Gibson City-Melvin-Sibley CUSD #5
2025-26 STATE OF THE SCHOOLS Growth Commitment Motivation Success
www.gcmsk12.org
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Welcome to our State of the Schools document, a look back at those things that made GCMS a vital and vibrant presence in the lives of our people. We’ve illustrated our district as an institution with human capital and physical boundaries; we hope that it aids you, as parents or taxpayers (or maybe just a fan of the Falcons), in understanding the work we do to make GCMS the district in which we take so much pride.
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
We encourage you to share the success stories of GCMS. We’re #FalconProud of our students, our staff and our facilities; we hope you are, too.
Enrollment
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JEREMY DARNELL, SUPERINTENDENT Dear Neighbor,
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
As we reflect on the past school year, I am proud to share the progress, accomplishments, and continued growth taking place across our district. Our State of the Schools report provides an opportunity to celebrate the hard work of our students and staff while also giving our community a clear picture of where we are today and where we are headed. Over the past year, we have seen meaningful achievements in our classrooms, made important improvements to our buildings and campus, and continued investing in spaces and resources that serve our students well. Just as importantly, we have worked to make these improvements while remaining responsible stewards of the resources entrusted to us by our taxpayers. Strong schools are built through a partnership between students, staff, families, and the community. We are grateful for that partnership and for the trust our community places in us. We look forward to building on this year's successes while continuing to provide an excellent education in a fiscally responsible manner. With appreciation, Jeremy Darnell Superintendent, GCMS CUSD #5
Superintendent Jeremy Darnell arrived at GCMS in 2009, serving as the Middle School Principal before assuming the superintendency in 2016. He has announced his retirement for 2030. Mr Darnell has a Bachelor’s in History from Knox College, a Master’s in Educational Leadership from the University of Illinois and a Specialist in Education from Eastern Illinois University. He resides in Gibson City with his wife Kim and their daughter Adlee, a junior at GCMS High School.
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
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BOARD OF EDUCATION The GCMS Board of Education is responsible for the government and management of the school district. Service on the board is voluntary, without compensation and is an elected position.
Board President Phil Whitehouse. Mr Whitehouse is the Director of Application Development and IT Finance for Country Mutual; he lives in Gibson City with his wife, Megan and their 3 children. He has served on the board since 2009; his current term expires in 2029. Board Vice President Janna Friday. Mrs. Friday is Director of Finance for Apricity Healthcare Solutions; she lives in Gibson City with her husband, Keith and their 3 children. She has served on the board since 2019; her current term expires in 2027. Board Secretary Adam Elder. Mr Elder co-owns Apricity Healthcare Solutions and Drummer Creek Catering; he lives in Gibson City with his wife Kristy and their 2 sons. He has served on the board since 2013; his current term expires in 2027. Dr. Emily Tucker-Davis. Dr Tucker-Davis is the owner of Gibson Veterinary Clinic; she lives in rural Gibson City with her husband Kevin and their sons. She has served on the board since 2017; her current term expires in 2027. Mrs. Sarah Lutterbie. Mrs Lutterbie is a pharmacist and stay at home mom; she lives in Gibson City with her husband Joe and their 3 children. She has served on the board since 2024; her term expires in 2029. Mrs. Kenna McCall. Mrs McCall is a retired nurse; she lives in Gibson City with her husband, Mike. All 4 of her children graduated from GCMS and several of her grandchildren currently attend. She has served on the board since 2024; her term expires in 2029. Mr Mitchell Heap. Mr Heap is a farmer and lives in rural Paxton with his wife Ava and their 3 children. He has served on the board since 2025; his term ends in 2029.
