Winter 2021 UPDATE

update

SCHOOL FINANCE & BUDGETING ISSUE / WINTER 2021

S OFFICIA ES L N

INOIS ILL A IATION OC of SS

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INDISPENSABLE TOOL for SCHOOL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

www.iasbo.org

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OL BU HO SI SC

Learning & Networking to Help You Work Smarter!

Each Illinois ASBO member has with a unique perspective that can add value to the work you do every day. The amount of expertise that will be in the room at the 2022 Annual Conference, from school practitioners to industry providers, means that you will leave with new strategies to work smarter within your district or company!

School District & Service Associate Registration are Now Open!

Learn more at www.iasboconference.org

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

INSIDE

Illinois Association of School Business Officials UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021 / v.30 / i.02

THE NEXT ISSUE: LEADERSHIP & WELLNESS Peak Performance Through Healthy Leadership Habits

School districts need to be strategic and timely in making decisions on how to best utilize their ESSER funding. Learn how three districts have allocated these funds to support school operations and educational outcomes.

Cover Story by Susan Harkin, David Hill, Ed.D., and Curtis Saindon

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LOOKING FOR PAST ISSUES? Visit www.iasboupdate.org to access past articles and more!

How to Budget for Unfinished Learning The pandemic has given us all the chance to reimagine education.

It is time for a new learning environment full of options in all our schools — one that truly identifies and respects the individual needs of each member of the learning community.

By Dr. Theresa Rouse

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www.iasbo.org

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PERSPECTIVE FROM-THE-PODIUM

Making Sense of Your Financial Options. 07

Amending the

FROM-THE-OFFICE

Budgeting for Success. 09

FROM-THE-FIELD

New Terms, New Solutions. 11

SCHOOL BUSINESS 101

Budgeting in Pandemic: Challenges, Solutions and What Remains at the Core. 21

Reinforce your confidence in the process of amending the budget and gain some tips and important considerations.

By Myron Spiwak

20

Putting People at the Center of the Budget Learn how one district prioritizes both academics and social emotional health in everything they do, including allocating their resources.

By Jodi Megerle

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The Adequacy Impact of Flat EBF Funding through Inflation It is imperative Illinois get its fiscal house in order so it can adequately support Evidence-Based Funding. Dive deeper into the consequences of inadequate funding as well as the power of EBF when fully funded.

By Ralph Martire

RESOURCES

32 Illinois ASBO

Your New Home for Anytime, Anywhere Learning Learn how Illinois ASBO’s new online professional development hub is meeting member needs in an ever-changing learning landscape.

By Rebecca Wolz

ON MY LIST

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Learn about the power of timing in a book review from Illinois ASBO Executive Director/CEO Dr. Michael A. Jacoby. 41

The Final Word Whitney Draegert

Dir./Business Services, CSBO Twp. High Sch. Dist. 113 Whitney’s role is to support her district’s education process through sound financial practices. She believes that to be good stewards of the resources entrusted to them, they need to be efficient and effective with the use of district funds to ensure they are providing the maximum resources to students.

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www.iasbo.org

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THE

MAGA ZINE Illinois Association of School Business Officials

CALENDAR OF

Northern Illinois University, IA-103 108 Carroll Avenue DeKalb, IL 60115-2829 P: (815) 753-1276 F: (815) 516-0184 www.iasbo.org

EVENTS

UPDATE Editorial Advisory Board

Check out www.iasbo.org or the latest Calendar of Events included in the UPDATE mailing to see full seminar listings including location, PDC sponsorship and registration information.

