Glenbard News for Oct. 15, 2024

In this issue:

• Virtual financial aid FSA ID workshop set for Oct. 22
• East to present Disney’s Encanto in Spanish today
• Highlights of Oct. 14 board meeting

Virtual financial aid FSA ID workshop set for Oct. 22
Glenbard District 87 will hold a district-wide virtual FSA ID workshop at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 22. The FSA ID is the first step in completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), and is the creation of a username and password. The FSA ID is only required for the FAFSA, not the Alternative Application. The FAFSA is an Illinois graduation requirement for all seniors. The revised FAFSA opens in December 2024. Spanish speaking ISAC representatives will be available for assistance.

Join the workshop at this link.

For more information, families may reach out to their child’s school counselor if they have any questions. 

East to present Disney’s Encanto in Spanish today
In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Glenbard East Theatre department is producing a free performance of Disney’s Encanto in Spanish.

The 3rd-annual Spanish-language play will be presented today (October 15) at 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. in Biester Auditorium at Glenbard East. Admission is free.

East students will perform in this original 30-minute production.  

Highlights of Oct. 14 board meeting
Board Highlights feature a brief description of the action items and discussion items on the meeting agenda. Board Highlights do not replace minutes. The minutes are approved by the board and posted after the next regularly scheduled board meeting. Present: Margaret DeLaRosa, Kermit Eby, Bob Friend, Hetal Lee, Rosemarie Montanez, Martha Mueller and Jim Shannon.

SUPERINTENDENT’S REPORT:

1. October is National Principals Month. Also, in Illinois, the week of October 20 is Principals Week, and October 25 is Principals Day. These dates recognize principals and the Illinois Principals Association for all they do to help students learn and succeed. We thank our principals for their exceptional work and selfless dedication to our students, faculty, staff and the community. We appreciate their leadership, knowledge, empathy and collaborative spirit.

2. We continue researching safety and security initiatives for our high schools. Our Threat Assessment Team has broken into four subgroups: device detection, student items, active supervision, and personnel. Each subgroup has been meeting with colleagues, vendors, and experts in each of these areas. Additionally, we shared a safety survey with students, staff and families to gain a better understanding of their perceptions related to campus safety. Upon conclusion of their work, the Threat Assessment Team will provide a recommendation for short-term and long-term safety and security improvements.

3. Congratulations to our 32 students who were named commended students in the National Merit Scholarship program. Commended students are among the top 5 percent of the 1.5 million students who entered the competition by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. Congratulations to the following students: Glenbard East students Mackenzie Fodrey, Greagoir Gannon, Olivia Gomez, Gavin MacDonald, Desmond McClenahan and Herminia Zacatzi; Glenbard North students Corvin Dang, Julianna Easton, Sawyer Harle, Aarib Mohammad, Rene Pederson and Abigail Stamborski; Glenbard South students Grace Bittlingmaier, Anne Boguslavsky, Abigail Donaker, Andrew Lullo, Namit Mehta, Kaitlyn Urbanowicz and Haley Wong; and Glenbard West students Jacob Blew, Chloe Brondyke, Charles Clifford, Liam Grady, William Lafontaine, Camden Marschand, Samantha Moorhead, Blake Noble, Nawra Shaik, Amy Tran, Dylan Vlach, Adeline Williams and Aleksander Wrobel.

4. All four of our schools have been named to College Board’s AP School Honor Roll for the 2023-24 school year, and Glenbard East, Glenbard South and Glenbard West also earned the AP Access Award. Schools can be named to the AP School Honor Roll based on criteria that reflect a commitment to increasing college-going culture, providing opportunities for students to earn college credit and maximizing college readiness. The AP Access Award recognizes schools that demonstrate a commitment to equitable access to advanced coursework. Schools earn the AP Access Award if the percentage of AP exam takers who are underrepresented?minority and/or low-income students mirrors the school’s overall student demographics.

