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District presents 2025–26 parent-student handbook updates, flags Title IX wording as evolving
Summary
DeKalb CUSD 428 staff presented a draft 147-page parent-student handbook with changes to ID policies, device rules, truancy procedures, Medicaid billing and naloxone training; board asked staff to return with the recommended handbook for formal adoption and sought clarity on federal/state guidance for sex-discrimination language.
DeKalb CUSD 428 administrators presented a recommended 147-page parent-student handbook for the 2025–26 school year and won board consensus to return the document for formal adoption after final review and translation.
District staff said the handbook is updated annually to reflect changes in law, local policy and operational practice. Key revisions the staff highlighted include explicit rules and replacement fees for student identification cards; an expanded electronic-device policy that specifically cites smartwatches; an updated truancy plan developed with the regional office of education; changes to Medicaid reimbursement language to reflect recent state and federal guidance; new requirements to have staff trained to administer an opioid antagonist; and added language related to violent offenses against youth.
The presenting official said the handbook is a living document that districts revise as state and federal rules change. The presentation noted the district uses model handbooks and legal counsel; the administration sends proposed changes to PTAC (Parent–Teacher Advisory Committee) and to a Parent–Student-Staff Council that includes parents, administrators and sometimes students.
During discussion, a board member questioned whether the handbook language on nondiscrimination and access to extracurricular activities would conflict with recently issued federal Title IX guidance or with Press Plus updates. Director of Human Resources Deidra Salas and other staff answered that school law and finalized federal rules take precedence, that Illinois guidance templates (from legal and association sources) currently instruct districts to use inclusive language and that final federal guidance is still evolving. Salas said the state and association templates advise using broad wording to avoid creating language that would invite a discrimination claim.
The board asked administration to continue working with legal counsel and to return the handbook for formal action after the final internal review, translation into Spanish and Arabic and posting to the district website. The presentation did not result in immediate formal adoption; board members gave consensus to bring the final document back for approval.
Officials said the handbook will be cross-referenced with the district’s transportation handbook and code of conduct, and that the district will notify families of substantive changes. The administration emphasized that where federal or state guidance changes mid-year, the district will update policies and handbooks as necessary and post current language online.