January 2022

S 26 2 9 16 23 30

M 27 3 10 17 24 31

T 28 4 11 18 25 1

February 2022

W 29 5 12 19 26 2

T 30 6 13 20 27 3

F S 31 1 7 8 14 15 21 22 28 29 4 5

S 30 6 13 20 27 6

M T W T 31 1 2 3 7 8 9 10 14 15 16 17 21 22 23 24 28 1 2 3 7 8 9 10

F 4 11 18 25 4 11

S 5 12 19 26 5 12

March 2022

April 2022

S 27 6 13 20 27 3

S 27 3 10 17 24 1

M T W T F S 28 1 2 3 4 5 7 8 9 10 11 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 21 22 23 24 25 26 28 29 30 31 1 2 4 5 6 7 8 9

M 28 4 11 18 25 2

Event

T 29 5 12 19 26 3

W 30 6 13 20 27 4

T F S 31 1 2 7 8 9 14 15 16 21 22 23 28 29 30 5 6 7

Date

Time

1/11/22

9:00am

ISDLAF+ School Finance Seminar: Virtual

1/19/22

9:00am

Delegate Advisory Assembly

1/21/22

10:00am

PDC Networking Meeting

1/26/22

8:00am

Facilities Operations Program: Essentials of Ground Operations

1/28/22

9:00am

2022 Leadership Day

2/8/22

9:00am

Crisis Communication: Prepare, Respond, Reflect AAC #3008

Online

2/17/22 to 2/18/22

8:30am

2022 Leadership Conference

Itasca

2/17/22

8:00am

Support Professionals Half-Day Seminar: Student Activity Funds

Naperville

2/23/22

8:00am

Facilities Operations Program: Essentials of Custodial Operations

Arlington Heights

3/1/22 to 3/3/22

TBD

3/3/22

8:00am

Facilities Professionals Conference

3/3/22

9:00am

Effective Financial & Strategic Communications Among CSBOs, Supts & Admin Team - AAC #3663

3/8/22 to 3/11/22

8:00am

CPMM Facilities Certification Training & Exam

3/11/22

8:30am

Bookkeepers Conference

Rolling Meadows

3/15/22 3/16/22 3/17/22

TBD

ISDLAF+ School Finance Seminar

Naperville Peoria O’Fallon

4/11/22

9:00am

Delegate Advisory Assembly

Naperville

4/20/22

9:00am

Optimizing Transportation Operations, the Claim Process, and the Safe Transportation of Students

2022 Leadership Institute

Location Online Naperville TBD Arlington Heights Lisle

St. Charles Lombard Online TBD

Online

PDC MEMBERS Jacquelyn Bogan Special Education: Admininistration & Finance Amy Curtin Accounting Auditing & Financial Reporting Myron Spiwak Principles of School Finance Todd R. Drafall Public Policy, Advocacy & Intergovernmental Relations Todd Dugan Technology Timothy J. Gavin Budgeting & Financial Planning Raoul J. Gravel III, Ed.D. Communications Frances A. LaBella Legal Issues Daniel R. Mortensen, CPMM Planning & Construction Thomas M. Parrillo Purchasing Brian K. O’Keeffe Human Resource Management Brian Rominski CPMM, CPS Maintenance & Operations Anthony Ruelli Leadership Development Lyndl A. Schuster Ed.D. Sustainability Mark E. Staehlin Cash Management, Investments & Debt Management Justin D. Veihman Risk Management Wendy Sedwick Food Service Kenneth E. Surma Transportation BOARD & EXTERNAL RELATIONS MEMBERS Jan J. Bush President Charles L. Czachor SAAC Chair STAFF MEMBERS Michael A. Jacoby, Ed.D., SFO, CAE Executive Director / CEO (815) 753-9366, mjacoby@iasbo.org Susan P. Bertrand Deputy Executive Director / COO (815) 753-9368, sbertrand@iasbo.org Craig Collins Statewide Professional Development Coordinator, (630) 442-9203, ccollins@iasbo.org Rebekah L. Weidner Senior Copywriter / Content Strategist, (815) 753-9270, rweidner@iasbo.org Stacia Freeman Senior Graphic Designer (815) 753-9393, sfreeman@iasbo.org Kevin Nelligan Graphic Designer (815) 753-7654, knelligan@iasbo.org

Illinois ASBO Board of Directors

Jan J. Bush President Eric DePorter President-Elect David Bein, Ph.D., SFO Treasurer Mark W. Altmayer Immediate Past President 2019–22 Board of Directors Maureen A. Jones, Tamara L. Mitchell, Nicole Stuckert 2020–23 Board of Directors Anthony R. Arbogast, Edward J. Brophy, Patrick McDermott, Ed.D., SFO 2021-24 Board of Directors Todd R. Drafall, Sean Gordon, CPMM, CPS, Raoul J. Gravel, III, Ed. D.