5. Congratulations to Glenbard East Assistant Principal for Athletics D’Wayne Bates on being re-elected to the Illinois High School Association Board of Directors. We are proud of Mr. Bates and very appreciative of his leadership at the local, state and national levels.

6. Congratulations to Glenbard West student Connor Rowley on qualifying for the IHSA boys golf state final tournament. Head coach is Paul Hezlett.

7. We encourage community members to attend the following GPS Parent Series events. The link to each webinar is available at GPSparentseries.org.

• October 17 at noon and 7 p.m. – Rescuing Our Teens: 8 Solutions to Our Crisis of Disaffected Youth
• October 22 at noon and 7 p.m. – Teen Anxiety and School Anxiety: Dealing with Resistance and Refusal
• October 28 at 6 p.m. – Great Read with College of DuPage, “Gods of Jade and Shadow”. In-person only at SRC Room 2000 at COD.

8. Congratulations to our 83 students who earned academic recognition as part of the College Board National Recognition Programs:

      National African American Recognition Program honorees: Glenbard East students Rahma Ahmed, Romello Jones and Agnes Ruaika; Glenbard North students Amani Carter, Julianna Easton and Madelyn Sierra; Glenbard South students Aniyah Nelson and Oladeji Solola; and Glenbard West students Rhiannon Jones, Zekhi Joryman and Tobias Montilla.

      National Hispanic Recognition Program honorees: Glenbard East students Fernando Amezcua, Alexander Cook, Kevin Galeas Solis, Jay Garcia, Ashley Godinez, Olivia Gomez, Johnpavel Maldonado Melchor, Luis Munoz, Brandon Peralta, Alicia Rose Pina, Xavier Rios, Daniel Torres, Giovanni Urquiza, Angel Valerio and Herminia Zacatzi; Glenbard North students Julianna Easton, Wynter Gomez, Madelyn Sierra and Abigail Woitas; Glenbard South students Adam Berntsen, Nathan Diaz, Milan Djurcic, Yeira Gonzalez, Laura Lozano, Justin Olague and Isabella Serrano; and Glenbard West students Sergio Arredondo, Lauren Escalante, Grayson Ganser, Ava Garzaro, Ryan Gritis, Angelina Hernandez, Lucas Krynen, William Lafontaine, Declan McCarthy, Tobias Montilla, Sebastian Reynaga, Ayden Rodriguez, Berenice Sanchez and Jaciel Villanueva.

      National Indigenous Recognition Program honorees: Glenbard East student Imad Abu-Ghallous; Glenbard North students Zachary Ackerman and Madelyn Sierra; and Glenbard West students William Lafontaine and Tobias Montilla.

      National First-Generation Recognition Program honorees: Glenbard East students Fernando Amezcua, Anthony Badalamenti, Stephanie Cao, Rachel Daciolas, Kevin Galeas Solis, Jay Garcia, Ashley Godinez, Victor Hanson, Luis Munoz, Emily Nguyen, Brandon Peralta, Jack Rylands III, Anna Strag, Daniel Torres, Giovanni Urquiza and Herminia Zacatzi; Glenbard North students Asma Ali, Tu Bui, Corvin Dang, Wynter Gomez, Huzaifa Khan, Kayla Lamontagna, Vivian Luong, Dhruv S. Patel, Rene Pederson, Madelyn Sierra and Hogan Vo; Glenbard South students Briana Coppolino, Simona Georgieva, Asma Irfanullah, Ngun Mang, Diesel Oleksak and Isabella Serrano; and Glenbard West students Sergio Arredondo, Zacheriah Kando, Serena Malhan, Nikolina Mrkovic, Tina Nguyen, Ayushi Patel, Ishrat Patel, Aarogya Regmi, Berenice Sanchez, Eishaal Sodager, Kasper Szymczak, Amy Tran, Mila Vukmirovic and Jenna Woollard.

9. On September 9, 2024, the district received a Freedom of Information Act request from Quadient, Luke Gaffney, requesting a copy of the postage equipment lease or purchase agreement for the mailing equipment used at all Glenbard District 87 locations with a postage meter. The district has responded to this request.