School Board meetings are open to the public; a schedule of meetings is listed on our website, www.gcmsk12.org
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ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
BY THE NUMBERS... The GCMS district encompasses 224.5 square miles. Our students have addresses in Ford, Champaign, McLean, and Livingston Counties and these towns: Gibson City Melvin Dewey Sibley Paxton Cropsey Saybrook Anchor Elliott Foosland Strawn
Our Students... Report 5 primary languages spoken in the home *English *Spanish *Gujarati *Albanian *Kanjobal Have a low income rate of 43.9%
(defined as 200% of the poverty level)
15% received Special Education services 3.5% of students are English language learners .5% 1%
4.6% 9.6%
84.3%
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
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Faculty and Staff: 83 certified teachers 36% hold Master’s degrees 13% have less than 2 years experience 90% retention rate 9 administrators 26 paraprofessionals 12 custodial/maintenance 10 food service 6 clerical/secretary 3 Unit Office staff 12 Ford Co Special Ed Cooperative staff 1 Director 1 Records Custodian 4 Social Workers 1 School Pyschologist 2 Speech Pathologists 1 Physical Therapy Assistant 1 Occupational Therapy Assistant
The GCMS School Lunch program is directed by Ray Goin. In ‘25-’26: 20,040 breakfasts were served 51,017 lunches were served 18,898 ala carte items were sold
GCMS contracts bus service through Illinois Central School Bus and our local office is managed by Kari Ryan-Cline. In ‘25-’26: 12 daily routes drove 181,646 miles 41 field trips drove 3868 miles 204 athletic trips drove 18,200 miles Diesel fuel expense for the year was $89,234.66 12 bus fleet with 3 standby buses and 2 minivans 27 drivers (1 full-time, 12 daily, 14 trip drivers) 5 bus monitors
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OUR SCHOOLS GCMS Elementary
Our Elementary school houses PreK through 5th grade, with 4 sections of each grade level, including a Special Education teacher and paraprofessionals.
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
It’s finished! With an enhanced focus on the value and necessity of play to the developing brain, our new playground facilities were completed just prior to the start of the 26-27 school year. The response has been phenomenal! Our outdoor facilities are open to the public for use after school hours.
Hallway Heroes
A new recognition started in the 25-26 school year. The Hallway Heroes award is presented to the class who best exhibits appropriate behavior in the hallway. Better yet, the award is given based on nominations from other classes. It’s really allowed our students to show leadership in the hallways!
Girls on the Run Another new feature is a fun, evidenced based program that inspires girls to build their confidence, teamwork and decision making skills. It was capped with a 5K in Champaign.
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GCMS Middle School New spaces!
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
Similar to the Elementary School, our middle school gained some new outdoor spaces, including an outdoor volleyball court, 2 Pickleball courts and all weather turf for the Gaga ball pit.
Readers are leaders Reading is vital at every developmental stage and the Middle School years are no exception. Research indicates reading continues to build cognitive skills, expand academic vcocabulary and perhaps most importantly, supports social emotional development at this key transitional period. Our teaching staff offers a wide variety of opportunities for reading including “reading cafe,” Battle of the Books and other reading challenges. The annual book fair is also hugely popular with our students.
Won’t you be my neightbor? Our 6th grade Enrichment classes made weekly trips to the Villas where they interacted with residents, asking questions and sharing their activities.
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GCMS High School
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
Have hammer, will build Mr Mackinson’s Industrial Arts students built 4 sheds last year, all used around our physical campus. Students started with the lumber order and built the shed from the ground up, including siding, windows and roofing. They might not realize it now but those students learned valuable skills that carry with them long after they’ve graduated.
Greenhouse goals
Meet Me at the 50
The greenhouse continues to be a valuable addition to our curriculum. Several Ag classes, Science classes and Art classes use it as well as the FFA. The plant sales entail preparation, plant care, marketing and business strategies. It truly offers real world experiences.
A fun tradition is having our seniors meet our Kindergarteners at the 50 yard line. This takes place the week before graduation where our littles present our seniors with homemade cards and our bigs give them a Falcon bracelet. Today meets tomorrow!
Future Ready Falcons Our co-op program continues to grow. It allows students to work for 3 hours in the morning or afternoon, then attend classes in the opposite hours. They earn money, they learn valuable skills and gain resume building experiences.
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A ROUND OF APPLAUSE ...
