Charleston Community Unit School District No. 1 Board Education Met June 16.
Here is the minutes provided by the board:
The Board of Education of Community Unit School District No. 1, Coles and Cumberland Counties, Illinois met in regular session at the Administration Building – 410 West Polk Avenue, Charleston, Illinois 61920
At 6:31pm, President Coe called the meeting to order. President Coe appointed Board Member Eva Ritchey to serve as Secretary Pro-Tem and asked for roll call.
The following members were present:
Jason Coe, President
Scott Clarke, Vice President
Charles Jarrell, Treasurer
Brian Gough
Eva Ritchey
Brandon Wright
The following member was absent:
Susan Daniels, Secretary
The following staff members were present:
Todd J. Vilardo, Superintendent of Schools
Chad Burgett, Assistant Superintendent for Business Services
Kristen Holly, Assistant Superintendent of Student Services
Genia Lang, Recording Secretary
Visitors _8_ and _0_ Members of the Press
Under Public, Staff Comments or Questions, Written Communications, President Coe asked if there were requests to address the Board of Education. There were no requests received.
Under the Consent Agenda, President Coe asked to remove two recommendations from the consent agenda under Item VII employment to include resignations from the CHS Varsity Boys’ Basketball Coach and the Junior Varsity Boys’ Basketball Coach to discuss in closed session and asked if there were any other board members who would like other consent agenda items pulled for discussion in closed session. No other requests were received.
Dr. Vilardo reviewed the items under Consent Agenda.
Consent Agenda: Standard Items
• Approve the minutes of the Regular Board Meeting of May 19, 2021.
• Approve the bills and payrolls for the month of May 2021.
• Approve the Activity Fund Accounts for the CUSD #1 attendance centers, period ending May 2021.
• Approve the summary of revenues and expenditures year to date for the period ending May 2021, as presented by Assistant Superintendent Chad Burgett.
Consent Agenda: New Business
• Approve the assignments of paraprofessional positions for the 2021-22 school year.
• Approve the assignments of the District School Health Care Professionals for the 2021-22 school year.
• Approve a consultant agreement with Mara Hildebrand to provide part-time assistance as the District IEP Medical Review Registered Nurse during the 2021-22 school year. This employment was contingent upon the receipt of all information required for employment.
Consent Agenda: Employment
• Accept a letter of resignation from Jena Borah as a Title 1 teacher at Jefferson Elementary School, effective 6/7/21.
• Accept a letter of resignation from Kristin McDevitt as a School Social Worker at Mark Twain and Ashmore Elementary Schools, effective 6/30/21.
• Accept a letter of resignation from Scot Turner as a 1:1 special education paraprofessional for student #81712 at Jefferson Elementary School, effective 6/4/21.
• Accept a letter of resignation from Alisha Workman as a special education paraprofessional at Charleston High School, effective 6/7/21.
• Accept a letter of resignation from Cecelia Brinker as the Assistant Girls’ Basketball Coach at Charleston High School, effective at the end of the 2020-21 school year.
• Accept a letter of resignation from Josh Garrett as the Boys’ Varsity Soccer Coach at Charleston High School, effective at the end of the 2020-21 school year.
• Accept a letter of resignation from Molly Bickford as the 7th grade Girls’ Basketball Coach at Charleston Middle School, effective at the end of the 2020-21 school year.
• Accept a letter of resignation from Larry Sigler as the 8th grade Girls’ Basketball Coach at Charleston Middle School, effective at the end of the 2020-21 school year.
• Approve the voluntary transfer of Oliver Killman into the position as a full time Band Instructor at Jefferson Elementary School, beginning with the 2021-22 school year.
• Approve the voluntary transfer of Jennifer White into the position as a Title 1 instructor at Carl Sandburg Elementary School, beginning with the 2021-22 school year.
• Approve the voluntary transfer of Cathy Moses into the position as a program paraprofessional at Charleston High School, beginning with the 2021-22 school year.
• Approve the employment of Benjamin Zuber as a full time Business teacher at Charleston High School, beginning with the 2021-22 school year. This employment was contingent upon the receipt of all information required for employment.
• Approve the employment of Sarah Brown as a classroom teacher (assigned to 2nd grade) at Carl Sandburg Elementary School, beginning with the 2021-22 school year. This employment was contingent upon the receipt of all information required for employment.
• Approve the employment of Ellen Homann as a classroom teacher (assigned to 6th grade) at Jefferson Elementary School, beginning with the 2021-22 school year. This employment was contingent upon the receipt of all information required for employment.
• Approve the employment of Ashley Oliver as a Title 1 paraprofessional at Charleston Middle School, beginning with the 2021-22 school year. This employment was contingent upon the receipt of all information required for employment.
• Approve the employment of Kaylee Hampton as a School Psychologist, beginning with the 2022-23 school year. This employment was contingent upon the receipt of all information required for employment.
President Coe recommended that the Board of Education approve items under IV through VII inclusive on the Consent Agenda. Dr. Clarke moved and Mr. Gough seconded the motion.
On roll call vote:
AYE: Clarke, Gough, Jarrell, Wright, Coe, Ritchey
NAY: none Abstain: none
Motion carried
Under the Superintendent’s Report: TIPS Program Presentation
Dr. Vilardo reported that over the past four years Charleston CUSD 1 has used County School Facility Tax revenue to address facilities needs throughout the district. Numerous repairs and upgrades to HVAC units have been made in every school, but problems continue to persist. With the availability of Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER II and ESSER III) grant funding, now is the time to further address HVAC needs. He stated that at its regular meeting in May, the Board of Education was provided with an overview of energy performance contracting as one way to address HVAC improvements. Dr. Vilardo said that district officials continue to explore options to arrive at a best fit for how our district should approach such expenditures. TIPS is another approach available to governmental agencies such as public school districts. An acronym for The Interlocal Purchasing System, TIPS would provide for cost savings through a bidding and vetting process already completed by a not for profit government entity. To help district officials better understand energy performance contracts, representatives from TIPS and The Upchurch Group were in attendance to provide an overview of the TIPS program and field questions from the Board of Education.
