We’re moving

As of October 3, this IASB News Blog will relocate to the transformed and improved IASB website. Readers will have access to the same information, only at a different location. Click here to visit the new Association news site.

Still just a click away, news from IASB will be posted as it has been on this Blog and its predecessor, the IASB Newsbulletin. This will include

• News of Association activity, including information about IASB programs, services, and governance matters
• Supplementary news, information, and context that is relevant to you as a local school leader
• Alerts about concerns facing Illinois public schools
• The daily Leading News updates of education headlines from around the state and nation.

Please update your bookmarks. If you’ve signed up to receive emails from “Illinois School Board News Blog,” these will cease. We encourage you to sign-up for IASB’s Online Update emails, which are sent when information and updates are added to the IASB website.

Remaining at www.iasb.com, IASB’s new website features an all-new visual design, intuitive navigation, dynamic content, and streamlined integration with the Association management database and online learning platforms. The responsive design adapts to fit mobile and tablet devices.

Thank you for reading the IASB News Blog. For now, it will remain online for archival purposes. All new content will be at iasb.com/news-listing/.

New website improves access, convenience for members and public

Website upgrades to improve user experience and school board member access to information and benefits debuted today at www.iasb.com.

Changes to the site include an all-new visual design, intuitive navigation, dynamic content, and streamlined integrations with the member database and online learning platform. The responsive design adapts to fit mobile and tablet devices.

Menu selections contain information and resources on school board training, elections, education laws, and school finance. Directories provide access to member districts, school attorneys, and Service Associates. Information also informs the public about the work of school boards, public education issues and trends, and legislation impacting schools.

Members can log in to register for an event or online course, or access additional resources available as a benefit of membership, indicated with a padlock symbol. Policy Services subscribers will continue to access their services online on the new site.

“As an organization we continue to evolve to meet the needs of our members in an efficient, timely manner,” said Kara Kienzler, Associate Executive Director of Communications. “The new website will deliver meaningful information, training, support, and resources necessary to meet the changing needs of school board members and member districts.”

IASB will utilize web analytics to monitor traffic and behavior to make ongoing improvements. A feedback form is available on the site to submit comments by email.

Visitors to the site may experience some minor delays during the transition. Association members are encouraged to contact the IASB office at (217) 528-9688 for assistance or with any questions.

Illinois schools earn Blue Ribbons for academic excellence

Illinois schools earn Blue Ribbons for academic excellence

Sixteen Illinois public schools have received the prestigious National Blue Ribbon Schools Award for 2019. The Illinois State Board of Education announced the U.S. Department of Education’s selections in late September. The award recognizes schools for academic excellence.

Two schools were noted in particular for their work in closing student achievement gaps: Banner Elementary School in Dunlap and Kingsley Elementary School in Naperville. The remaining 14 schools were honored as “Exemplary High Performing Schools.”

Illinois public schools honorees include the following:

• Adlai E. Stevenson High School, Adlai E. Stevenson HSD 125 (Lincolnshire)  
• Banner Elementary School, Dunlap CUSD 323
• Bannockburn School, Bannockburn SD 106
• Columbus Elementary School, Edwardsville CUSD 7
• Eastview Elementary School, Community Unit School District 300 (Algonquin)
• Glen Oaks Elementary School, North Palos SD 117 (Hickory Hills)
• Hawthorn Elementary School South, Hawthorn CCSD 73 (Vernon Hills)
• Ivy Hall Elementary School, Kildeer-Countryside CCSD 96 (Buffalo Grove)
• Ivy Hill Elementary School, Arlington Heights SD 25
• Kingsley Elementary School, Naperville CUSD 203
• Madison Elementary School, Hinsdale CCSD 181
• Maine South High School, Maine THSD 207 (Park Ridge)
• Prescott Elementary School, Chicago SD 299
• Roslyn Road Elementary School, Barrington CUSD 220
• Tri-Valley Middle School, Tri-Valley CUSD 3 (Downs)
• William Fremd High School, Township High School District 211 (Palatine)

Since 1982, the U.S. Department of Education has presented the Blue Ribbon Awards to bring public attention to exemplary schools in the United States.

Division Meetings start October 1

IASB’s Division Meetings for Fall 2019, all taking place in October and starting the first of the month, will offer a variety of topics of interest to local boards of education, from ESSA to PWR and from SEL to EBF.

Division Meetings also offer networking opportunities and updates from Association staff and division representatives. Online registration is required and can be completed at iasb.com.

The list of divisions, dates, locations, and topics, as well as registration information, is available through IASB’s Events Calendar. Attendance at Division Meetings earns participants five points in IASB’s Master Board Member Program.

Sponsors for the Fall Division Meetings are listed below.

Legacy Sponsors

Ameresco

Guin Mundorf, LLC

Kings Financial Consulting Inc.

Division Meeting Sponsors

BetterLesson

Forecast5 Analytics, Inc.

Larson & Darby Group

Legat Architects

PMA Financial Network

Robbins Schwartz

Stifel

Deadlines for placing referenda on March 2020 ballot near

Three months remain for school districts to propose funding questions to voters in the next regularly scheduled election in March.

December 30 is the last day for a school board to adopt resolutions to place advisory referenda on the ballot at the March 17, 2020 General Primary Election (105 ILCS 5/9-1.5 and 10 ILCS 5/28-2). The local school board election authority is responsible for receiving citizen-led questions and certifying petitions and board resolutions for referenda.

School districts have until January 9 for the board secretary to certify public policy questions to the election authority (10 ILCS 5/28-5).

IASB tracks election results of school finance referenda for bond issues, school tax rate propositions, and county school facilities sales tax outcomes. The historic data is available online.