ht L
egat
Arc
hite
cts
12 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
planners and architects, created “Flip
This Classroom” to design and imple-
ment learning environment renova-
tions that suit a wider variety of tasks
and individual comforts. The orga-
nization partners with districts to
“flip” (i.e., make over) a classroom
using ASC volunteer design and instal-
lation labor, and then assesses how
the environmental changes impact
student behavior, attitude, and per-
formance.
“Flip This Classroom” validates
the arguments that settings matter
and that architecture goes beyond
its basic purpose of creating a warm,
safe and dry environment. Fine-tun-
ing factors like acoustics, flooring,
furniture, equipment, power, data
and even wall colors may improve
student performance and teacher
retention:
• Teachers in a flipped reading lab
classroom at Glen Crest Middle
School, Glen Ellyn SD 41, have
identified a 15-percent increase in
reading fluency among sixth graders.
• A flipped classroom at Van Cort-
landtville Elementary School in
Mohegan Lake, New York, led to
an 8 percent increase in English
language arts scoring, a 6 per-
cent increase in math scoring and
fewer disciplinary problems among
fourth graders in the testing cohort.
From STEM to STEAM
During the last few years, the
fields of science, technology, engi-
neering and mathematics (STEM)
have dominated educational discus-
sions across the country. Recently,
however, many educators and think
tanks have begun to advocate enhanc-
ing STEM to STEAM by adding an“A”
or arts to the mix.
The arts and the creativity fos-
tered, they argue, are integral to a
collaborative and holistic course offer-
ing to increase learning.
Studies in a report by the Dana
Arts and Cognition Consortium reveal
a correlation between arts training
and improved math and reading scores.
The consortium is part of The Dana
Foundation, a private philanthropic
organization that supports brain
research through grants, publications
and educational programs.
The Dana report also found that
arts boost attention, cognition, work-
ing memory, and reading fluency
— all critical for STEM programs and
for students to excel.
“Art and music require the use
of both schematic and procedural
knowledge,” eminent Harvard psy-
chologist Jerome Kagan said, “and,
therefore, amplify a child’s under-
standing of self and the world.”
Robert Root-Bernstein, a phys-
iology professor at Michigan State
University, who researches and con-
sults on creativity, said, “Nobel lau-
reates in the sciences are 25 times
as likely as the average scientist to
sing, dance, or act; 17 times as like-
ly to be an artist; 12 times more like-
ly to write poetry and literature.”
So why not schedule art and
geometry classes together?
“Why does STEAM policy mat-
ter?” asked John Maeda, president
of the Rohde Island School of Design.
“It is how America will remain com-
petitive, and remain the leader in
innovation in the 21st century.”
Learning is not just a once-a-year opportunity.Attend IASB Division Dinner Meetings and Division Governing Board Meetings. Continuelearning closer to home.
Division meetings allow you to network, develop professionally, recognize peers, participate in association governance and learn about IASB resources.
For locations near you, visitwww.iasb.com and click on Events Calendar.
DivisionMeetings
Did you benefit from the Joint Annual Conference? Or were you unable to attend?
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 13
How can schools foster co-cur-
ricular delivery? What course com-
binations are well-matched to sustain
and inspire the future workforce with-
in a school community?
As an example, a district in
Nashville, Tennessee, home of guitar
manufacturer Gibson USA and the
country music capital of the world,
might be inspired to enhance its STEM
curriculum by adding the arts to nur-
ture future innovation. With a mul-
tifaceted plan in place, the school
schedules certain project activities
in larger spaces. This enables cours-
es like physics, industrial design, and
art to come together in a space where
students can collaborate and prob-
lem-solve.
Similarly, if another district has
the resources to renovate in support
of this emerging curriculum, it might
engage its architect or planner in a
dialogue to plan dedicated spaces that
provide the maximum educational
benefit for the minimum capital invest-
ment.
Challenge and opportunity
When a learning environment
only acknowledges the needs and
challenges of one group, others
cannot gain the full benefits of the
materials at hand. For today’s tech-
nology-savvy students, the road to
the future is filled with many oppor-
tunities: constantly evolving tech-
nologies, global competitiveness and
ever-expanding career opportunities,
to name a few.
Districts and educational plan-
ners have a responsibility to ensure
that every student goes on to be the
successful scientist, engineer or artist
that he or she has the potential to
become. For some, this success will
come despite their educational set-
ting. But for others, the setting will
play a key role in their development
and success.
Architects, planners, educators
and communities should partner to
respond to the challenges of 21st cen-
tury education. The time has come
to transform “aging in place” class-
rooms into “flexible learning settings.”
Only by working together can
we create settings that not only pro-
mote comfort and ergonomics, but
that also give students and teachers
the most time with content.
Annual board self-evaluation ____
Clear mission, vision and goals ____
Solid community connection ____
Productive meetings ____
Strong board-superintendent relationship ____
Does your score add up? ____
Contact yourIASB field services director today!
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14 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
C O V E R S T O R Y
Demands are being placed on
education to produce gradu-
ates who are ready for the 21st cen-
tury. The responsibility for meeting
this demand does not fall to educa-
tors alone. Designers bring problem-
solving skills and a design process
that can help educators think about
learning, the learning environment
and the connection between the two.
For Cannon Design, the research
into this connection began with pro-
jects and clients with whom we were
collaboratively trying to discover the
characteristics of a 21st-century learn-
ing environment. These projects led
to a book, The Third Teacher, which
explores the intersection of learning
and the learning environment.
The book became a launch point
for a new educational design process
and for new educational design chal-
lenges. As a globally recognized pub-
lication resulting from unprecedented
research on the intersection of design
and education, it encourages a glob-
al conversation that explores the
future of learning.
The book houses collections of
transformative teaching and learn-
ing methods achievable through the
planned learning environment —
inspired by Loris Malaguzzi’s “third
teacher.” The goal of The Third
Teacher is to illustrate how school
design is intrinsically linked to learn-
ing and goes steps further by demon-
strating how design directly impacts
teaching and learning.
The book’s “79 Ideas” function
as a common language between learn-
ing communities and designers as a
place where educators, students and
parents can identify tangible design
techniques that support their vision.
Inquiry- and project-based learn-
ing, complex problem solving, cre-
ativity and innovation reflect to the
Kerry Leonard is
a principal archi-
tect with Cannon
Design of Chica-
go and a mem-
ber architect of
the American
Institute of
Architecture.
... To build for student successActivating a connection between learning, environment
by Kerry Leonard
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 15
Phot
o co
urte
sy C
anno
n D
esig
n, C
hica
go
Phot
o co
urte
sy C
anno
n D
esig
n, C
hica
go
teachings of John Dewey, perhaps
the original 21st century educator.
His approach demonstrates that stu-
dents become most engaged when
challenged with real issues in real
time, which can produce outcomes
that have a tangible impact on the
world.
The ability to pose the right ques-
tions and simultaneously solve mul-
tiple problems is at the root of this
learning approach. Students are afford-
ed a rich learning experience linked
to the development of core founda-
tion skills to long term, systems-based
thinking.
Central to our nation’s continu-
ing ability to act as forward-thinking
and global leaders is an educational
model that empowers young people
to become agile thinkers and diverse
creatives across all industries and
social systems. Do our schools foster
creativity and insatiable curiosity?
Do our students ask “what if?”
The challenge for educational
leaders is to invest in learning envi-
ronments that prioritize creativity
and innovation, impart the wisdom
of ages and simultaneously measure
skill development effectively during
the process. True 21st-century learn-
ing environments embrace an
“and/and” approach, rather than
choosing one at the expense of the
other.
The knowledge amassed through
lessons of The Third Teacher cre-
ates and reveals new learning envi-
ronments, grounded in highly
collaborative design processes and
concepts.
Educational technologies
School communities must work
within realistic budget parameters
when investing in student and edu-
cator technologies. However, many
21st-century educational strategies
do not depend on expensive solu-
tions.
