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Regional Office of Education presents annual report, details scholarships and shared services
Summary
The Regional Office of Education summarized programs and staffing, reported 314 ARPA‑supported scholarships awarded to IVC/IVCC students focused on health care shortage areas, and described shared services including an $11M food cooperative; the board voted to place the superintendent's annual report on file.
The Regional Office of Education delivered its annual report to the LaSalle County board, summarizing work from 07/01/2024 through 06/30/2025 and seeking permission to transmit the report to the full county board. Presenter Chris reviewed staffing (more than 70 employees and an additional ~30 mentors in the region), teacher professional development, bus‑driver refresher courses and a regional work‑study program that produced about 30 graduates last year.
Chris said the office runs a dropout‑recovery/ work‑study program for students close to graduation in districts including LaSalle, Peru, Mendota, Ottawa, Putnam and Serena and estimated a per‑student cost of about $2,000, funded through a federal grant. The presenter also described a long‑standing Joseph J. Horner scholarship trust, noting it began with about $500,000 and has grown through investment to approximately $1.5 million and has paid roughly $2.3 million in scholarships since 1977.
On one of the largest budget items discussed, Chris described $500,000 in county ARPA funds distributed to support shortage‑area training: $340,000 to IVCC students, $40,000 to reverse scholarships and $120,000 to traditional scholarships. Chris said those awards led to 314 scholarships granted to IVCC students in 2023–2024 across shortage fields such as registered nurses, LPNs, EMTs, paramedics and CNAs.
The presenter highlighted the ROE’s food cooperative, which now serves 82 schools and uses bulk purchasing to procure more than $11,000,000 in food at discounted prices to help smaller districts reduce costs. He also noted that the office provides no‑cost construction permitting assistance to districts and conducts annual safety walkthroughs of school buildings.
Board members asked follow‑up questions about the ARPA funds; Chris said a selection committee that included county board members oversaw allocations and that nearly all funds were expended, with only one student declining an award and those dollars reallocated. The board then voted to place the superintendent’s annual report on file.
The board did not take further action on the ROE report; it will be filed and forwarded to the county board as requested.