Illinois ASBO Board Liaisons

Charles L. Czachor Service Associate Advisory Committee Chair Steven J. Kowalski Service Associate Advisory Committee Vice Chair Deborah I. Vespa ISBE Board Liaison Perry Hill IASB Board Liaison

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For a Complete Listing of Upcoming Winter Events Visit: www.iasbo.org/events/calendar

PERSPECTIVE / Board President

FROM–THE–PODIUM Making Sense of Your Financial Options Here we are in winter 2021, and we are still talking about COVID-19. It does not seem possible, yet somehow COVID-19 still plays a central role in everything we do in public education. In this edition of the UPDATE Magazine, the focus is “Setting Your Sights on Student Success: Connecting Budgets to Outcomes.” That has COVID and ESSER funds written all over it!

You have probably spent a significant amount of time thinking about how your district will spend ESSER funds – I know it is what keeps me up at night. We must consider that some Jan Bush BUSINESS MANAGER of the ESSER expenses we are incurring (salaries, benefits, online learning tools, laptops, Chromebooks, iPads, etc.) are not sustainable after the flow of federal funds end. It is time to MURPHYSBORO CUSD 186 start asking questions such as “How can we get the most bang from our buck?” and “Where can we spend money to help the most vulnerable students through strategies and interventions?”

SIMPLY SAYING

We can find solutions together that will allow our budgets to drive the success of our students and our districts.

ESSER III funds require the allocation of no less than 20 percent to addressing the “learning gap,” and the challenge is that part of this may be accomplished through summer learning and/or summer enrichment, extended day, after school programs or extended school year programs. That sounds great in theory, except our exhausted faculty and staff are already under so much pressure trying to educate our students under less than ideal conditions, and now we have to ask them to work before and/or after school and during the summer. How are we going to staff before/after school programs and comprehensive summer school programs when we have a teacher and staff shortage and our existing staff is worn out from: • In-person daily instruction • Dealing with the effects of 18 months of lost instructional time for many students • Preparing remote lessons or homework packets for students who are quarantined at home due to COVID-19

• Dealing with the social, emotional and mental health needs of students • Trying to take care of themselves and each other • Weekly COVID-19 testing of unvaccinated staff These issues can be extremely overwhelming; however, the influx of ESSER grant funds presents the perfect opportunity to connect our budgets to student outcomes for the success of our students. But where do we start?

Hopefully wherever you are in your process, you will find additional resources and ideas in this magazine. Ensuring student success will take a lot of planning and input from all stakeholder groups in your district: board, teachers, staff, administration, students and parents.

Once again, Illinois ASBO’s 2021-2022 theme, Stronger Together, Smarter Together rings more true than ever.

Through collaborative efforts and doing what we do best, thinking outside the box, we can find solutions together that will allow our budgets to drive the success of our students and our districts. www.iasbo.org

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While many things remain uncertain, the coming year will certainly present new challenges for school and industry leaders. Gain skills to to help your team move forward with new levels of communication, trust and emotional intelligence.

REGISTER NOW for 2022 LEADERSHIP EVENTS 2022 LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE February 17-18, 2022 2022 LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE IMMERSION EXPERIENCES March 1-3, 2022 September 28-29, 2022 8 |

VISIT www.iasboleadership.org to take the next step on your leadership journey!

UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

PERSPECTIVE / Executive Director

FROM–THE–OFFICE Budgeting for Succes It is never too early to start thinking about next year’s budget. In fact, most of you have been wrestling with issues such as ESSER funding, learning loss, social/emotional loss and COVID-19 pandemic expenses daily. Unfortunately, the uncertainty related to mask mandates and in-person learning are haunting, to say the least.

This issue of the UPDATE Magazine is your primer for the FY23 budget and beyond. ESSER will still be with us for a while and if ever there was a time to fine tune your budgeting acumen it is now.

Micheal A. Jacoby, Ed.D., CAE, SFO EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/ CEO ILLINOIS ASBO

I have often said that “a budget is simply the educational program written in numbers.”

I trust that each of you are engaging with your instructional counterparts closely as you begin budget thoughts for next year. The school business official today is really a partner with that “other side” of the school district and you cannot afford to not understand the proposals and needs that are being discussed.

SIMPLY SAYING

I have often said that “a budget is simply the educational program written in numbers.”

Recently, our current Treasurer, Dr. Dave Bein, who is the Assistant Superintendent for Business at Barrington CUSD 220, and I partnered with Stan Wisler of Forecast5 to present at the ASBO International Conference on Assessing and Improving Your District’s Strength and Stability. As an introduction to the session and throughout, we spoke about the changing role of the school business official.

Today, every decision a school district makes has financial implications and the plethora of data and information that is available to school leaders must be studied and ever present in the discussion about the future of the school district. And much of that comes from the school business official. The mission cannot be disconnected from the financial stability equation and every business official should be “in the room” when discussing that mission. I guess the real question for each of our members is, “Are you in the room?” Developing a budget as an outsider looking in is no longer sufficient to making sure you build something that truly reflects the educational program in numbers. And just saying “no” to budget requests is not a leadership behavior that is responsible nor acceptable in this climate.

Take this issue and study it. Reflect on the current status of your budget development process and the complexities that have emerged with new funding sources. Understand the impact of your professional practices as it relates to your colleagues and be sure you are not just hunkered down waiting for the world to stop spinning. Now is your time to have immeasurable impact – do not miss this opportunity to be an influencer and driver of change that can impact the future of the students your serve.

This type of leadership behavior may be a new challenge for some of you. If you are stuck in the age-old adage “that is not how we have done it before,” meditate on this reality put forth by Jon Madonna, “Nothing stops an organization faster than people who believe that the way you worked yesterday is the best way to work tomorrow.” Be bold, be there, be informed and be honest – your district needs that from you this budgeting season.

www.iasbo.org

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DISCOVER AND SHARE INNOVATION Take your facilities to the next level with new, innovative solutions and best practices. Experience a wide variety of breakout sessions, networking time with facilities professionals from across the state and a packed marketplace of service providers ready to provide solutions for your district.

ATTENDEE AND EXHIBITOR

REGISTRATION IS OPEN! VISIT

WWW.IASBO.ORG/FPC FOR MORE INFORMATION

Join us in person on Thursday, March 3, 2022!

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

PERSPECTIVE / SAAC Chair

FROM–THE–FIELD New Terms, New Solutions Each year, hundreds, sometimes thousands, of words are added to the English Dictionary.

Merriam-Webster, one of the more famous custodians of the English language, publishes the following statement on its website: “Language is a measure of culture, but also, in many ways, language can be a measure of time.” Words are constantly evolving and/or being created to explain and provide context to the time and the world that we inhabit.

It will come as no shock that words such as COVID-19, long hauler, pod and bubble all were either added as new words or assigned new meanings or definitions in the past 18 months.

Hard pass, cancel culture, coworking and even silver fox have been seamlessly integrated into our daily vernacular. I am personally thankful for the ever-expanding list of new words as my Words with Friends scores has never been better.

Charlie Czachor SR. V.P. INVESTMENT SVCS./ LGIP INVESTMENT DIRECTOR PMA FINANCIAL NETWORK LLC

SIMPLY SAYING

Illinois ASBO is here to swiftly digest these new terms and quickly disseminate meanings, definitions and solutions.