What holds true throughout tech-
nology advancements is ensuring
appropriate connectivity for learn-
ers and educators, linking the right
tools to the right projects, and fos-
tering a culture of robust professional
development with a wide range of
technologies. Contemporary educa-
tors realize that developing a strate-
gic and beta-test approach to available
technology is the most sustainable
path to technology adoption.
This flexibility and purposeful-
ness yields the best tools so students
can achieve their potential in an ever-
shifting technology landscape.
While much of the original dia-
A STEM-centric, project-based learning environment incorporates thought-provok-ing learning tools and flexible, interactive learning spaces to promote studentcuriosity and creativity.
Today’s libraries must be more thanspaces for books and computers.Spaces need to foster collaboration,comfort and digital tools forresearch.
continued on page 18
Chicago banners, at left, welcomethe conferenceto downtown.
GeorgeKohut, right,
makes hispoint as he
presents information
about collective
bargaining.
Visitors to the Exhibit Hall, left, could find a vast array ofproducts and services for school districts. Sandra Kwasa,above right, IASB board development director, chats withpreconference workshop participants.
80th Joint Annual Lights the
A member of the delegate assemblyraises her voting paddle in support.
New board member ChristineKim of Joliet PSD 86, left, asks aquestion during a Sunday morning coffee and conversationsession. The annual fireworksspectacular, above, drew largecrowds and provided a dazzlingarray of lights.
A line snakes around the Grand Ballroom foyer as education historian Diane Ravitch, far right, signscopies of her book after speaking at Saturday morning’s general session.
ConferenceWay
18 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
log about 21st-century learning focused
on “adding computers to schools,”
today’s educational leader under-
stands that a true digital native is first
and foremost an effective filterer of
information and a competent com-
municator across multiple platforms.
Students may be agile and fear-
less when it comes to new technolo-
gy adoption, but they continue to
need adult wisdom to understand the
social, emotional and intellectual
impacts of constant connection; to
converse effectively in text-speak;
and to acquire the ability to exchange
ideas with the larger world.
Furthermore, it is critical that
educational leaders shift from desk-
top-based, keyboard-centric tools to
agile, mobile and gesture-based inter-
faces that allow learners to natural-
ly interact with the world in much
more dynamic manners.
A case study
The school library of past gen-
erations is gone. Today’s libraries
must be more than spaces for books
and computers. Spaces need to fos-
ter collaboration, comfort and digi-
tal tools for research.
Our firm embraced this ideo-
logical shift when designing Steven-
son High School’s new Information
and Learning Center (ILC) for Adlai
E. Stevenson HSD 125. The reduced
need for a large print library collec-
tion resulted in newly accessible
spaces. Stacks of books were moved
to the periphery, enabling human col-
laboration at the center of the space.
With laptops and iPads readily
available, the ILC boasts “smart tech-
nology furniture” which assists stu-
dents to share information, boost
collaboration and help eliminate tech-
nological boundaries — breaking away
from the traditional mindset that com-
puters belong in computer labs.
The large lounging stairway cohe-
sively links the two floors, and can
transform from a casual, wi-fi-acces-
sible learning area to a large-group
gathering commons. Our team also
planned small rooms equipped with
Steelcase Mediascapes desk systems.
These small group rooms go
beyond teaching and casual collab-
oration; they offer students needed
support for group project work. The
design has transformed the con-
ventional library environment into
a transparent, collaborative and media-
rich resource center.
Collaborative environments
As more professional environ-
ments incorporate project-based
teams, it becomes imperative to expose
students to work-based collabora-
tion. When working in groups, dif-
ferent skill sets are needed for students
to effectively manage and participate
in teams, especially when outcomes
are measured and impact all involved.
While traditional schools chal-
lenge students to work independently,
an authentic 21st-century learning
environment fosters collaboration,
team work and group dynamics in
addition to allowing students to devel-
op individual skills.
The Science, Technology, Engi-
neering and Mathematics (STEM)
curriculum is typically the space dri-
ver that enables students to learn
through group and individual project
activities, and encourages more pos-
itive attitudes, greater enthusiasm,
improved communication, effective
interpersonal skills, personal own-
Student success continued from page 15
IASB SERVICEASSOCIATES
IASB Service Associates provide quality products and services for schools. Membership is by
invitation only. A list of Service Associate firms is on the IASB Web site and in this Journal.
IASB SERVICEASSOCIATES
The best of
everything for schools
While traditional schools challenge students to work independent-
ly, an authentic 21st-century learning environment fosters collabo-
ration, team work and group dynamics in addition to allowing stu-
dents to develop individual skills.
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 19
ership in accomplishments and greater
civility towards others as compared
to schools following traditional pro-
grams.
Students who participate in STEM
education environments develop 21st-
century learning skills that benefit
them far beyond the school envi-
ronment.
Another case study
The architectural concept dri-
ving the Booker T. Washington STEM
Academy in Champaign CUSD 4 was
the creation of a STEM-centric, pro-
ject-based learning environment that
incorporates thought-provoking learn-
ing tools through design.
Text and graphics are placed
throughout the building to reinforce
the STEM curriculum, and provoke
student curiosity and creativity. The
academic communities — Acade-
my’s re-imagined classrooms — con-
sist of three learning studios that open
onto a communal gathering area.
This interactive space is equipped
with folding glass partitions that can
be arranged to create transitional and
multifunctional spaces as collabora-
tive, flexible and interactive learn-
ing environments. This collaboration
area is outfitted with a demonstra-
tion counter allowing science and
engineering activities to occur in close
proximity to the learning studios,
realizing the goal of permeating the
building with science and engineer-
ing project-based learning opportu-
nities.
Discovery to design
The programming process is built
on a foundation of listening. Coupled
with research and workshop outcomes,
patterns and productive tensions
evolve and resolve in a statement of
the project’s core values and design
drivers. This robust process leads to
authentic solutions that are deeply
rooted in the community’s voice.
The “future of learning” design
practice is a direct result of con-
centrated efforts to provide thought
leadership to our clients and to become
their trusted advisor, assisting them
in creating innovative environments.
The planning process consists of inter-
views with the faculty, administra-
tion and students, as well as design
team workshops to explore teaching
and learning models.
The workshops inform a design
that aligns a school’s pedagogy with a
21st-century learning environment.
That results in connected and flexi-
ble spaces conducive for dynamic
teaching and learning — both for today’s
students and well into the future.
Our research and project work
has led Cannon Design to develop a
design practice that uses data-driven
decision making, teamed with a sol-
id understanding of the connection
between the built environment, teach-
ing and learning, and how the envi-
ronment can support best practices
of teachers and students.
For every project, districts need
to work with their architects and
designers to use the power of imag-
ination, knowledge and experience
to create environments that are an
inspiration for learning, a source of
community pride and an expression
of the district’s educational mis-
sion.
20 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
P R A C T I C A L P R
With today’s challenging econ-
omy, undertaking and com-
pleting a school construction project
can be a daunting task.
Should you renovate current
buildings or rebuild? How do you earn
support of stakeholders to make the
project a success? And which design
elements will ensure the project pro-
vides long-lasting upgrades?
DuPage High School District
88 recently completed a $115.3 mil-
lion construction project to mod-
ernize the infrastructure and learning
environment at Addison Trail and
Willowbrook high schools. In April
2007, the two communities voted to
fund a $104.7 million referendum
proposal called “Building the Future,”
and the project was completed dur-
ing the 2011-12 school year. The pro-
ject included:
• Technology enhancements
• Added/up-to-date science labs
• Enhanced music and art facilities
• New spaces for team learning
opportunities
• Extensive upgrades to electrical
and plumbing systems
• Student-centered commons areas
• Added classroom and instructional
space
• Added physical education and ath-
letic facilities
• Air-quality improvements
• Improved traffic flow and parking
District 88 would like to share
the following six tips for boards to
consider regarding construction now
and providing for the future:
1. Engagement is key
When campaigning for a
school construction project, it’s
crucial to know the audience in
order to target messages that mat-
ter. Engage the community ahead
of time to show you care and that
schools are the cornerstone of the
community. Involve key groups
such as civic organizations and
governing bodies as early as pos-
sible.
