[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6306280,"mediaKeyId","2439779-c603e8d59435f6873eb2250f28d78a0c","parentId",2439779,"title","Parent tells board substitute instability is harming students; board approves routine consent, personnel items and two dismissal resolutions","audioSeconds",2929,"startMs",6923000,"endMs",9852000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2439779-c603e8d59435f6873eb2250f28d78a0c&start=6923&end=9852","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2439779-c603e8d59435f6873eb2250f28d78a0c/thumbnail_6923000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6306280/Illinois/Parent-tells-board-substitute-instability-is-harming-students-board-approves-routine-consent-personnel-items-and-two-dismissal-resolutions","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6306280-29cc0ceb48f3cad3e4d9f4877c9b3608/orig.mp4?Expires=1770993591&Signature=JykCuNTktDxyhNrh44xExaQheW1chfa4~89VRIrArfXfAV-QO~FzNWlCnMDHvybwfUf0WAQMyCIHKnvFnH~0wNcFJvCvxZpzXtw7FKPAoAy6~x51ipk3sGKV~6sdePHgRSAOvYKJYbZ0-F~cf-Nd6fZRX0bPTln7ZYrmimLbkg3NQUOfTO7-xHUdAPSZA8rlCyTvRfhfSIYTKA3Cr3FY1unG4fI3qPUKIaSRYjrLqweXq3b3lR6kZwWk8~N05t0cPVZHz21SXkrt68xI7-O0woX95B35wh9VOYD-E1RGBYCg9yHBXr1m10av5ixs3of1cIs7Ivrtbd5RNAXri6EkvQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Decatur SD 61","date","2025-02-26T01:26:05Z","article","Abby Steele, a parent and former district employee, told the Decatur Public Schools Board of Education during public participation on Feb. 25 that persistent substitute-teacher turnover and split-classroom days had reduced instructional continuity for her child and for other families.

\"There's been an inconsistent, rotating door of subs,\" Steele said. She described a pattern she said was common in the district this school year: extended periods with only two consistent substitute teachers, frequent splitting of classes among other teachers and days when students in higher grades were placed in classrooms with much younger students for parts of the day. Steele said she had delayed speaking publicly but felt the problem had to be raised and urged the board, district and union to find better hiring and retention solutions.

After public comment the board conducted routine business. The board approved the consent calendar (minutes, financial and treasurer reports and early check releases) by recorded vote: six board members voted aye and one board seat was recorded absent. The board then approved the personnel action items on the agenda by the same recorded tally.

Later the board adopted two separate resolutions recommending dismissal of licensed professional-educator employees (listed in board materials). Each resolution passed on a roll-call vote with six ayes and one absence recorded.

Votes at a glance

- Consent items (minutes, financials, treasurer's report, release of February checks): approved 6 ayes, 0 nay, 1 absent.
- Personnel action items (human resources recommendations as presented): approved 6 ayes, 0 nay, 1 absent.
- Resolution to dismiss licensed professional educator Amber Egan: adopted 6 ayes, 0 nay, 1 absent.
- Resolution to dismiss licensed professional educator Jennifer Vargo: adopted 6 ayes, 0 nay, 1 absent.

The meeting record shows the six named board members who verbally recorded \"aye\" on the motions: Mark Reynolds, Dr. Collins, Will Wetzel, Bill Clevenger, Jason Dion and Al Scheider. The board did not discuss the substance of the dismissal resolutions in public beyond the formal motions on the consent/roll-call agenda.

