Superintendent: staffing gaps, device inventory, ESY enrollment up 25% and ParentSquare rollout planned

Superintendent Dr. Russell updated the District 58 Board on July 14 about personnel changes, summer learning, special-education extended school year (ESY) outcomes and a planned switch to ParentSquare for family communications. Dr. Russell said the district has welcomed two new district office administrators, Julie Rellehan and Greg Harris, and that personnel work continues: as of the morning of July 14 the district had five full-time certified openings to fill for the fall after two unexpected resignations. “We have really great success making sure that we do hire those,” Russell said, adding hiring teams would begin interviews immediately. On summer programs, Russell reported the general-education summer learning program enrolled more than 250 students for academic and enrichment activities. Special services staff reported ESY participation of about 100 students in a 20-day (60-hour) program, a 25% enrollment increase over past years. Russell said exit data showed students maintained or improved skills in more than 92% of identified IEP goal areas. Technology and devices were another summer focus. Russell said returned iPads have been processed and are mostly ready; some eighth-grade devices require repair before being reissued to seventh graders. The district expects to have sufficient Chromebook inventory for the fall “with minimal, if any, new devices needing to be purchased,” he said. On family communications, the superintendent said the district will transition to ParentSquare with a targeted launch in early August. Parents will still receive messages by email, phone or text by default during the rollout; families who install the app can customize language and notification preferences. “The goal of year 1 is just to get parents familiar with this tool,” Russell said. He and staff said they plan parent education at curriculum nights and open houses and intend some redundancy during the transition so families continue to get critical messages. Why this matters: hiring gaps can affect fall staffing and class assignments; increased ESY enrollment and strong exit results are relevant to families of students with IEPs; the communications change affects how families receive school notices. What’s next: the district will continue hiring, finalize device repairs and issue a ParentSquare introduction message to families in late July; principals will begin sending ParentSquare communications when they return in early August.