Also reach out to parents/
guardians, community members
of all ages, surrounding school dis-
tricts, media, students, staff and
union members to get their input.
The more ownership stakehold-
ers feel toward the project, the
more they will want to see it suc-
ceed.
Danielle
Schweigert is
director of com-
munity relations
for DuPage High
School District
88 in Addison
and a member of
the Illinois chap-
ter of the Nation-
al School Public
Relations
Association.
Communicating needsvital during construction
by Danielle Schweigert
This new commons area at Addison Trail High School was part of a $115.3 mil-lion construction project for DuPage HSD 88.
Columns aresubmitted bymembers of
Pho
to s
ubm
itted
by
DuP
age
HSD
88
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 21
Continue to survey stake-
holders to gauge their level of sup-
port, and focus on those who will
vote “yes.”
2. Create a sense of need
It’s important to show why
the construction project is need-
ed. Give tours of facilities, make
a video to show the facilities and
offer tours of newer facilities to
point out the differences. Many
people may ask, “It was fine when
I went to school here. Why do you
need money for new facilities
now?”
Needs change, especially with
so many changes in technology.
It’s the district’s job to show peo-
ple why updates are important
and possibly more energy effi-
cient, and why good maintenance
is essential.
3. Create a vision
Work with stakeholders to
develop a strategic plan and a mis-
sion of that reflects the board and
community vision for the district
and how the project fits into this
vision. Create committees to help
with various aspects of the con-
struction project (such as cam-
paigning and finances), and
remember to contact legal rep-
resentatives to make sure all laws
are being followed.
Keep lines of communication
open to listen to everyone’s wants
and needs, and then prioritize
those items. Allow all groups
involved to give input, and try
to implement as many of those
wants and needs as possible. If
something people say they want
isn’t feasible, be prepared to tell
them why it won’t be included at
this time.
4. Everyone on board
Having all board members
support the project is important.
If the board supports the project,
it can move forward for the vot-
ers to decide whether they want
to approve it. The District 88 board
was tremendous in supporting the
district’s “Building the Future”
vision.
As a board, be prepared to
allow committees to make some
decisions in order to keep the pro-
ject moving forward, which will
save time and money. Those com-
mittees should report to the board
regularly to keep members up
to date.
5. Plan for the future
Upgrades, especially with
regard to technology, can be short
lived so make certain planning is
for a long-term vision versus a
quick fix.
To learn about school design
trends, District 88 toured many
schools and recognized that school
design today includes wireless
technology. Therefore, installing
wireless capabilities was part of
this project. Also budget to train
staff on how to use that technol-
ogy and for the replacement of
Students now enjoy these new facilities at Willowbrook High School in DuPage HSD 88 thanks to the generous support of the community, which passed a “Building the Future” referendum in April 2007.
Pho
tos
subm
itted
by
DuP
age
HSD
88
22 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
technology.
District 88 noticed another
popular trend was creating a col-
lege-like environment, where stu-
dents had a commons area to gath-
er. That area was near the main
administrative offices to form the
“central hub” of the school.
Remember to consider what
needs to be done internally to the
buildings in terms of infrastruc-
ture to ensure they’re up to code
to allow for expansion in the future.
Buying materials with better fin-
ishes helps avoid continuous main-
tenance.
District 88 focused on improv-
ing multiple areas/aspects of the
school, which allowed the district
to take a holistic, yet realistic
approach to the project.
6. Piecing together the puzzle
If school is going to be open
during the project, try to keep
construction away from students.
Schedule construction during
breaks as much as possible, and
go section by section to ensure
the learning environment is min-
imally disrupted.
Determine which staff mem-
bers will be involved in the pro-
ject, and allow principals to remain
focused on the education of stu-
dents. District 88 named assis-
tant principals as administrative
liaisons for “Building the Future”
to ensure that principals and oth-
er administrators could continue
their regular work.
Develop the project as com-
pletely as possible before con-
struction begins — and be sure
to review it — to avoid having to
do things multiple times.
School construction pro-
jects can seem overwhelming,
but with careful planning, com-
munity involvement and every-
one working together, a successful
project can be developed that
embodies school design of the
future.
ILLINOIS ASSOCIATION OF SCHOOL BOARDS
The Illinois Association of School BoardsExecutive Searches Department will:
• Designate a coordinator who will provide rapid responses to questions and concerns.
• Assist in establishing a timeline for the search.
• Assist in identifying the qualification and characteristics desiredin the ideal candidate.
• Assist in compensation package development.
• Announce and advertise the vacancy and solicit applicants for the position.
• Collect online applications; verify the qualifications, experienceand certification of all candidates.
• Verify references of candidates to be presented.
• Schedule candidate interviews.
• When the search is over, our service to you continues.
For information contact:
2921 Baker Drive One Imperial Place
Springfield, IL 62703 1 East 22nd Street, Suite 20
217/528-9688, ext. 1217 Lombard, IL 60148
630/629-3776, ext. 1217
www.iasb.com/executive
The Gold Standard of Executive Searches
ExecutiveSearchESExecutiveSearchES
The Gold Standard of Executive Searches
Watch for more information online and in yourmailbox prior to the April 2013 election!
Mandatory Training &
New Board Member WorkshopsSummer 2013
May 10-11Crystal Lake, Holiday InnEffingham, Holiday Inn
May 17-18Glen Ellyn, Crowne Plaza Lombard
Carbondale, Holiday Inn Conference Center
May 31-June 1Glenview, Wyndham Suites
Normal, Marriott Hotel & Conference Center
June 7-8Freeport, Highland Community College
Collinsville, Gateway Center
June 14-15Tinley Park, Holiday Inn
Springfield, Crowne Plaza
June 21-22Moline, Stoney Creek Inn
Champaign, Hilton Garden Inn
Choose from 12 locations throughout the state.
FRIDAYProfessional Development Leadership Training for School Board Members
Every school board member elected OR re-elected in 2013 MUST complete this training withinone year of taking the oath of office.
and
Open Meetings Act Training for School Board MembersEvery school board member newly elected in 2013 MUST complete this training within 90 daysof taking the oath of office. For board members who have already completed the OMA training,an alternate, exciting training opportunity will be available for this portion of the day.
SATURDAYThe Basics of Governance
Newly elected board members will hit the ground running with this essential board training workshop! This workshop also fulfills the governance overviewrequirement for admission into the LeaderShop Academy. Veteran board members who have already attended The Basics of Governance may choose to attend with the newly elected members on their boards.
24 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
F E A T U R E A R T I C L E
As an Illinois middle school prin-
cipal for a quarter of a centu-
ry, each and every day brought new
excitement, new challenges and its
own special rewards. Each day was
a unique experience, very unlike the
movie “Groundhog Day.”
One consistent, constant and
self-evident truth, however, did come
with each day. I knew my job was
to find the best teachers, support
them, encourage them, hopefully
inspire them by my example, and
work with them collaboratively to
improve all aspects of students’ lives.
The September 2012 issue of the
Kappan magazine reported the 44th
annual Phi Delta Kappan Gallup Poll
of the public’s attitudes toward pub-
lic schools stating, “Americans sup-
port rigorous entrance requirements
into college-based teacher prepara-
tion programs. At least three of four
Americans believe that entrance
requirements into teacher prepara-
tion programs should be as rigor-
ous as or more selective than
engineering, business, pre-law and
pre-medicine.”
If a poll were taken regarding
school administrator preparation pro-
grams, I’m quite confident the pub-
lic would want the same or even more
rigorous entrance requirements as
well as rigorous state licensing expec-
tations.
That is exactly what a new law
in Illinois aims to accomplish. Edu-
cating future school administrators,
and in particular principals, is a
demanding job and just became more
interesting and complicated with Pub-
lic Act 096-0903, and the accompa-
nying changes to the Illinois
Administrative Code and Illinois
School Code.
The new requirements for prin-
cipal preparation programs, from
admission through endorsement,
replace the current decades-old Type
75 general administrative certificate
with a new principal endorsement.