10. On September 19, 2024, the district received a Freedom of Information Act request from the DuPage Policy Journal, Owen Wang, requesting a copy of the district’s student evacuation plan in the case of an active shooting. The district has responded to this request.

11. On October 1, 2024, the district received a Freedom of Information Act request from Donna Skibbe, requesting student records. The district has responded to this request.

THE BOARD APPROVED:

– the September 23, 2024 regular meeting minutes; and destruction of closed session audio recordings from October 24, 2022 – March 20, 2023. 

– the following personnel items:

SUPPORT STAFF – EMPLOYMENT:

Name                         School/Position                                            FTE          Effective Date

Abraham, Asha        South / Special Education Assistant         87.5%               10/07/2024

Heise, Edward          West / Special Education Assistant          87.5%               09/23/2024

Hoder, Thomas        Transitions / Special Education Asst.      81.25%              10/01/2024

SUPPORT STAFF – POSITION CHANGE:

Name                         School/Position                                            FTE          Effective Date

Baez, Juan Damien DO / Data Operations Analyst                     100%               11/01/2024

Lawicki, Anthony      West / Study Hall-BIA Supervisor               100%               09/09/2024

Mowinski, Michael    East / Special Education Assistant            87.5%               09/30/2024

Nogulich, Nicolaus   DO / Senior Data Operations Analyst       100%               10/05/2024

Romero, Lluvia         South / Attendance Office Clerk                 100%               09/30/2024

Sharma, Chetna       DO / Admin. Asst. to Special Education    100%               10/02/2024

Traynor, Melissa      East / Building Registrar                              100%               10/14/2024

LICENSED STAFF – LEAVES OF ABSENCE:

Name                         School/Position                                           Term                     Reason

Yudys, Michelle        North / Special Education Teacher     11/06 – 11/20/2024   Personal

SUPPORT STAFF – RESIGNATIONS & TERMINATIONS:

Name                         School/Position                                                              Effective Date

Fitzpatrick, Ryan      East / Building Registrar                                                       10/11/2024

Hardy, Shanta          South / Attendance Office Clerk                                          09/18/2024

Iffath, Bader              West / EL Bilingual Interpreter                                             10/03/2024

Paul Jr., Cliffton        East / Study Hall-BIA Supervisor                                         10/04/2024

Savas, Karen            South / DRS Assistant                                                           12/31/2024

Standridge, Freya    North / Building Sub Coordinator                                         12/31/2024

Wilson, Leah             Transitions / Special Education Assistant                          09/26/2024 

SUPPORT STAFF – RETIREMENTS:

Name                         School/Position                                                              Effective Date

Muller, Frederick      West / Building Engineer                                                      12/31/2024 

– accepting the following donation: DuPage County Farm Bureau, $6,000.00 for Dual Credit Horticulture & Urban Sustainable Agriculture course equipment and supplies at East, North, South and West.

– two excursions. 

– school calendar 2025-26. Glenbard’s 2025-26 school calendar was reviewed by district administrators, the Glenbard Education Association and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. The 2025-26 school calendar was then presented to the board for adoption.  

– serious safety hazardous zones. The Illinois Department of Transportation standards for the Serious Safety Hazard Zones include: Type 1 hazard (walking along a roadway); Type 2 hazard (walking on a roadway); and Type 3 hazard (crossing a roadway). With these criteria, during this year’s evaluation, no additional areas have been identified with change. The current Glenbard District 87 serious safety hazard zones remain as presented at Monday’s board meeting. 