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
To GCMSF Wrestling Coach Josh Carter for being named Coach of the year by the Illinois Wrestling Coaches and Officials Association. The Falcons sent a school record 10 wrestlers to state, returning with two 2nd place finishers in Bentley Fields and Landen Lage and a 5th place in Hudson Babb (Fisher). The Falcons claimed 3rd Place in Team State competition. New last school year was the Pride of the Falcon Flock, a peer nominated recognition program for our staff. These people were recognized for going above and beyond for our students and staff. Congratulations to (clockwise from top left): MS Science Shawna Pondel, Elem custodian Danny Cole, Elem Cross Categorical teacher Karly Corley, HS Family & Consumer Science Miranda Leonard, MS English/Language Arts Brittany Shreffler and Elem parapro Eva Hood. Each was presented a gift card and the traveling Falcon necklace. Chloe Tjarks was named Gibson City’s Junior Citizen of the Year in March. Evan Landers-Kristensen won the 400m title at the IHSA State Track Meet in Charleston in May. Adlee Darnell placed 9th in Event Planning at the National FBLA Leadership Conference in San Antonio in July.
Lilyan Sizemore became the all time leading scorer for GCMS/GC/MS in boys’ and girls’ basketball. Our HS Boys’ Baseball team added another regional crown to their collection. Logan Ward was named to First Team All State in football. We had 3 students run cross country independently last fall. Keegan Dewall advanced to the state meet. Brysen Butler and Erin McCall each advanced to sectionals. Congratulations to Sandy Hathaway on her retirement as a long time paraprofessional at GCMS Elementary.
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Technology
We are 1 to 1 in grades 6-12 and issue Chromebooks to students and staff. Extra devices can be checked out in school libraries for dead batteries or other issues. Last year, we had a 5.3% average repair rate per quarter. We use these programs as a district:
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
ParentSquare Infinite Campus Microsoft Office Sora Digital Library CodeAI Code HS
Open AI Canva Gemini Meets WeVideo GimKit
Ed Puzzle Quizizz Kahoot IReady Magic School Kami
Google Classroom/Google Workspace is used by our teachers. This free platform allows students to access class material 24/7, inside and outside the classroom. All online resources are vetted for use according to SOPPA, a state and federal law that protects the privacy of student educational records. Most all Elementary and Middle School classrooms are outfitted with interactive touchscreen displays. The High School has ceiling mounted LCD projectors and interactive touchscreens at teacher request.
Curriculum Our curriculum is aligned with IL State Learning Standards and subject area curriculum reviews are held on a rotating 7 year cycle. Curriculum guides with scope and sequence assure student learning is articulated across grade levels and learning standards are consistent for every student. At the Elementary level, students receive daily instruction in Reading, Math, Social Studies or Science, Handwriting, and Physical Education. They also have Art, Music, Library and Computer instruction weekly. In Middle School, students also have the option to enroll in Chorus, Band and/or Art classes. As 8th graders, quarterly mini courses of Financial Literacy, Communication, Film Studies and Medical Detectives are taken. The high school operates on a credit system and graduation requires 25 credits: 4 English 3 Math 2 Science 4 PE .5 Speech .5 Health 2 Social Studies 2 electives
6 Advanced Placement (AP) courses are offered as are 13 Dual Credit classes, including Early College and Career Academy (ECCA) classes at Parkland.
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
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YOUR TAX DOLLAR$
Education Fund
.59 The district has 9 funds:
O&M .12
WC .11
Tort .06
Trans .06
Fire .02 Debt SS .01 .03
Education fund - instructional employee salaries/benefits, supplies, technology Operations and Maintenance - custodial salaries/benefits, materials, facilities upkeep, utilities, consumables Working Cash - savings acct Tort - legal services and liability reduction, insurance, risk management Transportation - bus service, fuel, vehicles, and maintenance Municipal Retirement and Social Security - pension funds Fire Prevention and Safety - ADA mandates, mitigate risks Debt Services - bond repayment Capital Projects - building projects (we have no current projects)
Relative to the state, GCMS instructional and operating expenditures are below the average.
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As the chart indicates, GCMS’s tax rate has steadily decreased in the last 10 years. While property values have exploded since 2020, the Board has consistently taken steps to reduce the rate while keeping services at the same level.