According to Section 21-7.1 of
the Illinois School Code and 23 Illi-
nois Administrative Code 25.337:
“Candidates successfully complet-
ing the principal preparation pro-
gram shall obtain a principal
endorsement on an administrative
certificate and are eligible to work as
a principal, assistant principal, assis-
tant or associate superintendent, a
junior college dean.”
However, just recently the Illi-
nois State Board of Education (ISBE)
proposed an amendment that would
delete “assistant or associate super-
intendent, a junior college dean” and
replace it with “or in related or sim-
ilar positions.” If approved the new
language would read: “Candidates
successfully completing a principal
preparation program shall obtain a
principal endorsement on a Profes-
sional Educator License and are
eligible to work as a principal or an
assistant principal or in related or
similar positions.” Only time will tell
what positions the endorsement will
cover but clearly a significant differ-
ence with major implications exists
in the proposed language.
Those admitted to a program
before September 1, 2012, have until
August 31, 2014, to obtain and reg-
ister the Type 75 certificate. As of
September 1, 2012, newly admit-
ted principal preparation candidates
across the state must meet the latest
rigorous application requirements.
The new process
The application process has
numerous never-before mandatory
prerequisites. Under the new law,
Type 73 school service personnel,
counselors, social workers, psychol-
ogists and speech therapists, who
never taught on a teaching license,
are no longer eligible for admission
to a principal preparation program
and, as such, cannot obtain the new
Howard Bultinck
is an associate
professor and
department chair
in educational
leadership and
development,
Northeastern Illi-
nois University, a
search consultant
with Hazard,
Young, Attea and
Associates, Ltd.
and a retired
superintendent/
principal for
Sunset Ridge
School District
29, Northfield,
Illinois.
Good-bye, Type 75;Hello, endorsements
by Howard Bultinck
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 25
principal endorsement.
According to the “Illinois Prin-
cipal Preparation Program Applica-
tion for Approval,” a teacher wishing
to enter a principal preparation pro-
gram must:
• Hold a valid, current Illinois teach-
ing certificate (e.g., early child-
hood, elementary, secondary, special
K-12, or special preschool-age 21);
• Be selected through an in-person
interview process with no fewer
than two of the program’s full-time
faculty members;
• Have received a passing score on
the Illinois Test of Basic Skills (now
the Test of Academic Proficiency
[TAP]) if the candidate had not
been required to take the test for
receipt of his or her Illinois teach-
ing certificate;
• Successfully complete an on-site
written response to a scenario pre-
sented by the interviewers; and
• Discuss the contents of their port-
folio with a professor(s) during the
interview.
The contents of that portfolio
must be scored on a rubric and con-
tain the following evidence:
1. Support for all students achiev-
ing high standards of learning;
2. Accomplished classroom instruc-
tion, which shall include data pro-
viding evidence of two years of
student growth and learning with-
in the last five years, including
how data was used to inform
instruction;
3. Significant leadership roles in past
positions;
4. Strong oral and written commu-
nication skills;
5. Analytic abilities needed to col-
lect and analyze data for student
learning and evidence of how the
results from student assessment
improve learning;
6. Demonstrated respect for family
and community;
7. Strong interpersonal skills; and
8. Knowledge of curriculum and
instructional practices.
One can easily see that the admis-
sion’s process has become a job in
itself. To ease and facilitate the admis-
sions process at Northeastern Illinois
University, we decided to use one
of our first graduate classes, “Intro-
duction to Evaluation of Certified and
Support Staff,” as a pre-admission
course to assist students with all
admission requirements while the
student simultaneously earns cred-
it for the first course in the program.
Other requirements
Although the candidate admis-
sions process is complex, numerous
other requirements also exist in
the state’s 41-page scoring guide for
university program approval. Other
requirements for ISBE program
approval include:
• Developing the new university pro-
gram with school district partners
documented with a partnership
agreement — partners are required
to work hand-in-hand to co-design,
co-develop, co-implement and co-
evaluate the new program.
• Ensuring the graduate school’s
PreK-12 principal endorsement
curriculum includes specific state
standards and guidelines with
numerous prescriptive components
including the 2008 Interstate School
Leaders Licensure Consortium
(ISLLC) standards as well as spe-
cific guidelines for student learn-
ing and school improvement
including a process that determines
how a student responds to scien-
tific, research-based interventions
that are designed to screen stu-
dents who may be at risk of acad-
emic failure; monitors the
effectiveness of instruction pro-
posed for students identified as at-
risk; and modifies instruction as
needed to meet the needs of each
student.
• Incorporating a sustained, con-
tinuous, structured and supervised
internship that meets numerous
state guidelines including a myr-
iad of requirements for the on-site
principal mentor, including, but
not limited to, the principal hav-
ing three years of successful expe-
rience as a building principal as
evidenced by relevant data, includ-
ing data supporting student eval-
uations or letters of recom-
mendation from former supervi-
sors.
Candidates must also pass the
new two-day state exam before begin-
ning their internship. Because of the
new internship requirements, the
course syllabus at Northeastern Illi-
nois University is now 150 pages long
with 35 new pages of rubrics for the
principal to use to evaluate the intern
candidate, which is in addition to the
16 pages already being used!
NEIU interns will now spend three
consecutive semesters in their part-
time, year-long internship and be
required to pass with their principal
mentor a short on-line internship
preparatory course developed by the
North Cook Intermediate Service
Center (NCISC).
Partnerships, curriculum, and
internship components now require
PreK-12 attention as Illinois is one
of the first states to actually include
content and field experiences in the
PreK setting so that principals are
prepared to be leaders who can lead
26 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
in PreK-12 school systems.
Conversion options
The good news is that current
administrators holding a Type 75 Gen-
eral Administrative Certificate can
continue to serve as before with the
Type 75 or they can “convert” their
certificate to the new principal endorse-
ment under certain circumstances.
The law states: “Individuals who
hold a valid and registered adminis-
trative certificate with a general admin-
istrative endorsement prior to July
1, 2014, and who have served for at
least one full year during the five years
prior in a position requiring a gen-
eral administrative endorsement shall,
upon request to the State Board of
Education and through July 1, 2015,
have their respective general admin-
istrative endorsement converted to
a principal endorsement. All other
individuals holding a valid and reg-
istered administrative certificate with
a general administrative endorse-
ment prior to July 1, 2014, shall have
such general administrative endorse-
ment converted to a principal endorse-
ment upon request to the State Board
of Education and by completing one
of the following pathways: (1) Take
and pass the new state principal assess-
ment developed by the State Board
of Education. (2) Through July 1,
2019, complete an Illinois Admin-
istrators’ Academy course designat-
ed by the State Superintendent of
Education. (3) Complete a principal
preparation program established and
approved pursuant to this Section
and applicable rules. Nothing in this
amendatory Act of the 96th Gener-
al Assembly shall prevent an indi-
vidual having a general administrative
endorsement from serving at any time
in any position identified in para-
graph (2) of subsection (e) of Section
21-7.1 of this Code.”
A letter from Lizanne DeStefano,
on behalf of Miguel Del Valle, chair
of the P-20 Council to Superinten-
dents, best summed up the transfor-
mation:
“This legislation calls for providers
of principal preparation programs to
replace the old model of a broad Type
75 certification program required for
anyone with the responsibility of eval-
uating teachers with redesigned prin-
cipal preparation programs that are
committed to careful selection of can-
didates aspiring to be principals or
assistant principals, deep partner-
ships with school districts and region-
al offices of education, and intensive
clinical experiences for these spe-
cific positions. These new, more
focused programs will provide extend-
ed opportunities for leadership prac-
tice as well as rigorous assessment of
on the job leadership performance.”
Joseph L. Krabel, 62, died November
16, 2012. He had served on the Shiloh
school board for seven years.
John. L. Leary, 89, died November 16,
2012. He had served on the Oregon
school board for 17 years and the
Ogle County Board for 20 years.
William P. McIntyre, 78, died October
12, 2012. He was a past member
of the Poplar Grove Elementary
school board.
Melvin W. Mitchell, 84, died October
18, 2012. He previously served two
terms on the Earlville CUSD 9 school
board.