Ending: The public comment on staffing echoed concerns discussed elsewhere in the meeting and the district will continue to process routine approvals and personnel actions as part of the board's consent and roll-call agenda.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","BOE Meeting 02/25/25","oneSentenceSummary","A parent told the board about frequent substitute-teacher turnover in one child's classroom and urged the district and union to prioritize hiring and retention. The board then approved consent items, personnel actions and adopted two resolutions to dismiss licensed staff; each roll-call item carried on recorded ayes.","taxTitle","Decatur SD 61, School Boards, Illinois","taxId",38365,"location","Illinois","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6306284,"Decatur board gets Roadmap 2030 update as district weighs building reconfiguration and academic priorities",327,7469000,7796000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2439779-c603e8d59435f6873eb2250f28d78a0c&start=7469&end=7796","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2439779-c603e8d59435f6873eb2250f28d78a0c/thumbnail_7469000.jpg","/articles/6306284/Illinois/Decatur-board-gets-Roadmap-2030-update-as-district-weighs-building-reconfiguration-and-academic-priorities","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6306284-20648da061e55fe108e851de70cc0ec9/orig.mp4?Expires=1770993591&Signature=nxuRVuRUs4rwOEHy7z0oTh8Y2YzmFrXt~rD0mArs7gCVvjaPEiQ~h4i2q3d5IcHHgsNe-emPk3i9eCobK8AMM2XMkffGcp2~ox9GJ~fsGgKvJgfA6yH7a2fv7ZxKhCcogPQphBERrYY4H6ob-4rg0Nr7YI-IjyQPeRxbSJesAqpqAVYHBnSKph~Ta-V58mRikebPgpyMMGJxpgzJemrkwVhPSR0i6fAYLYh4bnXKsrJOuFZf42HUsxK8S2hONweRj22G-3GSrMRJAgfNIg0-pjLkUh3~g4SGlmVhzSthJzVc5jzYewQAe-iqMgUJR0F5D7dG~pYkdshsYyWMYEmRfA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Interim Chief Strategy Officer Jay Marino summarized Roadmap 2030 progress on Feb. 25 and told the Decatur Public Schools Board of Education the committee is moving from planning into recommending specific configurations and aligned instructional strategies.

Marino presented ten-year enrollment trends and projection scenarios showing an annual decline of roughly 1.4 to 1.6 percent and described how that trajectory drives a facility and program review. He said the district has ample square footage today but unequal facility quality and that the district needs a master facility plan and a strategic plan that align to a small set of measurable goals.

\"We're not rearranging chairs on the deck of the Titanic,\" Marino said, arguing that the process is intended to make structural changes aligned to instruction, not cosmetic fixes. He listed proposed scenario variables under study: whether prekindergarten should remain in stand-alone sites or be integrated in primary schools; whether magnet programs should be retained, modified or consolidated; whether middle grades should be delivered in 6-8, 7-8 or K-8 models; and whether the district should plan for a single high school eventuality or maintain two campuses in the near term.

Marino voiced several guiding principles: reduce inequity of space per student across the district, improve operational efficiency, and ensure any reconfiguration directly supports classroom strategies that raise outcomes. He previewed a set of \"high-leverage\" instructional moves the district plans to tie to any facility and grade-span decisions: more job-embedded teacher time and professional learning communities (PLC) for collaborative planning, expanded career and technical education (CTE) pathways, a STEM/STEAM curriculum for grades 6-12, stronger gatekeeper-grade interventions (early warning and intervention systems rather than retention), expanded summer learning focused on students below benchmark, and growth of alternate-education seats for personalized options.

Marino said the district will deliver three final products: a five-year strategic plan with mission, vision, values and measurable goals; a balanced scorecard for board accountability; and a phased master facility plan (immediate actions in 2025-26, larger configuration implementation in 2026-27 and subsequent phases over a longer horizon). He said public engagement will continue and that committee work is three meetings from a recommendation.

Board members asked for additional clarity on enrollment baselines, the difference between strategic and school improvement plans, and the reason for proceeding now rather than waiting for elections or a future superintendent. Marino and other staff said delaying would defer difficult decisions and leave the district without a coordinated plan when ongoing demographic trends continue to shrink enrollment; they suggested a new superintendent should inherit a board-approved strategic plan rather than build it from scratch.