Illinois ASBO is no stranger to the ever-changing lexicon of new words, jargon, acronyms and phraseology. I am sometimes curious how some of these words and phrases come to fruition. While some are straightforward and obvious, I often imagine the process involves harnessing the random awesomeness of scooping a spoonful of Campbell’s A to Z SpaghettiOs (unsolicited advice – do not eat SpaghettiOs, they are not as good as you remember, really). The point is, while the CARES Act, ESSER, ARPA, etc. have not quite made their way into the shiny new Webster’s Dictionary they are very much a part of the Illinois ASBO world, and are terms that need to be deciphered, understood and factored into the school business ecosystem.

Illinois ASBO staff, members and Service Associates may feel like they need Enigma Machines and Little Orphan Annie Decoder Pins to break down and decipher the dizzying new terms, but this network of members provides many tools and resources to help make sense of it all.

Illinois ASBO is here to swiftly digest these new terms and quickly disseminate meanings, definitions and solutions through an arsenal of mediums to educate members on the ever-evolving terms that define the present time. I encourage you to look to regional gatherings, seminars, Lunch & Learn webinars, conferences, peer2peer as well as the UPDATE Magazine to keep up with the very latest developments. This issue focuses on some of these new terms, including ESSER and EBF, with a specific focus throughout on the budgeting process.

www.iasbo.org

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CONTRIBUTORS

Susan Harkin

David Hill, Ed.D.

Ralph Martire

Superintendent Comm. Unit Sch. Dist. 300

Superintendent Comm. Cons. Sch. Dist. 93

Executive Director Center for Tax & Budget Accountability

Has been a school business official for over 15 years and indirectly worked with her current district for over 25 years. Susan is the Vice Chair of the State Evidenced-Based Funding Professional Review Panel and serves on the ISBE ESSA Site Level Financial Reporting Committee.

She is an Illinois ASBO Past President and an ASBO International Board of Director.

Earned his CSBO endorsement from NIU, his Doctorate in Educational Leadership and Organizational Change and his Master of Arts in Secondary Education from Roosevelt University. David is a member of several professional organizations, has published numerous articles in educational journals and is an Illinois ASBO Past President.

Has served on the U.S. Department of Education Equity and Excellence Commission. Ralph has received the Champion of Freedom Award and the Ben C. Hubbard Leadership Award.

Beyond his role at the CTBA, Ralph is also a distinguished lecturer on public policy for Roosevelt University.

susan.harkin@d300.org

hilld@ccsd93.com

rmartire@ctbaonline.org

Jodi J. Megerle, Ed.D.

Dr. Theresa Rouse

Curtis Saindon

Asst. Superintendent of Student Services River Trails SD 26

Superintendent Joliet Public Elem. SD 86

Asst. Supt./Business, CSBO Woodridge Elem. SD 68

Now an Assistant Superintendent, Jodi began her career as a special education teacher and worked as a middle school assistant principal and principal prior to moving to district office.

Is in her sixth year as Superintendent at District 86. The district serves nearly 10,500 pre-K through 8th grade students, 91 percent of whom are students of color with universal access to free and reduced-price meals.

Brings over 25 years of school business experience, serving as the CFO, Asst. Superintendent and Treasurer at Kankakee SD 111 and Frankfort CUSD 157-C. In his current role, Curt oversees all ancillary services including operations and maintenance, custodial, transportation, food service, construction, finance, budgeting and investments.

jmegerle@rtsd26.org | UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021 12

trouse@joliet86.org

saindonc@woodridge68.org

Myron Spiwak

Rebecca Wolz

Dir./Business Services New Trier Twp. HSD 203

LMS Administrator Illinois ASBO

Has been in his current role for the past six years. Prior to that he spent five and a half years as Assistant Director of Business for Warren Township HSD 121. Myron is a Certified Public Accountant with 18 years of corporate accounting experience before entering education.