Penelope “Penny” Homan Neale, 68,
died September 25, 2012. She pre-
viously served on the Lebanon school
board for eight years and had earli-
er taught English in several Massa-
chusetts and Tennessee schools.
Richard J. “Dick” Ogden, 70, died Octo-
ber 2, 2012. He previously served
on the Lebanon school board for 10
years, serving as president the last
two years.
J. Donald Rollings, 96, died October 3,
2012. He had served nine years on
the Shiloh CUSD 2 school board and
had served as president. He was lat-
er on the planning committee for
the current Shiloh school building
in Hume.
Mark Rose, 56, died November 17, 2012.
He was a current member of the
Crete-Monee CUSD 201U school
board, serving since 1999.
John A. Russell, 96, died November 15,
2012. He previously served on the
Catlin school board. He also served
as Catlin village clerk for 40 years.
Mark J. Verstraete, 64, died November
6, 2012. He previously served on the
Bradford school board for 18 years.
The Illinois School Board Journal
welcomes news about or from Illinois
school leaders. News may include but
need not be limited to accomplishments,
changes in position or duties, retirement,
death and other milestones related to
board/district duties. For more infor-
mation about submitting news items,
phone the Communications Department
at 217/528-9688, ext. 1138, or e-mail gad-
kins@iasb. com.
Milestones continued from page 32
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 27
Many other requirements are too
lengthy to mention in this article, but
suffice it to say, Bob Dylan summed
it up with his song, “The Times They
Are a Changin’.”
We can only hope the new require-
ments do not discourage the best can-
didates from obtaining the new
principal endorsement but actually
encourage them to rise to the occa-
sion.
The best of the best must step
forward because, it is all about serv-
ing students and they deserve the
best.
ReferencesIllinois Public Act 096-0903 (Effec-
tive July 1, 2010)
Illinois Compiled Statutes 105
ILCS5 School Code, Section 21-7.1,
7.6, 2012
ISBE 23 Illinois Administrative
Code 25 Subtitle A Subchapter b; Title
23: Education and Cultural Resources;
Subtitle A: Education; Chapter 1: State
Board of Education; Subchapter b: Per-
sonnel; Part 25; Certification.
ISBE 23 Illinois Administrative
Code 30 Subtitle A Subchapter b; Title
23: Education and Cultural Resources;
Subtitle A: Education; Chapter 1: State
Board of Education; Subchapter b: Per-
sonnel; Part 30; Programs for the Prepa-
ration of Principals in Illinois.
ISBE: Illinois Principal Prepara-
tion Program Application: IL State Edu-
cator Preparation and Licensure Board
and IL Principal Preparation Review
Panel Scoring Guide: 2/6/2012 1:03PM-
IL Principal Preparation Program Scor-
ing Rubric.
ISBE: Handout Presented at the
Illinois Principal Preparation Summit,
June 17, 2011: Illinois Principal Prepa-
ration Program Application for Approval,
retrieved October 10, 2012 from http://
illinoisschoolleader.org/documents/
PPPApplicationFINALmseelbach6-17-
11.pdf
Lizanne DeStefano, on behalf of
Miguel Del Valle, letter sent to super-
intendents, October 2010, http://www.
google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=
s&source=web&cd=9&ved=0CE0QFjAI
&url=http%3A%2F%2Fillinoisschool-
leader.org%2Fdocuments%2FPA096-
0903FAQ.pdf&ei=m5JUUNHkIYesywG8
m4CwDw&usg=AFQjCNG6YSFhisX1U
k2w7YlaVHprJogq3Q
http://www.isbe.net/rules
Phi Delta Kappan, “The 44th Annu-
al Phi Delta Kappa/Gallup Poll of the
Public’s Attitudes Toward Public Schools,”
September 2012
2012 was Effortlessfor Boards UsingPRESS
• Movable Soccer Goal Safety Act (Zach’s law)
• Offset Program for collecting delinquentdebts owed to the district
• Right to Privacy in the Workplace Act(Facebook Password Law)
• “Appropriate online behavior” educationfor students
• Open Meetings Act (OMA)
Resolve to have an up-to-date policy manual yourdistrict can be proud of this year!
A PRESS subscription allows subscribers to download sample policies, exhibits and administrative procedures regarding these andmany other new and revised laws and regulations.Go to www.iasb.com today!
PRESSPolicy Reference Education
Subscription Service
For more information about PRESSor other IASB Policy Services,please contact: 630/629-3776 or217/528-9688 ext. 1232 or 1119.
28 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
F E A T U R E A R T I C L E
In public education, many things
tend to follow the 90/10 rule in
our schools and classrooms: we tend
to spend 90 percent of our time and
resources working with 10 percent
of our student population.
Whether addressing the critical
learning needs of our special edu-
cation students or the habitual mis-
behavior of secondary students, this
is a common frustration of board
members and administrators every-
where.
At the middle school and high
school levels, most school adminis-
trators spend the majority of their
time dealing with a small fraction
of students because of habitual dis-
cipline concerns. Many of these dis-
cipline situations also take valuable
time at the school board level.
Therefore, the challenge for dis-
tricts becomes twofold:
1) Addressing and attempting to elim-
inate the habitual behavior con-
cerns typically found in about 10
percent of students, and
2) Freeing up personnel and other
valuable resources to improve
student learning and learning out-
comes, the most important objec-
tives of their organization.
Several years ago, a colleague of
mine and I developed a structured
and proactive approach to secondary
(grades 6-12) school discipline called
Progressive Discipline Policy (PDP).
Now, years later, this system contin-
ues to pay dividends to our schools
and communities.
PDP fundamentally changes the
way that students, parents, teachers
and administrators approach school
discipline. At face value, the sys-
tem appears very strenuous and inflex-
ible, but a closer look (and years of
data) suggests the contrary.
Description of the PDP
The PDP program, as detailed in
the accompanying table, consists of
a five-level, 13-step sequence that
certainly curbs, and all but elimi-
nates, habitual, undesired behaviors
in most students.
Each student begins the school
year with 13 “chances” to conform
to both a desired and effective school
climate. Minor, inconsistent behav-
iors are addressed at the classroom
level (Level 0) and it is not until Lev-
el 1 that the administration becomes
involved. Once a student enters Lev-
el 1, they can receive up to five after-
school detentions (Steps 1-5). These
detentions are successful deterrents
of future misbehavior for most stu-
dents.
The vast majority of students will
never progress beyond this level and
PDP eliminates the ineffective prac-
tice of issuing students 30, 40 or even
50 after-school detentions in a year,
which is clearly not a deterrent or a
viable consequence.
Those students who work their
way through five after-school deten-
tions find themselves in Level 2, which
consists of three Saturday detentions
(Steps 6-8). Saturday detentions are
not popular among secondary stu-
dents and most, who find themselves
at these steps, refrain from violating
discipline procedures for the remain-
der of the school year.
Students who have completed
Step 1 through Step 8 find themselves
in Step 9, in-school suspension. This
one-day suspension is an opportu-
nity for both the student and the
administration to reflect on how both
parties progressed to this point and
to discuss the future consequences
of poor decisions.
Steps 10 through 12 of Level 4
consist of three out-of-school sus-
pensions consisting of: a three-day
suspension, a five-day suspension
and a 10-day suspension. These steps
are reserved for students whose edu-
cational priorities do not match the
school’s priorities and who may need
to consider an alternative placement.
In the rare instance that a student
completes Steps 1 through 12 with-
Martin D. Felese-
na, principal of
Central High
School, Central
CUSD 4 in
Clifton, has been
a public school
administrator in
Illinois for 14
years, nine at the
middle school
level and five at
the high school
level, serving as a
principal, assis-
tant principal,
dean of students
and athletic
director.
Does your district haveprogressive discipline policies?
by Martin D. Felesena
out successful resolution, Step 13 of
Level 5 prescribes a 10-day suspen-
sion and a recommendation for expul-
sion from the formal school setting.
Development of a PDP
The best part of this program is
the ability to customize it to fit into
an existing disciplinary consequence
structure and into the unique needs
of a district. The levels and steps out-
lined should be used as a starting
point for developing a district-spe-
cific PDP.
