Following is a summary of minutes of a regular meeting of the Board of Education of Jasper County Community Unit School District No. 1 held on Monday, September 23rd, 2024 in the office of the Board of Education. Board members present were Mrs. Jackie Schackmann, Mrs. Mandy Rieman, Mrs. Holly Farley and Mr. Bill Meinhart, Mrs. Mandi Utley and Mr. Brady Shull entered at 6:23 p.m. Board members absent were Mr. David Blecha.
All votes are considered unanimous unless otherwise noted.
The tentative budget has been on display the past 30 days at the district office. There were no public comments or public testimony. Mr. Joe Sornberger presented the FY 25 Budget. The Budget Hearing was adjourned at 6:35 p.m. and then began the regular meeting.
Mandy Rieman called the meeting to order.
Approval to Adopt the Agenda.
Mandy asked for Recognition of Guests and Public Comments. There were none.
The District has received five FOIA requests from the Lake County Gazette and SmartProcure.
Approval of Consent Agenda as presented.
Regular Minutes and Closed Session Minutes for August 19th, 2024,
Bills and Payroll,
Presentment of monthly financial reports,
$1,000 from Orell Farley Foundation to the READ Program,
The following donations are for the NCHS Football Scoreboard:
$1,000 from Puerto Vallarta
$800 from Dieterich Bank
$800 from Expert Collision
$400 from Personal Service Realty
$400 from Rauch’s Jewelry
$1,000 from Peoples State Bank
$1,000 from 707 Solutions
$1,000 from Rex Vault & Mausoleum Service
$1,000 from Cork and Pork to the NCHS Football Team,
$1,000 from Cork and Pork to the NCHS Student Council,
$600 from Cork and Pork to the NCHS Cheerleaders,
$3,500 from Newton Athletic Boosters to Athletic Donations for the purchase of an endzone camera,
$250 from Dan Pilson Auto Center to the NCHS Cheerleaders,
$300 from Midwest Tractor Sales to the NCHS Cheerleaders,
$900 to the Newton Elementary Strong Girls program,
$500 to Mrs. Steffanie Stark’s Fifth Grade Social Studies classes for the purchase of novel series,
$950 to the Sixth Grade Leadership Team to be used for the end of the year celebration,
$600 anonymous donation to the Sixth Grade Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA),
Declare 6 school chairs and 1 classroom rug from Newton Elementary as surplus,
Katie Blake, Erika Brooks, Taylor Francis, Lindsey Lingafelter and Holly Smith as volunteers,
Second Reading of PRESS Policy Updates/Handbook Updates-Changed:
4:80 Accounting and Audits
4:140 Waiver of Student Fees
6:140 Education of Homeless Children
6:230 Library Media Program
Five Year Reviews
2:70 Vacancies on the School Board
2:125 Board Member Compensation
2:160 Board Attorney
4:15 Identity Protection
4:40 Incurring Debt
4:70 Resource Conservation
5:130 Responsibilities Concerning Internal Information
5:180 Temporary Illness of Employment and Dismissal
5:285 Drug and Alcohol Testing for School Bus and Commercial Vehicle Drivers
5:310 Compensatory Time Off
6:110 Programs for Students at Risk of Academic Failure and or Dropping Out of School and Graduation Incentives Program
7:170 Vandalism
Under the Superintendent’s Report, Mr. Sornberger discussed updates on the Building and Grounds Projects. Over the summer, the Jasper County School District completed the NCHS/JCJH Roof (Band Rooms and Ag Rooms), HVAC for NCHS, JCJH & NES, and the NCHS Greenhouse. Projects to be completed in the 2024-2025 school year include the design and bid for NCHS Roof and NES Roof. Also, there are plans for classroom renovations to rooms 116, 117, and 118 at NCHS and windows on the southside of NCHS. At this time, all projects are tentative until design and bids are finalized. Mr. Sornberger also discussed the Budget. Overall, the district ended the FY 24 fiscal year in good standing with revenues exceeding budgeted numbers and expenditures less than predicted with a surplus in the Education Fund, Operation & Maintenance, and the Transportation Fund. The budget for FY 25 looks to balance in the Operation/Maintenance Fund and Transportation Fund. There is a CPPRT loss of 32% from the previous year of CCPRT revenue in the Operation/Maintenance Fund. At this time, the Education Fund looks to be in a deficit due to the loss of revenue from the Federal ESSSER Grant. The District will monitor revenues and expenditures in the Education Fund in hopes of finishing without a deficit.
Approval of the Second Reading of Policies.
Approval of the FY 25 Budget.
Approval of the FY 25 FFA Alumni and JCCU1 Agreement.
Approval of the Roof Project for Newton Community High School Roof.
Approval of Bids for 7 Bluebird 71 passenger Buses from Central State Bus.
Approval to purchase a State Bid Minibus from Southern Bus & Mobility.
Approval to enter executive session at 7:18 p.m. for 5 ILCS 120/2 (c) (1) – To Consider Information Regarding Appointment, Employment, Compensation, Performance or Dismissal of Individual Employees; 1.5ILCS 120/2 (c) (5) – The Purchase or lease of real property for the use of the public body, including meetings held for the purpose of discussing whether a particular parcel should be acquired.
Approval to return to open session at 7:40 p.m.
Approval of a leave of absence for Ashley McLeod, 1st Grade NES Teacher, from November 18th, 2024 and return on January 27th, 2025.
Meeting adjourned at 7:47 p.m. Next regular board meeting is scheduled for Monday, October 21st, 2024 at 6:30 p.m. at the Board of Education Office located at 1401 Clayton Avenue.
