District 205 School Board Will Look at Exactly How Far Behind the State is in Reimbursements

Elmhurst Unit District 205 School Board will hold its monthly business meeting at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 24, at the administration building, 162 S. York St. The meeting will follow a closed session at 7 p.m. to approve minutes from Dec. 13, Jan. 10 and Jan. 17.

First item of business at the open meeting will be a resolution honoring teachers Donna Dewar of Conrad Fischer School, and Elizabeth Leidolf, Megan Mehilos and Jessica Weldon from York High School, who have achieved certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards. The designation, which is the highest in the teaching profession, is achieved through rigorous assessment according to NBPTS standards. Nationally certified teachers act as spokespersons, mentor other teachers and help reform education policy, restructure curriculum and pilot innovative teaching strategies.

Also honored will be York Industrial Technology Department Chairman Ken Ross, who was named Educator of the Year by the Construction Industry Service Corp. A formal presentation will be made at CISCO's annual meeting Jan. 27 in Oak Brook.

The board will then hear public comment. Members of the community are invited to speak for up to three minutes on any topic.

The board will then recap previous discussions about hiring an insurance broker. The board is looking to enter into a contract with Corporate Benefits Consultants Inc. to help the control increasing costs related to employee health benefits. The consultant would analyze claims data, review levels of coverage, negotiate with vendors, recommend plan modifications, facilitate wellness efforts, assist with billing and more. This item will be up for approval later in the agenda.

The next presentation will be on the status of state reimbursements. The state of Illinois owes a grand total of $2.4 million in delinquent reimbursements to District 205.

The board will approve minutes from previous meetings, and hear an update from the Performance Management Committee and the Finance and Operations Committee.

In addition to personnel and financial reports, the superintendent's consent agenda will include approval of donations to Sandburg Middle School. The PTA is donating $1,200 class gift (proceeds from the eighth-grade dance) and an additional $1,700 to put toward the purchase of a scoreboard, which costs $4,535.

The consent agenda also includes adoption of a number of policy changes.