Successful development should
involve input from a variety of stake-
holders including: board members,
administrators, teachers, parents and
students. The structure and conse-
quences need to be clearly delineat-
ed, understood and supported by
everyone to ensure successful imple-
mentation.
It is important to consider spec-
ifying consequences in PDP that fol-
low consequences that are already
in place and that are familiar to every-
one in the district. The most impor-
tant thing to remember during program
development is that, once developed,
it must be credible enough to be sup-
ported by all involved, especially the
board of education.
Implementation/management
Once developed, successful imple-
mentation of the program is essen-
tial. The newly created PDP must be
adequately communicated and
explained to parent groups, students
and teachers. The message needs to
be that progressive discipline improves
the learning climate and learning
potential for all students.
It is also advisable to communi-
cate that, although the program may
seem strict, research shows that the
vast majority of students will rise to
the level of expectations set for them.
High behavioral expectations will
result in an improved school climate
and, in turn, an improved school cli-
mate will result in increased student
achievement.
Once the PDP has been collabo-
ratively developed and carefully imple-
mented, the district must take
responsibility to ensure that a com-
mon sense approach is used to man-
age it.
Successful management involves:
1) better discipline management at
the classroom level;
2) more consistent communication
with students and parents at the
building level; and
3) higher behavioral expectations
set at the school board level.
Also important to note is that
although the PDP sequences from
Step 0 through Step 13, certain major
infractions may result in skipping a
few steps on the progression.
For example, a student who does
not have any discipline infractions
for the year and gets in a physical
altercation at school may progress
directly to Step 10, three-day sus-
pension. This student, however, has
not used Steps 1 through 9 and those
steps are still available to them after
they return from their suspension in
Step 10.
The primary purpose of pro-
gressive discipline is to deter habit-
ual student behaviors that disrupt
the learning environment for other
students — the purpose is not to sus-
pend or expel students.
In 14 years of using this system,
or a deviation of it, at both the mid-
dle school and high school levels, I
can count on one hand how many
students have been expelled because
of this program. It sets clear disci-
pline expectations, it is a proven deter-
rent to habitual student misbehavior,
and it makes sense.
TABLE 1LEVEL STEP CONSEQUENCE LOCALE
0 0 Classroom Detentions/Lunch Detentions/Etc. Classroom
1 1 After-School Detention #1 (1 Hour) Building
2 After-School Detention #2 (1 Hour) Building
3 After-School Detention #3 (1 Hour) Building
4 After-School Detention #4 (1 Hour) Building
5 After-School Detention #5 (1 Hour) Building
2 6 Saturday Detention #1 (3.5 Hours) Building
7 Saturday Detention #2 (3.5 Hours) Building
8 Saturday Detention #3 (3.5 Hours) Building
3 9 In-School Suspension #1 (1 Day) Building
4 10 Out-of-School Suspension #1 (3 Days) District
11 Out-of-School Suspension #2 (5 Days) District
12 Out-of-School Suspension #3 (10 Days) District
5 13 Out-of-School Suspension #4 (10 Days and Expulsion) District
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 29
30 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
A Directory of your
IASB ServiceAssociates
IASB Service Associates are businesses whichoffer school-related products and services andwhich have earned favorable repu tations for qual-ity and integrity. Only after screening by theService Associates Executive Committee is abusiness firm invited by the IASB Board ofDirectors to become a Service Associate.
Appraisal ServicesINDUSTRIAL APPRAISAL COMPANY — Insurance
appraisals, property control reports. OakwoodTerrace - 630/827-0280
Architects/EngineersALLIED DESIGN CONSULTANTS, INC. —
Architectural programming, site planning & design,architectural and interior design, and constructionadministration. Springfield - 217/522-3355
ARCON ASSOCIATES, INC. — Full service firm spe-cializing in educational facilities with services thatinclude architecture, construction management, roofand masonry consulting, landscape architecture andenvironmental consulting. Lombard - 630/495-1900;website: www.arconassoc.com; e-mail: [email protected]
BAYSINGER DESIGN GROUP, INC. — Architecturaldesign services. Marion - 618/998-8015
BERG ENGINEERING CONSULTANTS, LTD. —Consulting engineers. Schaumburg - 847/352-4500;website: http://www.berg-eng.com
BLDD ARCHITECTS, INC. — Architectural and engineering services for schools. Decatur - 217/429-5105; Champaign - 217/356-9606; Bloomington -309/828-5025; Chicago - 312/829-1987; website:http://www.bldd.com; e-mail: [email protected]
BRADLEY & BRADLEY — Architects, engineers andasbestos consultants. Rockford - 815/968-9631; web-site: http://www.bradleyandbradley.net/
CANNON DESIGN — Architects. Chicago - 312/960-8034; website: www.cannondesign.com; e-mail:[email protected]
CM ENGINEERING, INC. — Specializing in ultra effi-cient geo-exchange HVAC engineering solutions forschools, universities and commercial facilities.Columbia, MO - 573/874-9455; website: www.cmeng.com
CORDOGAN CLARK & ASSOCIATES — Architectsand engineers; Aurora - 630/896-4678; website:www.cordoganclark.com; e-mail: [email protected]
DESIGN ARCHITECTS, INC. — Architecture, engi-neering, planning and interior design. Hillsboro -217/532-5600; East St. Louis - 618/398-0890; Marion- 618/998-0075; Springfield - 217/787-1199; e-mail:[email protected]
DEWBERRY ARCHITECTS INC. — Architects, plan-ners, landscape architecture and engineers. Peoria -309/282-8000; Chicago - 312/660-8800; Elgin -847/695-5480; website: www.dewberry.com
DLA ARCHITECTS, LTD. — Architects specializing inpreK-12 educational design, including a full range ofarchitectural services; assessments, planning, feasi-bility studies, new construction, additions, remodel-ing, O&M and owner's rep services. Itasca - 847/742-4063; website: www.dla-ltd.com; e-mail: [email protected]
DLR GROUP, INC. — Educational facility design andmaster planning. Chicago - 312/382-9980; website:www.dlrgroup.com; e-mail: [email protected]
ERIKSSON ENGINEERING ASSOCIATES, LTD. —Consulting civil engineers and planners. Grayslake -847/223-4804
FANNING/HOWEY ASSOCIATES, INC. — Schoolplanning and design with a focus on K-12 schools.Park Ridge - 847/292-1039
FGM ARCHITECTS ENGINEERS, INC. — Architects.Oak Brook - 630/574-8300; Peoria - 309/669-0012;Mt. Vernon - 618/242-5620; O’Fallon - 618/624-3364;website: http://www.fgm-inc.com
GREENASSOCIATES, INC. — Architecture/construc-tion services. Deerfield - 847/317-0852, Pewaukee,WI - 262/746-1254; website: www.greenassociates.com; e-mail: [email protected]
HEALY, BENDER & ASSOCIATES, INC. — Archi -tects/Planners. Naperville, 630/904-4300; website:www.healybender.com; e-mail: [email protected]
IMAGE ARCHITECTS, INC. — Architects. Carbondale- 618/457-2128
JH2B ARCHITECTS — Architects. Kankakee - 815/933-5529
KENYON & ASSOCIATES ARCHITECTS —Complete architectural services for education. Peoria- 309/674-7121
LEGAT ARCHITECTS, INC. — Architects. Chicago -312/258-1555; Oak Brook - 630/990-3535; Wauke -gan - 847/263-3535; Crystal Lake - 815/477-4545
LZT ASSOCIATES, INC./LARSON & DARBY GROUPArchitecture, planning, engineering. Peoria - 309/673-3100; Rockford - 815/484/0739; St. Charles, MO -630/444-2112; website: www.larsondarby.com; e-mail: [email protected]
MECHANICAL SERVICES ASSOCIATES CORP. -HVAC, plumbing and electrical design. Crystal Lake -815/788-8901
MELOTTE-MORSE-LEONATTI, LTD — Architectural,industrial, hygiene and environmental service.Springfield - 217/789-9515