He is currently Chair of the Illinois ASBO Principles of School Finance PDC.

Joined the Illinois ASBO staff in April 2021, overseeing the new virtual learning platform, Illinois ASBOnline, as well as other digital professional development programs.

With a background in teaching and educational technology for the past five years, Becky is passionate about the transformational power of technology to enhance professional learning.

spiwakm@newtrier.k12.il.us

rwolz@iasbo.org

Would you like to be an UPDATE Contributor?

UPDATE articles are brainstormed and solicited through the Illinois ASBO Editorial Advisory Board.

If you have an issue you feel needs to be brought to the forefront, present your ideas to Rebekah Weidner at rweidner@iasbo.org.

The issue themes that we will be soliciting articles for next year include:

• Technology • Purchasing • Risk Management • Accounting We look forward to seeing new faces on this page as we continue to keep the UPDATE an indispensable resource for school business management.

www.iasbo.org

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$

Budget

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

ARTICLE

By Dr. Theresa Rouse SUPERINTENDENT JOLIET PUBLIC ELEM. SD 86

How to Budget for Unfinished Learning The 2021-22 school year has gotten off with a roaring start as you hear communities talk about getting “back to normal.” I think Albert Einstein said it best, “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.” As educators, we need to consider this definition of insanity as we manage our return to in-person learning and the future of education in our organizations.

The global pandemic has provided an exceptional opportunity for us to consider how we do the work of education moving forward. Returning to “normal” is not an option in my humble opinion. If we simply return to doing the work of education in the same way we did it before the global pandemic, then we have missed an opportunity to make lasting change and we fall into the definition of insanity that Einstein provided.

The 2020-21 school year brought about many changes that were forced upon us all in order to keep our students and staff safe. One of those changes included some degree of remote learning for students. Some districts were able to manage in-person hybrid settings with limited remote learning needed, while other districts were fully remote for the majority or the entirety of the school year.

Learning Loss or Unfinished Learning?

We all heard the collective media reports of how bad remote learning was for students and the overuse of the term “learning loss.” I am not convinced of that reporting to be based on truly factual evidence, but instead emotionally charged reactions.

Did students experience loss during the global pandemic? Yes, but their learning was not lost; it can be better described as unfinished. Students and staff survived the global pandemic. Now, let’s take the time to determine what was unfinished from last year and help our students and staff reach appropriate targets during this school year.

Was remote learning productive for all students? No, but it was for some. Was remote learning productive for all staff? No, but it was for some. However, remote learning can be a highly effective means of educating students in a variety of settings and situations. We must consider what we can learn from the past school year and maintain options for our students that are highly effective to meet their individual learning needs.

Building a Better Educational Program

As the Superintendent of Joliet Public School District 86, I found the need to consider expanding our options for students rather than restricting options for students during the 2021-22 school year. However, doing what was done in the past was not good enough, we wanted to build a better educational program with options for the future. Remote learning is a new option added to our offerings for students. As we continue to work toward ensuring all students have what they need to be the best student they can be and that our staff have the tools they need to be their best, our options should increase rather than decrease.

We built our remote education program based on the information specified in Illinois School Code (105 ILCS 5/10-29). The criteria established for student participation needed to be focused on supporting students who have a medical necessity to be remote while the pandemic is still an issue. An application was developed for families to consider the importance of this program being for the entire school year and priority given to students with medical need. By focusing on the students with medical needs, we were able to set a cap of approximately one percent of our student population as potential participants. As an elementary district serving nearly 10,500 students in Pre-K through eighth grade, it was also important to keep our classrooms whole to the extent possible. Therefore, our partnership with an online content provider included the use of their Illinois certified virtual teachers and our district staff as mentors for the students.

