ESSER III Grant approved

The Board of Education was thrilled to hand out its first ‘Building Up Bulldogs’ award to Becky Painter of Bill’s IGA. Ensuring strong and collaborative relationships with the communities is critical as a school district and the Board of Education, staff, and the students are beyond appreciative of all the support provided by Bill’s IGA.

The Superintendent, Brett Allen, informed the board about the church property and after further discussions with the architectural firm and the Menta Group, the District is unable to continue negotiations with the possible renovation of the church property into a Menta Group facility due to the costs. The details of a path moving forward will be discussed by the District Building Committee.

The process for the development of an updated strategic plan started the evening of Sept. 18 with a variety of stakeholders. Work will continue this semester developing the plan in more detail and gathering insight from the larger community. All annual state and federal grants have been written, submitted, and approved by the Ill. State Board of Education and are currently being implemented by school staff. Ill. is providing districts the opportunity to apply for a Maintenance Grant of up to $50,000 again this school year. The District is required to match the funds received. Staff of the District’s office have been reviewing the Health, Life, Safety survey and other needs throughout the district to determine the best use of the funds. The grant is due in Dec. of 2023.

Steven Moore, the Educational Services Administrator, provided a brief report to the Board, highlighting work he has been completing, including grant reporting, form updates, a health, life, safety tracker, and a comprehensive review of the purchasing processes. Additionally he discussed that he is currently working on two grants, including the Department of Defense Technology Initiative and the Library Grant. Included within his report were updates regarding interest earned on investments.

At the building level, Griffith, the High School Principal, highlighted that she is completing the required steps for Staunton High School students to earn a Seal of Biliteracy on their diplomas. A public school district or nonpublic school may establish

the State Seal of Biliteracy program to recognize high school graduates who attained a high level of proficiency in English and in one or more other foreign, or world, languages.

The board voted and approved the Fiscal Year 2024 Budget. The budget was discussed by the Superintendent, Allen, and Educational Services Administrator, Moore, during the public budget hearing that immediately preceded the regular board meeting. The adopted budget is balanced and projections show a surplus to end the fiscal year at this time.

Under new business, the board conducted the second reading of Press Policy 112 and then adopted the policy updates as part of the district’s Board Policy

Manual. Next, Moore and Davis provided an update re