East Central Reporter

Casey Westfield Community Unit School District C-4 Board of Education met March 17.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

Call to order at 7:00 P.M.

1. Roll call.

The Casey-Westfield Board of Education met in regular session at 7:00 P.M. on Monday, March 17, 2025 at the Unit Office, 401 E. Main, Casey, IL. Upon roll call, members present were Clement, Fain, Gelb, Sharp, Huddlestun, and Todd. Members absent- Hickox. Administrators present were Kacie Rhoads, Jim Sullivan, Mike Shackelford, and Audra Taylor

2. Recognize visitors.

The following visitors were recognized: Mike Fouty, Chelsea Taylor, Jennifer Harris, Tanya Duniphan, and Kendall King

3. Act upon approval of the following consent agenda items:

A. Minutes of the regular meeting of February 24, 2025;

B. Review of the financial and budgetary reports and approval of the current invoices for payment;

C. Destruction of the verbatim record of those meetings 18 months and older as authorized by Board Policy 220 and 220-E1;

Motion by Sharp, seconded by Todd to approve the consent agenda. Upon roll call, members voting yea were: Huddlestun, Clement, Fain, Gelb, Todd, and Sharp. The President declared the motion carried.

4. Act upon the approval of the purchase of a replacement server at the Jr/Sr HS.

Mr. Shackelford reported that the current server at the Jr/Sr HS is 9 years old, has lost 16gb of memory, running at 95% capacity, and we are getting multiple error codes from it each day. It could fail at any time. The replacement would come from Quality Networking Solutions at a cost of $19,976.00.

Motion by Clement, seconded by Gelb. Upon roll call, members voting yea were: Todd, Sharp, Huddlestun, Clement, Fain, and Gelb. The President declared the motion carried

5. Consideration and action on a Resolution providing for the issuance of General Obligation School Bonds of the District in an amount not to exceed $4,500,000 for the purposes of altering and reconstructing school buildings and purchasing and installing equipment therein for fire prevention and safety, energy conservation and school security purposes and in amount not to exceed $900,000 for the purpose of refunding certain outstanding Bonds of the District, providing for the levy of a direct annual tax sufficient to pay the principal and interest on said bonds, and authorizing the sale of said bonds to the purchaser thereof.

Kendall King of King’s Financial reported that 3 local banks, First Neighbor Bank, Preferred Bank, and Casey State Bank have agreed to participate in the bond issue at a very good rate. The direct placement with local banks means the District will not pay many of the underwriting and administrative fees associated with a public sale. Due to minimal existing debt, we were able to structure repayment to retain a low payment schedule and ensure the current tax rate for bond and interest will remain constant or decrease over the term. The Board expressed appreciation to all 3 local banks for their participation in the project, and the fact that this arrangement will ensure that local taxpayer money will remain in the local economy.

Motion by Sharp, seconded by Todd to adoption the bond issue resolution. Upon roll call, members voting yea were: Huddlestun, Clement, Fain, Gelb, Todd, and Sharp. The President declared the motion carried.

6. Act upon the approval of the FY 2026 Consolidated District Plan.

Motion by Clement, seconded by Gelb to approve the FY26 Consolidated District Plan. Upon roll call, members voting yea were: Todd, Sharp, Huddlestun, Clement, Fain, and Gelb. The president declared the motion carried.

7. Administrator Reports

Jr/Sr Hs Principal, Jim Sullivan, reported that Jr. High students are working hard in preparation for the upcoming state IAR testing on March 19-21. The Digital Literacy class is starting a project where they will learn to investigate their digital footprint. The Greenhouse is looking great and we hope to open it after Easter. The HS Student Council will be hosting a community wide Blood Drive on April 30. National Honor Society induction will be March 20 at 7:00 pm. The IHSA has taken action regarding the issue of non-boundaried, private schools competing in the lower classes. It has instituted a 1.65 multiplier for private schools who have won a sectional semi-final or have made the football playoff. The multiplier will remain in place for 3 years and cannot be appealed for 3 years.

Monroe Principal, Kacie Rhoads, reported the Spring Family Reading night was a success. The Read-A-Thon ended last Friday. Students are reading more than ever, with a total of 41,272 minutes read and $5,255.00 raised for the Library. The FFA Tractor Parade was a huge hit among the students. The Daddy/Daughter Dance was a huge success. We had 150 girls attend. IAR testing will be the week of March 24.

Superintendent, Mike Shackelford, reported that GRP/Wegman has confirmed that they will be replacing the HVAC in the 1972 addition at Monroe over Easter break. With Spring coming, the likelihood of additional snow days is minimal. The School Calendar has been updated and, with no further snow days, the tentative last day of school for students is projected to be Thursday, May 22, with Teacher Institute on May 23. The Illinois General Assembly is busy with committee work and hearings. One bill of consequence in the Education Policy committee is HB 1237, the School Mascot bill. If passed, this bill would ban Illinois school districts from using Native American mascots and imagery for their logo. This bill has come up many times in the past, but the sponsor of this one seems intent on gaining traction with it. State Representative Adam Niemerg is on the committee hearing the proposal. Mr. Shackelford recommended a call or email to the representative letting him know where we stand on the issue. Members of the public can also submit witness slips by accessing the committee schedule on the ILGA.gov web site.

8. Addendum

9. Act upon approval to adjourn to closed session under c1 (employment), c2 (collective bargaining/salaries) and c21 (discussion closed meeting minutes) of section 5 ILCS 120/1 et seq. of the Illinois Open Meetings Act.

Motion by Todd, seconded by Sharp to adjourn to closed session. Upon roll call, members voting yea were: Huddlestun, Clement, Fain, Gelb, Todd, and Sharp. The President declared the motion carried at 7:31 pm.

10. Act upon approval to reconvene to regular session.

Motion by Sharp, seconded by Clement to reconvene to regular session. Upon roll call, members voting yea were: Fain, Gelb, Todd, Sharp, Huddlestun, and Clement. The President declared the motion carried at 8:08 pm.

11. Act upon the following consent agenda items:

A. Act upon approval of closed session minutes of February 24, 2025.

B. Act upon recommendation to keep closed session minutes closed

12. Act upon approval of employment recommendations.

A. The Board approved contracts for Jim Sullivan as Jr/Sr HS Principal; Dalton McFarland as Jr/Sr Hs Asst. Principal; Kacie Rhoads as Monroe Elementary Principal; and Audra Taylor as Monroe Elementary Asst. Principal for the 2025- 2026 school year.

B. The Board approve the rehiring of all non-tenured, certified staff for the 2025- 2026 school year.

13. Addendum

14. Act upon approval to adjourn.

Motion by Sharp, seconded by Todd to adjourn the meeting. Upon roll call, members voting yea were: Huddlestun, Clement, Fain, Gelb, Todd, and Sharp. The President declared the meeting adjourned at 8:11 pm.

https://core-docs.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/documents/asset/uploaded_file/1373/Casey_Westfield/5435008/Tentative_Meeting_Minutes_March_17__2025.pdf