Schools

District 113A Weighs Staffing, Technology Needs for 2013-14

Board members clashed during a workshop Tuesday night while discussing the district's strategic plan and its outlined allocation of resources.

Disagreement over staffing and technology needs in Lemont-Bromberek Combined School District 113A forced board members to reach a compromise on its pending five-year strategic plan—one that involves hiring one more staff member than was originally recommended by administrators.

During a workshop meeting Tuesday night, District 113A board members directed the administration to amend their original staffing proposal for the 2013-14 school year to include one additional certified position, bringing the total to 8.6 certified and two support staff members.

The move came after a lengthy debate between the recommendation for 7.5 certified staff members and a second proposal to hire 9.6 certified positions. The cost of the first plan would have been about $429,000, while the second would cost $530,522, according to District 113A Business Manager Barbara Germany.

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The cost of hiring additional teachers would not be an additional expenditure for District 113A, but would, instead, use funding previously earmarked for technology, curriculum and professional development. By adding one certified staff member to the original plan, the district would have to take away about $25,000 from its technology budget and $25,000 from curriculum/development, Germany said.

The staffing proposal will go before board members during their April 16 business meeting as part of the district's five-year strategic plan. It will also be included in the district's updated financial plan, which must be approved by the state before the hiring takes place.

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Weighing staffing, technology needs

District 113A has been working on its strategic plan since the fall, when administrators began holding both internal and public discussions to determine the district's goals for the next five years and the necessary steps to achieve them.

The draft presented by the administration in February, March and again on Tuesday included a comprehensive list of new resources to support District 113A's goals from 2013 through 2018, which include reducing class sizes, updating curriculum materials, improving facilities and replacing out-of-date technology in the district's three schools.

If approved, the district would put about $2.1 million toward its strategic action plan during the 2013-14 school year, including $499,000 to build reserves. 

The staffing portion, as originally presented, called for one part-time kindergarten teacher, one second-grade teacher, one third-grade teacher, two fifth-grade teachers, one English Language Learners teacher, a middle school counselor and a music teacher, in addition to two support staff members.

With the additional teachers—taking enrollment trends into account—average class sizes are expected to reduce from:

  • 27.3 to 23.9 in kindergarten;
  • 26.9 to 23.9 in first grade;
  • 31.3 to 23.9 in second grade;
  • 31.8 to 27.8 in third grade;
  • 32.7 to 28.2 in fourth grade;
  • 37 to 32.7 in fifth grade;
  • 35.8 to 32.4 in seventh grade.

On Tuesday, board members considered the staffing portion separately, per the request of Board Member Al Malley. In a phone interview Monday, Malley said he sent an email to administrators requesting 10 classroom teachers for 2013-14, and did not know where the second proposal for two additional staff members originated.

District 113A Superintendent Susan Birkenmaier said the "Plan B" presented to the board was based on conversation held during public meetings, and that she takes her direction from the majority of the board during those meetings.

The second plan presented included two extra positions that would both be hired at the middle school level—a counselor, encore teacher or reading specialist. The additional staff would not impact class sizes, and would potentially divert funding from pressing technology needs, Birkenmaier said.

A study of the district's desktop computers, laptops and tablets found that most of the equipment is between five and 10 years old, which administrators said puts students and teachers at a disadvantage in the classroom. The district has not invested in technology or curriculum materials in at least three years, Birkenmaier said.

"The best computers we have are five years old," Birkenmaier said.

The proposal from the administration was to devote nearly $360,000 to replace most of the district's outdated equipment and make various technological upgrades in the first year of the plan. 

"We believe what we have presented in terms of technology makes the most sense," Birkenmaier said. "It gives us stability and replaces the things that need to be replaced. We realize it's a large investment up front but because of the leasing possibility, it does extend the cost over period of time and allow get into replacement cycle."

Malley and Board Members Mike Aurelio and Karen Siston objected to the proposed technology expenditures due to the large amount that would be spent up front. They suggested that some of that money be used toward staffing instead.

"There's no question that we need to invest in technology, but maybe not so much," said Aurelio, who voiced concern about buying so many new computers in the first year of the plan.

Malley said the technology upgrades were not reflective of community feedback.

"One concern that we heard everywhere—every group we sat in—is class size, not technology but class size," Malley said. He added that he would only want to reallocate money recommended for technology, not curriculum.

District 113A Asst. Superintendent Mary Gricus said pursuing a lease and making the investment up front was determined to be the ideal option due to the age of the district's equipment.

Board President David Molitor, Vice President Kevin Doherty and Board Member Lisa Wright were in favor of following the administration's proposal. Board Secretary Cindy Kelly was absent due to illness.

"I think we have to go with the recommendation of the board considering there are so many unknowns out there," Molitor said, referring to enrollment trends and the instability of state funding. "To lock in expenditures in areas that weren't recommended seems absurd to me." 

Malley and Aurelio both asked to see two options when the board votes on the plans April 16. Birkenmaier and other administrators urged the board to reach common ground, primarily because of the "enormous amount of work" associated with drafting two plans.

Locked in a three-to-three stalemate in a straw poll vote, Molitor nearly called a special meeting to get Kelly's input before giving the administration direction for the next board meeting. At the suggestion of Siston, the board came to a compromise that included one additional certified staff member, rather than two.

Moving forward

If given the OK at the April 16 board meeting, District 113A's financial plan will be sent to the Illinois State Board of Education for final approval. Because the state must approve the plan before the district can move forward with hiring—and because that process could take several months—Birkenmaier said she hopes to submit something as soon as possible.

"Time is becoming very critical for us to be able get something in front of the state board of education and get their approval so we can do what we need to do in terms of recruiting and getting people trained," Birkenmaier said.

Deb Vespa, ISBE Division Administrator for School Business Services, participated in part of the workshop via telephone. She said she would like to see a plan from the district by the end of May at the latest.

Despite the disagreement at the workshop, Birkenmaier said board members and administrators "are all trying to reach the same goals."

"The debate is really just about the allocation of resources and how fast we want to do things," Birkenmaier said after the meeting. "The important thing is that we're all trying to get to the same place with these goals we've laid out in the strategic plan." 

The next board meeting will be held at 7 p.m. April 16 at Old Quarry Middle School, 16100 W. 127th St.

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