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Libertyville SD 70 board unanimously adopts 2025 tax levy, approves fees, $50,000 maintenance grant and intercom upgrade
Summary
The Libertyville District 70 Board of Education unanimously approved the district's Final 2025 Tax Levy after a brief public hearing and passed a package of operational items Dec. 15, 2025, including a $50,000 maintenance grant for Butterfield School, modest K'8 registration fee increases, and an intercom replacement at Copeland Manor.
The Board of Education District No. 70 adopted the district's Final 2025 Tax Levy at its Dec. 15, 2025, meeting following a public hearing earlier in the evening. The vote was unanimous.
Board member Mr. McGhee moved to adopt the levy and Board member Mr. Lawton seconded; the roll call recorded ayes from Mrs. Dahlke, Mrs. Khan, Mr. Sticklen, Mrs. Grove, Mr. Lawton, Mr. McGhee and Mrs. Schilling. The board had opened a Truth in Taxation public hearing at the start of the meeting and adjourned it by motion before the regular session resumed.
Why it matters: the Final Aggregate Levy sets the district's property-tax request under the Illinois Property Tax Code and determines revenue the district may collect next year to support school operations and capital needs.
Alongside the levy, the board approved several operational budget and facilities items. By unanimous votes, members: approved a $50,000 FY 2026 School Maintenance Grant to renovate Butterfield School (painting, classroom carpet replacement, LVT in hallways, ceiling replacement and terrazzo restoration); approved a full replacement of the intercom/paging system at Copeland Manor (hardware, management software/licensing, installation and programming) to align with the system at Highland Middle School; and approved recommended student registration fees for 2026-27.
The registration fee structure approved in Board Report 7.4 raises K'8 student registration fees by $5 to $230, maintains an early-bird registration fee of $200 and sets Early Childhood tuition at $3,500. The administration said fees were not increased last year and the early-bird discount is intended to encourage earlier registration for planning.
The board also approved a multi-item consent agenda that included minutes of prior meetings, finance reports (agenda of bills, payroll, budgetary and treasurer's reports), personnel matters (changes of assignment, resignations/retirements, leaves of absence, and new hires) and reimbursement of board member expenses for the 2025 Joint Annual Conference; that motion was moved by Mr. McGhee and seconded by Mr. Lawton and carried on a unanimous roll-call vote.
On policy matters, the board approved a package of district policies in Board Report 7.1 covering board development, nondiscrimination, fiscal management, personnel rules, instructional policies, student conduct and records, and community relations. Policy 2:150 (Board Committees) was pulled for further consideration; the remainder of the packet was approved by motion of Mr. McGhee and seconded by Mrs. Dahlke.
A FOIA report noted one request during the month: SmartProcure requested purchasing records from Sept. 15, 2025, to the present. The meeting concluded with brief committee and development updates from board members and adjourned at 7:15 p.m.
Actions at a glance: the meeting record shows multiple unanimous roll-call votes in favor of the consent agenda, the policy packet (except 2:150), the Final 2025 Tax Levy, the $50,000 maintenance grant for Butterfield, the registration-fee changes and the Copeland Manor intercom replacement. Several motions were moved by Mr. McGhee and most were seconded by Mr. Lawton or Mrs. Dahlke; roll-call tallies list the seven board members as recorded in the minutes.