At that time, Dr. Vilardo invited Randy Ramey, TIPS Mid-West Region Program Manager, and Andrew Ewing and Randy Etnire from The Upchurch Group to present.
Mr. Ramey provided background on TIPS. He stated that TIPS is a national purchasing cooperative offering competitively solicited contacts to education government and nonprofit agencies, saving both time and money. He stated that TIPS provides a proven, streamlined process that eliminates the purchasing stress for members, as they do the bidding and background checks on vendors. TIPS has the legislative authority to establish contracts for government and education agencies nationwide. The district would have the ability to bring local companies in along with national contracting at a reduced rate and keeping compliant with the law. Mr. Ramey said that TIPS works with districts and architects to offer the best products, companies and best value.
Andrew Ewing of The Upchurch Company stated that their company will work with TIPS and district as the design engineer on site. They would assist the district in any energy saving grants and continue to be on site to ensure work is going as planned.
Dr. Vilardo stated that Mr. Ewing and Mr. Etnire are on site regularly checking on work in progress.
After all questions were answered, Dr. Vilardo thanked Mr. Ramey, Mr. Ewing, and Mr. Etnire for their presentation. He said that he anticipates presenting a recommendation at the July Board meeting to pursue the HVAC projects through ESSER grant revenues.
Dr. Clarke moved and Mr. Jarrell seconded a motion that the Superintendent’s Report was received by the Board of Education.
On roll call vote:
AYE: Clarke, Jarrell, Gough, Wright, Coe, Ritchey
NAY: none Abstain: none
Motion carried
Under Old Business: Adoption/FY21 Budget Amendment
The Board of Education received a report on the proposed FY21 budget amendment from Assistant Superintendent for Business Services Chad Burgett at the regular board meeting held on May 19, 2021. The budget amendment was placed on file for at least thirty days and the hearing for the budget amendment was conducted at 6:15pm, on June 16, 2021. After adoption, the budget amendment will be filed with the proper authorities with the required certification. It was the recommendation of the superintendent that the Board of Education adopt a resolution to approve the FY21 budget amendment for Community Unit School District No. 1. Dr. Clarke moved and Mr. Gough seconded the motion.
On roll call vote:
AYE: Clarke, Gough, Jarrell, Wright, Coe, Ritchey
NAY: none Abstain: none
Motion carried
Adoption/Revised School Board Policy 5:30
The revised job description for the position of Instructional Coach has been on file for the required layover period. It was the recommendation of the superintendent that the Board of Education adopt the revised job description for the position of Instructional Coach as presented. Mr. Wright moved and Dr. Clarke seconded the motion.
On roll call vote:
AYE: Wright, Clarke, Gough, Jarrell, Coe, Ritchey
NAY: none Abstain: none
Motion carried
Under New Business: Contract Renewal/Property/Casualty Insurance Program The school district has contracted with Bushue Human Resources in Effingham, Illinois, to provide insurance consulting services with the district. The school district Property and Casualty Insurance program will expire on June 30, 2021. It was the recommendation of the superintendent that the Board of Education approve the renewal coverage of all Property/Casualty, School Board Legal/Fiduciary Liability, Auto/Umbrella, Worker’s Compensation, and Student Accident Insurance with First Mid Insurance Group with Prairie State Insurance Cooperative (PSIC) as the carrier. Inception effective July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2022 in the amount of $321,572. Mr. Wright moved and Dr. Clarke seconded the motion.
On roll call vote:
AYE: Wright, Clarke, Gough, Jarrell, Coe, Ritchey
NAY: none Abstain: none
Motion carried
At 7:28pm, President Coe recommended that the Board of Education adjourn into closed session to consider information regarding appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees of the District or legal counsel for the District, including hearing testimony on a complaint lodged against an employee or against legal counsel for the District to determine its validity. 5 ILCS 120/2/(c)(1).
Mr. Gough moved and Dr. Clarke seconded the motion.
President Coe stated that action would follow closed session.
On roll call vote:
AYE Gough, Clarke, Jarrell, Wright, Coe, Ritchey
NAY: none Abstain: none
Motion carried
At 9:00pm, Dr. Clarke made a motion to reconvene from closed session. Mr. Gough seconded the motion.
On roll call vote:
AYE: Clarke, Gough, Jarrell, Wright, Coe, Ritchey
NAY: none Abstain: none
Motion carried
It was the recommendation of the superintendent that the Board of Education accept letters of resignation from Brad Oakley as the Boys’ Varsity Basketball Coach and from Randy Harpster as the Boys’ Junior Varsity Basketball Coach at Charleston High School, effective at the end of the 2020-21 school year. Mr. Gough moved and Dr. Clarke seconded the motion.
On roll call vote:
AYE Clarke, Titus, Gough, Jarrell, Ritchey, Daniels, Coe
NAY: Gough, Clarke, Jarrell, Wright, Coe, Ritchey Abstain: none
Motion failed
At 9:02pm, Mr. Gough moved and Mr. Jarrell seconded the motion to adjourn from the Regular Board meeting.
On roll call vote:
AYE: Gough, Jarrell, Clarke, Wright, Coe, Ritchey
NAY: none Abstain: none
Motion carried
https://core-docs.s3.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/1410465/06.16.21_Regular_Board_Minutes.pdf
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