– School Maintenance Project Grant application approval. The School Maintenance Project Grant (SMPG) is a dollar-for-dollar state-matching grant program providing awards of up to $50,000 to grantees exclusively for the maintenance or upkeep of buildings or structures for educational purposes. Ongoing operational costs, including in-house labor for SMPG projects not contracted out, cannot be included for any School Maintenance Project Grant. A project may involve different types of work on a single building or structure or may involve a single type of work (e.g., new roofing or windows) on several buildings or structures. There is no limit to the cost of a project; however, grant awards shall not exceed $50,000 per grant award, and applicants shall provide a match from local funds equal to the grant amount requested. An applicant must not obligate funds or begin work on any of the projects listed on the application prior to submission of the application. However, submission of the application does not guarantee a grant will be approved or awarded. All project activities must be expended or legally obligated within two years of disbursement by the State.

Glenbard has identified the remodel of Glenbard West fieldhouse restrooms as a project that we anticipate will qualify. This is a project that we have already identified for this upcoming summer capital project list and a grant award of $50,000 would help offset the total cost, estimated at $400,000. 

– policies and procedures for second reading and adoption. 2:260 Uniform Grievance Procedure; Policy 2:270 Discrimination and Harassment on the Basis of Race, Color, and National Original Prohibited; 4:15-AP2 Treatment of Personally Identifiable Information Under Grant Awards; 5:30-AP4 Fingerprint-Based Criminal History Record Information Security; 5:200 Terms and Conditions of Employment and Dismissal; 5:250-AP1 School Visitation Leave; and 5:310 Compensatory Time Off.

BOARD INFORMATION/DISCUSSION ITEMS INCLUDED: 

– awards and recognitions. The district recognized students from the class of 2027 that experienced the largest growth from their PSAT 8 to PSAT 9. These students had the largest growth in either the Evidence-Based Reading & Writing (ERW) or the Math section.

• Glenn Westlake to Glenbard East: Ayla Ahmad (Math); Kayden Harper (Math); Karl Wallbruch (ERW); and Nicholas Zito (ERW & Math).
• Marquardt to Glenbard East: Daisy Baltazar (Math); Ailleen Osorio (Math); Julio Ruiz (ERW); and Hector Santiago (ERW).
• Jay Stream to Glenbard North: Abigail Nelson (ERW); Madeline Nguyen (ERW & Math); and Khoi Tran (Math).
• Stratford to Glenbard North: Jaden DeStefano (Math); Alina Kirpichnik (ERW); Madelyn Medina (ERW); Aarav Patel (Math); and Eileen Tualombo (ERW).
• Glencrest to Glenbard South: Thomas Bauman (Math); Alaina Burke (ERW); Chase Enright (Math); and Jonas Ghionzoli (ERW).
• Glenside to Glenbard West: Olexsandr Olishkevych (Math); Dennis Pajova (ERW); Valeria Valois (Math); and Daniel Vences (ERW).
• Hadley to Glenbard West: Madelyn Besler (ERW); Juliet Cline (ERW); Francesco DiCosola (ERW & Math); and Ace Hernandez (Math).

Thank you to the Glenbard and sender school teachers for their excellent efforts in assisting these students with growth.

• 8th grade sender teachers for the students above: Mariela Bagai (D93), Hailey Bowler (D44), Kelly Bucaro (D15), Ashlyn Budnick (D93), Nicole Cannizzo (D89), Reanna Comiso (D93), Melissa De La Paz (D93), Heather Heskin (D41), Maureen Joiner (D89), Kat Jung (D41), Jennifer LeBan (D16), Heidi Long (D93), Danny Menter (D41), Kim Propst (D89), Meghan Sedlacek (D89), Brian Stewart (D93), Carolyn Tysse (D44), Mary Uthe (D93), Elizabeth Vana (D16), Jaime Webb (D15), Matthew Willard (D15) and Meghan Zmijewski (D44).
• 9th grade Glenbard teachers for the students above: Teresa Alvarez (N), Michael Beaumont (S), Jennifer Buck Castaneda (N), Scott Cushman (W), Carolyn Fritts (W), Thomas Hanson (E), Jamea Harper (S), Kelly Hass (W), Michael Hearn (S), Troy Huber (E), Laura Johnson (E), Jeffrey Kargol (E), Theresa Kim (W), Marissa Lessick (N), Anthony LiFonti (N), Scott Llorens (E), Lejla Mahmudi (N), Kyle Neiss (W), Rachel Nolan (W), Jennifer O’Connor (E), Jill ODonnell (N), Lindsey Palzer (E), Bradley Podraza (E), Diane Gomes Robinson (W), Lauren Schewe (W), Timothy Snoreck (N), Patrick Walker (E) and Tabitha Yi (E). 