Ending: Marino asked the board to expect phased recommendations in coming months and warned significant trade-offs will be necessary: decisions designed to rebalance facilities and improve outcomes will likely disappoint some stakeholders, he said, but the committee's work aims to realign buildings and instruction to lift long-term student results.","District staff presented the Roadmap 2030 strategic-planning update, showing steady enrollment decline projections, scenarios for reconfiguring grade spans and magnets, and a set of \"high-leverage\" academic strategies the district would pair with facility changes.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6306285,"ISBE trains Decatur board on school-improvement process for five intensive schools",1277,87000,1364000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2439779-c603e8d59435f6873eb2250f28d78a0c&start=87&end=1364","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2439779-c603e8d59435f6873eb2250f28d78a0c/thumbnail_87000.jpg","/articles/6306285/Illinois/ISBE-trains-Decatur-board-on-school-improvement-process-for-five-intensive-schools","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6306285-7fcf4141814207dcfc72186c97552c53/orig.mp4?Expires=1770993591&Signature=TTTPAyqFZIWmFNQ3KseWzMco4YUyawx-ENtZDeUPy6MX94fEtBSKHmKl25UYUq4qZKdPoEN4rx8DBCNkSsr6ysmrYvn1Fbvx8pTYOgU559iFTd807HZa0hhmRCooinaXlQB-Cqh8zuz-s3FgabAd2VvDoIAkheRo9R-SUsFC0kzoaSypPROWrhUhYOeudbuksbjPyaFf9OE~Ujp5SZDs72EfV8xxx3yDRkAteXoTV3cmeSUCu6kmBuRVM4iRivdbuE-PnoV6l4ykuB0XSA9JIxcqHa1p9PFcFWOrDthGE8Hkth5Yiqv36cX4ClOJd1rxMSgXorOXMX0ZqH3yTCecDg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Nicholas Seccl, supervisor for school district improvement at the Illinois State Board of Education, told the Decatur Public Schools Board of Education on Feb. 25 that continuous school improvement focuses on changing adult practices in schools and requires a four-year, staged approach of planning and implementation for schools in \"intensive\" status.

The training explained the state's five designation categories, the Title I Part A Section 1003 funds available to designated schools, and expectations that intensive schools present progress to their boards three times per year. Seccl said the American Institute for Research (AIR) conducts school-level needs assessments for intensive schools and that Decatur currently has five schools designated intensive: Stephen Decatur (as listed in the presentation), Franklin Grove Elementary, American Dreamer STEM, Muffley Elementary and Hope Academy.

The session was part of a required three-module training for boards that include intensive schools under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). Seccl emphasized the structure of the available support and the state's monitoring timeline: a planning year followed by three implementation years during which the district uses a school improvement plan, evidence-based interventions and a sustainability plan to continue improvements after aide from the state tapers.

\"Continuous school improvement is not about changing what the kids do. It is about changing what the adults do,\" Seccl said, summarizing the training's central point about adult practice and system change. He described the planning year tasks: a rigorous needs assessment, root-cause analysis and the production of a new school improvement plan; implementation years are for putting those plans into practice and progressively reducing state funds as districts show sustainable progress.

Seccl reviewed how the needs assessment is carried out on-site by AIR, which observes classrooms, conducts staff surveys and focus groups and interviews principals. He said AIR's reports use a rubric that designates elements as \"initial,\" \"emerging,\" \"established\" or \"robust,\" and that the contractor is not permitted to provide other services to a school it assesses, to reduce conflicts of interest.

Board members asked procedural and timeline questions. Board Member Will Wetzel and Board Member Mark Reynolds each spoke about their interest in student outcomes; Board Member Al Scheider and Board Member Jason Dion commented on the role of community and narrowing achievement gaps. Seccl identified Trevor Chapman as the state-assigned school improvement coordinator currently working with Decatur.

Seccl also walked the board through school-level governance expectations: a school leadership team (recommended size 4 to 8 staff members) that meets at least monthly to monitor data and a stakeholder advisory group that should meet two to three times a year to review school improvement priorities with parents, community members, business leaders and civic officials. He advised boards to ask school leaders for the data sources used to monitor plans and to expect schools in intensive status to present to the board in September, January and June.

The trainer said the state's on-demand resources, a school improvement helpline and an on-line repository of templates and guides are available to districts and that the state requires intensive schools to use the state plan template. He also said districts should plan for sustainability beyond Title I Part A Section 1003 funds, pointing to other funding streams such as IDEA and Title III where appropriate.

The board did not vote on any measures during the training; the session was informational. Seccl invited board members to request follow-up or in-person trainings for new board members, and he asked attendees to complete a brief feedback form on the session.

The board later continued its regular agenda and acknowledged the training's materials would be part of the district's oversight of improvement work in the five designated schools.

Ending: The training gives Decatur board members a state framework and contacts to oversee multi-year improvement work for schools designated intensive. District staff and board members will use the state template and scheduled check-ins to track implementation and sustainability as the five schools move through their planning and implementation cycle.","An Illinois State Board of Education trainer outlined the state's continuous school improvement process, funding, and reporting requirements for districts with \"intensive\" schools and named five Decatur Public Schools that currently hold that designation.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Parent tells board substitute instability is harming students; board approves routine consent, personnel items and two dismissal resolutions

Decatur board gets Roadmap 2030 update as district weighs building reconfiguration and academic priorities

ISBE trains Decatur board on school-improvement process for five intensive schools