PCM+D — Provide a full range of architectural ser-vices including facility and feasibility studies, architec-tural design construction, consulting and related ser-vices. East Peoria - 309/694-5012
PERKINS+WILL — Architects; Chicago - 312/755-0770; website: www.perkinswill.com; e-mail: [email protected]
RICHARD L. JOHNSON ASSOCIATES, INC. —Architecture, educational planning. Rockford -815/398-1231
RUCKPATE ARCHITECTURE — Architects, engi-neers, interior design. Barrington - 847/381-2946;website: http://www.ruckpate.com; e-mail: [email protected]
SARTI ARCHITECTURAL GROUP, INC. —Architecture, engineering, life safety consulting, inte-rior design and asbestos consultants. Springfield -217/585-9111; e-mail: [email protected]
WIGHT & COMPANY — An integrated services firmwith solutions for the built environment. Darien -630/696-7000; website: http://www.wightco.com; e-mail: [email protected]
WM. B. ITTNER, INC. — Full service architectural firmserving the educational community since 1899.Fairview Heights - 618/624-2080
WRIGHT & ASSOCIATES, INC. — Architecture andconstruction management. Metamora - 309/367-2924
Building ConstructionBOVIS LEND LEASE — Construction Man -
agement/Program Management. Contact JohnDoherty. Chicago - 312/245-1393; website: www.bovislendlease.com; e-mail: [email protected]
CORE CONSTRUCTION — Professional constructionmanagement, design-build and general contractingservices. Morton - 309/266-9768; website: www.COREconstruct.com
FREDERICK QUINN CORPORATION — Constructionmanagement and general contracting. Addison -630/628-8500; webite: www.fquinncorp.com
HOLLAND CONSTRUCTION SERVICES, INC. — Fullservice Construction Management and GeneralContracting firm specializing in education facilities.Swansea - 618/277-8870
MANGIERI COMPANIES, INC. — Construction man-agement and general contractor capabilities. Peoria -309/688-6845
POETTKER CONSTRUCTION — Construction man-agement, design/build and general contracting ser-vices. Hillsboro - 217/532-2507
S.M. WILSON & CO. — Provides construction man-agement and general construction services to educa-tion, healthcare, commercial, retail and industrialclients. St. Louis, MO - 314/645-9595
THE GEORGE SOLLITT CONSTRUCTION COMPANY — Full-service construction manage-ment general contractor with a primary focus on edu-cational facilities. Wood Dale - 630/860-7333; web-site: www.sollitt.com; e-mail: [email protected]
TRANE — HVAC company specializing in design,build, and retrofit. Willowbrook - 630-734-6033
TURNER CONSTRUCTION COMPANY —Referendum assistance, conceptual and masterplanning, budget assistance or verification, partici-pant in panels, construction management and con-sulting. Chicago - 312/327-2860; Web Site: www.turn-erconstruction.com; Email: [email protected]
Computer SoftwareSOFTWARE TECHNOLOGY, INC. — Administrative
Software. Tremont - 888/776-3897; website: http://www.sti-k12.com; e-mail: [email protected]
JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013 / THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL 31
Environmental ServicesALPHA CONTROLS & SERVICES, LLC — Facility
Management Systems, Automatic TemperatureControls, Access Control Systems, Energy SavingSolutions; Sales, Engineering, Installation,Commissioning and Service. Rockford, Springfield,Champaign: toll-free 866-ALPHA-01 (866-252-4201);website: www.alphaACS.com; e-mail: [email protected]
CTS-CONTROL TECHNOLOGY & SOLUTIONS —Performance contracting, facility improvements and energy conservation projects. St. Louis, MO -636/230-0843; Chicago - 773/633-0691; website:www.thectsgroup.com; e-mail: [email protected]
ENERGY SYSTEMS GROUP — A comprehensiveenergy services and performance contracting com-pany providing energy, facility and financial solutions.Itasca - 630/773-7203
GRP MECHANICAL CO. INC. — Performance con-tracting, basic and comprehensive building renova-tions with a focus on energy and mechanical mainte-nance services. Bethalto - 618/779-0050
HONEYWELL, INC. — Controls, maintenance, energymanagement, performance contracting and security.St. Louis, Mo - 314-548-4136; Arlington Heights -847/391-3133; e-mail: [email protected]
IDEAL ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING, INC. —Asbestos and environmental services. Bloomington -309/828-4259
OCCUPATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTHSOLUTIONS, INC. (OEHS) — Industrial hygiene,microbiological evaluations and ergonomics.Chatham - 217/483-9296
RADON DETECTION SPECIALISTS — Commercialradon surveys. Burr Ridge - 800/244-4242; website:www.radondetection.net; e-mail: [email protected]
SECURITY ALARM SYSTEMS — Burglar and firealarms, video camera systems, door access systems,door locking systems, and alarm monitoring. Salem -618/548-5768
Financial ServicesAMERICAN FIDELITY EDUCATIONAL SERVICES —
Educational services specializing in Section 125compliance, 403 annuity administration, flexiblespending accounts, health savings accounts andhealth care reform education. Fairview Heights -314/504-1525
BERNARDI SECURITIES, INC. — Public finance con-sulting, bond issue services and referendum support.Fairview Heights - 618/206-4180; Chicago - 800/367-8757
BMO CAPITAL MARKETS/GKST, Inc. — Full servicebroker/dealer specializing in debt securities, includingmunicipal bonds, U.S. Treasury debt, agencies, andmortgage-backed securities. Chicago - 312/441-2601; website: www.bmo.com/industry/uspublicfi-nance/default.aspx; e-mail: [email protected]
EHLERS & ASSOCIATES — School bond issues; ref-erendum help; financial and enrollment studies. Lisle- 630/271-3330; website: http://www.ehlers-inc.com;e-mail: [email protected]
FIRST MIDSTATE, INC. — Bond issue consultants.Bloomington - 309/829-3311; e-mail: [email protected]
GORENZ AND ASSOCIATES, LTD. — Auditing andfinancial consulting. Peoria - 309/685-7621; website:http://www.gorenzcpa.com; e-mail: [email protected]
HUTCHINSON, SHOCKEY, ERLEY & COMPANY —Debt issuance, referendum planning, financial assis-tance. Chicago - 312/443-1566; website: www.hse-muni.com; e-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]
SPEER FINANCIAL, INC. — Financial planning andbond issue services. Chicago - 312/346-3700; website: http://www.speerfinancial.com; e-mail:[email protected]
STIFEL, NICOLAUS & COMPANY, INC. — Full ser-vice securities firm providing investment banking andadvisory services including strategic financial plan-ning; bond underwriting; and referendum and legisla-tive assistance - Edwardsville - 800/230-5151; e-mail:[email protected]
WILLIAM BLAIR & COMPANY — Bond issuance,financial advisory services. Chicago - 312/364-8955; e-mail: [email protected]
WINTRUST FINANCIAL — Financial services hold-ing company engaging in community banking,wealth management, commercial insurance premi-um financing, and mortgage origination. Willow -brook - 630/560-2120
Human Resource ConsultingBUSHUE HUMAN RESOURCES, INC. — Human
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InsuranceTHE SANDNER GROUP CLAIMS MANAGEMENT,
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Office EquipmentINTERIORS FOR BUSINESS, INC. — Classroom fur-
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Superintendent SearchesHAZARD, YOUNG, ATTEA & ASSOCIATES, LTD —
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Keith Hoskins,
Carmi, was named
the community’s
2012 Citizen of the
Year in October. An
employee of First
Bank, he is a long-
time member and
servant with the First Baptist Church
of Carmi as well as past president to
many organizations, including Kiwa-
nis. He is currently president of the
Carmi-White Co. CUSD 5 school board.
L. Goebel Pat-
ton, West Frankfort,
was honored on his
99th birthday by
friends and Lions
Club members dur-
ing a recent meeting. The former Frank-
fort CUSD 168 superintendent is the
only person ever named twice as The
Daily American’s Citizen of the Year.
Patton spent 52 years in education in
the West Frankfort school district and
was the first superintendent when the
unit district was formed. He was also
the first-ever chairman of Southern Illi-
nois Schools Credit Union.