– superintendent search update. At the June 17th board meeting, BWP and Associates presented a draft timeline of the superintendent search process with the first step being community input to help develop a leadership profile for the district. Engagement for students, staff, families and other community members to give input began the week of September 9th. Engagement included an electronic survey (available in multiple languages), small group focus discussions, and both a virtual and in-person community forum. Findings by BWP and Associates were shared with the board at the October 14th meeting. Candidate interviews will take place in mid-November through early December. The board is anticipated to approve a contract with the next superintendent before the 2024 calendar year-end. 

– special education, Transition programs and English language learners update. The student services departments support many areas throughout the district. During the 2023-24 school year, staff were assigned to schools to support diverse learners, focus on post-high school outcomes and teach the skills needed to make responsible decisions. Monday’s board report highlighted the staff and work done by student services. 

– 2023-24 SAT prep update. The district has offered a free SAT prep for all 11th grade Glenbard students with the purpose of allowing equitable access to quality SAT test prep for all students. The program has evolved over the years based on feedback from students, teachers and administrators.

In 2024, the district delivered an in-person and a fully virtual option, 10-week comprehensive SAT prep course for interested 11th graders. The course enrolled 688 students. The district offered a bilingual cohort in which students received SAT prep instruction in English while simultaneously having language support in Spanish with bilingual instructors. Glenbard students who took the diagnostic SAT exam, along with the official school day SAT had on average 87 points of growth. 

– ACT prep – Academic Approach agreement 2024-25. The district has offered a free test prep for all 11th grade Glenbard students with the purpose of allowing equitable access to quality test prep for all students. The program has evolved over the years based on feedback from students, teachers, and administrators. In 2019, Glenbard partnered with an outside vendor (Academic Approach) to deliver the test prep course instruction. Academic Approach specializes in providing test prep for both the ACT and SAT.

The program increased enrollment from 520 in 2019 to 688 in 2024 – a 32-percent increase over the last six years. As the district continues to grow the program, the goal is to continue increasing overall program enrollment. This subsequently increases program completion rate and provides Glenbard students the best opportunity to maximize performance on the ACT. Based on feedback from parents and students, schedule conflicts with extra-curriculars provided a need for added flexibility for students. For that reason, students will have the option of in-person or virtual instruction, including a multiple Saturday virtual option, and a lecture/small group option where students receive general instruction and then select their area of need to focus on (either English/reading or math/science).

This contract accounts for multiple sections: 12 in-person after school, 12 virtual after school evenings, six virtual Saturday sessions, and one lecture/five small groups Saturday sessions (915 total students). Last year, the agreement was able to serve a maximum of 868 students for $266,673.40. This year, the district will be able to serve a maximum of 915 students for $263,660.

• ACT prep courses will be free to all Glenbard students.
• Each instructor provided by Academic Approach has passed a rigorous screening process, including demonstrating an official ACT score in the 95th percentile or higher and over 40 hours of rigorous ACT prep training.
• The ACT prep program with Academic Approach will provide 18 hours of instruction over a period of 10 weeks (12 hours of English/reading, 12 hours of math/science) and offer two practice assessments during week one and week five of the program or 12 hours of instruction for the lecture/small group program (six hours of larger group lecture instruction and six hours of specialized instruction – either English/reading or math/science).
• This contract budgets for 30 course sections across the four Glenbard schools, each with a capacity of 28 students and one lecture/five small groups program for a total capacity of around 915 students. This number is based on previous enrollment and anticipated growth.
• Each student will also receive proprietary virtual course books.