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
Looking back... Russ Leigh and Associates has long performed the district audit, traditionally presented to the Board at the October meeting. In 2025, a “clean” audit was presented with the district gaining “Recognition” status from the IL State Board of Education for having at least 6 months cash on hand. Our historical designations are illustrated below:
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This chart illustrates the projected fund balance as presented in the Budget Hearing at the July, ‘26 Board meeting. In some funds, we spent more than we ‘took in.’ In those cases, we dipped into our savings. The deficit number in the Education Fund is owing to an increase in instructional salary/benefits. The deficit number in the O&M Fund is owing to final payment for playground/track renovations The deficit number in the Transportation Fund is owing to the state choosing to prorate promised funds for the school year. The deficit number in the Fire/Safety Fund is owing to replacement of the Middle School HVAC unit.
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
Notice that all our fund balances are in “the black” and our expenditures came from ‘savings.’ We are projected to have approximately $10 million “in the bank.”
Looking ahead The High School’s HVAC system is, in many areas of the building, original to the 1955 structure. The boiler system is in constant need of repair. Replacing and upgrading the system will necessitate significant cosmetic disruption to the building and infrastructure, including asbestos remediation. The Board has been researching, discussing plans and possible alternatives. One potential funding solution is proposing a “penny sales tax” to voters. Over 70 Illinois counties already have this County Facility Tax, including Champaign, Livingston and McLean Counties. It’s essentially a user tax and if you’ve spent money in one of these counties, you’ve paid into their facility tax. What does it tax? Qualifying general retail merchandise What it excludes: Groceries (unprepared food), prescriptions and OTC meds, vehicles and farm equipment How does it pass? By a simple majority of a countywide vote in a local election How can funds be used? Building, renovations, safety and security and bond repayment Are there limitations? Funds may not be used for salaries, benefits or instructional costs. How are funds distributed? All revenue collected is distributed back to districts based on the number of resident students of the county enrolled in each district
County Facility Tax facts: GCMS has the most Ford County resident students of the schools in the county (PBL, TriPoint and GCMS) In the previous tax year, GCMS received $43,000 from other counties for GCMS students who are residents of those counties GCMS is projected to benefit approximately $900,000 per year if a County Facility Tax is adopted. Everyone who spends money in Ford Co would be contributing to our school!
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Need a speaker? Want to hear more? We’re here! Superintendent Jeremy Darnell is available to discuss anything GCMS related... finances, taxes, physical campus, our philosophy of teaching and learning... anything! Darnell.Jeremy@GCMSK12.org
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
Assistant Superintendent Erin Nuss is available to share information about our curriculum, textbooks, professional development activities, licensure requirements and subbing opportunities. She’s also amazing at writing grants and securing grant money! Nuss.Erin@GCMSK12.org
Director of Technology Walker Willis is available to present information about internet safety, screen time, Artificial Intelligence and other tech related issues. Willis.Walker@GCMSK12.org
We’ve also developed a presentation on the history of GCMS and its predecessor districts. We’re proud of where we’ve been and we’re proud of where we’re going! Riley.Susan@GCMSK12.org
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District Contacts
ANNUAL REPORT 2025-26
Superintendent’s Office Jeremy Darnell, Superintendent 307 N Sangamon Ave Gibson City, IL 60936 217.784.8296 GCMS Middle School Kent Nash, Principal 316 E 19th St Gibson City, IL 60936 217.784.8731
GCMS High School Kyle Bielfeldt, Principal 815 N Church Gibson City, IL 60936 217.784.4292
GCMS Elementary School Justin Kean, Principal 902 N Church Gibson City, IL 60936 217.784.4278
Erin Nuss, Asst Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction AJ Richard, Director of Student Services Lori Kristensen, Human Resources Beth Tabor, Accounts Payable & Transportation Doris DeFries, Finance Manager Bob Jones, Director of Maintenance Walker Willis, Director of Instructional Technology Ray Goin, Food Service Manager Email contact can be made: LastName.FirstName@gcmsk12.org
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