Ellyn Ross, Buf-
falo Grove, received
the Buffalo Grove
Rotary Club’s annu-
al Bill Reid Award in
October. She has
served on the Aptak-
isic-Tripp CCSD 102
school board since 2002 and has vol-
unteered with Stevenson High School’s
community foundation since 2005. The
award was named in memory of Reid,
a longtime teacher and assistant prin-
cipal at Elk Grove High School.
32 THE ILLINOIS SCHOOL BOARD JOURNAL / JANUARY-FEBRUARY 2013
Milestones
M I L E S T O N E S
Achievements
In memoriamWilliam J. Beck, 85, died October 18,
2012. He formerly served on the
Arlington Heights SD 25 school board
and as its president for two years.
Gordon F. Blackert, 86, died Novem-
ber 2, 2012. He had served as a
Prophetstown school board mem-
ber for more than 20 years.
Dick Boynton, 91, died November 15,
2012. He had been a member of the
Pleasant Plains CUSD 8 school board
for nine years.
Frederick W. Cline, 88, died Septem-
ber 28, 2012. He was a former Abing-
don CUSD 17 school board member.
Don Craig, 77, died September 23, 2012.
He previously served on the Pinck-
neyville CHSD school board for
six years.
Guye Dedert, 63, died September 29,
2012. He was a former Quincy SD
172 school board member.
Gary Ray Eathington, 71, died Octo-
ber 9, 2012. He served on the Avon
CUSD 176 school board for 14 years.
Darleen P. Friedlund, 83, died Novem-
ber 7, 2012. She was a past mem-
ber of the Round Lake CUSD 116
school board and had worked for
the district as a teacher’s aide and
administrative assistant until she
retired in 1990.
Richard D. “Dick” Girard, 67, died
November 16, 2012. He was a for-
mer Elwood CCSD 203 board mem-
ber.
Robert D. “R.D.” Gray, 87, died Octo-
ber 12, 2012. He served 14½ years
on several Hamilton County school
boards, including Broughton, Dale
and Hamilton County Unit 10.
Robert W. Harnish, 89, died November
1, 2012. He was a member of the
Manchester and North Boone school
boards from 1961 to 1972.
Rev. Leonard “Len” Huff, 83, died
November 6, 2012. A Methodist min-
ister, he was a former member of the
Mt. Carroll school board.
Joann E. Jantze, 84, died September 27,
2012. She had served as a PTA pres-
ident, and later as a Riverside SD 96
school board member for two terms.
Louie H. Karlau, 91, died October 20,
2012. He previously served on the
St. Joseph-Ogden CHSD 305 school
board.
Harold “Hal” Kottwitz, 82, died Octo-
ber 4, 2012. He taught 35 years in
public schools and served three terms
as a member of the Mattoon CUSD
2 school board, for a total of 13 years,
including three years as president.
Thomas W. Kozien, 70, died Septem-
ber 28, 2012. He was a member of
the Fremont District 79 school board
and former board member for Unit
District 105, Elmhurst.
continued on page 26
Question: Everyone is talking
about the new teacher evalu-
ation process. What is the school
board’s role in this process and in
education reform?
Answer: The school board’s role
in the new evaluation system and
education reform is one of governance
of the school district, with an elevated
and focused obligation for ensuring
student growth. This means that the
board must identify the district’s ends
in accordance with the reform mea-
sures and monitor its progress.
Both functions — identifying dis-
trict ends and monitoring district per-
formance — are already reflected in
IASB’s Foundational Principles of
Effective Governance.
The Performance Evaluation
Reform Act (PERA) became Illinois
law on January 1, 2010, and was fol-
lowed by education reform legisla-
tion that took effect June 13, 2011.
PERA and the reform measures pri-
marily concern the terms and con-
ditions of teacher and principal
employment.
Beginning with this school year
(2012-13), all principals and assis-
tant principals must be evaluated by
trained observers, often the super-
intendent, and the evaluations must
include data and indicators of stu-
dent growth as a significant factor.
Principals, assistant principals
and teachers must be evaluated using
four rating categories: excellent; pro-
ficient; needs improvement; or unsat-
isfactory. Teacher evaluations also
must be conducted by trained
observers, usually the principal.
Beginning on a district’s PERA
implementation date, teacher eval-
uations must include data and indi-
cators of student growth as a significant
factor. The schedule for using PERA
evaluations is staggered over the next
three and a half years. For most dis-
tricts, the deadline is the 2016-2017
school year.
It has been the board’s respon-
sibility to evaluate the superinten-
dent and that process did not change.
As before, the board must employ a
superintendent under either a one-
year contract or a performance-based
contract for a period not exceeding
five years. The performance-based
contract must include the goals and
indicators of student performance
and academic improvement. Mean-
ingful goals and indicators are impor-
tant tools for measuring the
superintendent’s performance.
The board also must review eval-
uation information in order to be
informed as to whether principals and
staff members are being effectively
evaluated, and it must dismiss staff
based on inadequate performance.
Mandated board member train-
ing is another major component of
education reform. A board member
elected after June 13, 2011 must com-
plete the training within the first year
of his or her first term. In addition,
a board member must complete PERA
training in order to vote on whether
to retain or dismiss a teacher when
the district uses the expedited process
called Optional Alternative Evalua-
tion Dismissal.
Currently, IASB is being told that
it will need to submit an application
to be an approved provider for this
training and, per ISBE, IASB may not
submit the application until March
and May 2014, along with anyone else
who wishes to be approved to pro-
vide this training.
Once IASB’s application is
approved, the Association will begin
to deliver the training. Few, if any,
districts will need this training prior
to 2014.
Other important aspects of PERA
and education reform are explained
in the free online overview “PERA
Overview for School Board Members”
on the IASB website at http://iasb.
com/law/PERAoverview.pdf.
Melinda Selbee,
IASB General
Counsel, answers
the question for
this issue.
Board has its rolein teacher evaluations
by Melinda Selbee
A S K T H E S T A F F
2921 Baker DriveSpringfield, Illinois 62703-5929
Address Service Requested
NON-PROFITPRST STANDARD
US POSTAGE PAIDILLINOIS
ASSOCIATION OFSCHOOL BOARDS
www.iasb.com
“I believe that the future of edu-cation calls for change in the form ofentirely new kinds of learning envi-ronments.”
Darryl Rosser, CEO, Sagus Internationalfurniture company, and education reform thought leader, “Change visions: Reconnecting,” Shift Ed
“When we are too certain of ouropinions, we run the risk of ignoringany evidence that conflicts with ourviews.”
Diane Ravitch, educational historian, The Death and Life of the Great American School System
“Too many people expect won-ders from democracy, when the mostwonderful thing of all is just havingit.”
Walter Winchell, American radio andnewspaper gossip columnist, 1897-1972
“Education, more than any sin-gle force, will mold the citizen of thefuture. The classroom — not the trench— is the frontier of freedom.”
Lyndon B. Johnson, 36th U.S. president, 1908-1973
“When I give a minister an order,I leave it to him to find the meansto carry it out.”
Napoleon Bonaparte, French military and political leader, 1769-1821
“Quality is never an accident; itis always the result of high intention,sincere effort, intelligent direction
and skillful execution.”William A. Foster, World War II Marine war hero in the Battle of Okinawa, 1917-45
“A leader takes people where theywant to go. A great leader takes peo-ple where they don’t necessarily wantto go, but ought to be.”
Rosalynn Carter, 39th First Lady of the United States, 1927-
“My old grandmother always usedto say, summer friends will meltaway like summer snows, but winterfriends are friends forever.”
George R.R. Martin, American writer, 1948
“A good leader takes a little morethan his share of the blame, a littleless than his share of the credit.”
Arnold H. Glasgow, U.S. businessman and writer, 1905-98
“Books will soon beobsolete in the publicschools. Scholars willbe instructed throughthe eye. It is possible toteach every branch of
human knowledge withthe motion picture. Our
school system will becompletely changedinside of 10 years.”
Thomas A. Edison, American inventor, 1847-1931
IASB Centennial
It’s time for everyone, except Pandora, to clean out their desk.”
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