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Has the road been bumpy as we moved forward with our program? Yes. However, we are continually reviewing the success criteria related to student outcomes and organizational outcomes to make modifications and adjustments along the way. Student outcomes focus on more than academics as there is a social emotional side to learning that also must be part of the formula for success. Organizationally, we are looking for any indicators that would support continuing the remote education program beyond the pandemic. Should students still have options beyond the pandemic? I believe they should. We need to be certain we are providing a highly effective remote learning setting for our students and building it to incorporate the use of our own teachers and eventually our own content versus purchased online content.

Student outcomes focus on more than academics as there is a social emotional side to learning that also must be part of the formula for success.

Five Keys to Effective Remote Learning

Truly effective remote learning, otherwise known as e-learning or digital learning, can be done with a balance of planning, training and support for staff and students involved, as well as their families. The Digital Learning Collaborative (www.digitalllearningcolab.com) has brought together resources that provide research-based supports for districts that are considering remote educational programs for their students. As a member district of the collaborative, I have contributed to and used many of these resources to assist the district’s strategic thinking about how we ensure we have appropriate options for our students.

When considering launching a remote education program, it is critical to consider five major themes. The themes and questions to consider within each theme are as follows:

Why should we have a remote education program?

• What is your purpose of adding remote education program to your options for students?

• What problems are you trying to solve?

• What and how do you want students in your remote education program to learn?

Who will be involved in the remote education program?

• Are there specific student groups to be involved?

Medically fragile students?

Academically advanced students?

Special education students?

Bilingual education students?

General education students?

Other?

• Are there specific teachers to be involved?

How will you recruit teachers for the remote education program?

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

What training will teachers need to be successful?

What support and/or tools will need to be provided?

• Are there other support staff needed for the program?

Will you need paraprofessionals to provide support to students in the online platform?

Will you need special education staff to ensure appropriate attention to each student’s individual education plan?

Will you provide students access to online social workers or other social emotional support staff?

ARTICLE / Remote Learning Moving Forward

What content and/or software will you need and how will you know it is high quality?

• Do you have online content readily available?

Are your teachers equipped to build online courses? » Are teachers trained to build online courses? » Do you have time to ensure teachers have the training necessary to build online courses?

Do you have any partnerships with online course providers? » What online course providers will you consider? » How will you know which online course provider is best suited for your district? » What resources do you need to review to confirm the online course provider is aligned with your purpose?

Will you use Open Educational Resources (OER) to supplement the online courses you offer? » What criteria will be used to review OER supplemental resources? » Who will ensure student privacy compliance for OER resources?

• Does the online content provide appropriate enrichment support for students?

How is differentiation for individual student needs addressed in the online content you are considering?

Is the online content focused on competency/ mastery or seat-time?

• Does the online content provide appropriate remedial support for students?

How is differentiation for individual student needs addressed in the online content you are considering?

Does the online content allow for mastery of gap areas rather than full review of course materials?

• Does the online content provide for multiple modalities of learning online?

Asynchronous – teacher and student are working independent of each other.

Synchronous – teacher and student are working together online.

Offline – student is accessing content teacher has provided separate from the online platform.

Combination – a mixture of asynchronous, synchronous and offline.

How will students and teachers access the remote education program?

• • • • •

Do your students and teachers have appropriate devices to access the online content?

Do you have a Learning Management System?

Do you have a Student Information System that will communicate well with your Learning Management System?

Do you have appropriate content technology tools for students and teachers?

Do all students and teachers have appropriate connections to broadband internet access?

When do you plan to begin your remote education program?

• • • •

Will your program support ongoing enrollments at any time during the school year?

Will your program require a specific time commitment from families?

What is your communication plan to your teachers, students and families?

What training will you provide to all stakeholders to ensure a successful launch and a sustained program long-term?

These themes and questions may seem like a lot to consider, but they are essential to a successful launch of a remote education program. If the time is taken to address all these areas, then moving into implementation becomes less of a struggle for all involved parties. Will there still be bumps and challenges along the way? Absolutely, but the bumps and challenges will be easier to surmount if proper planning has taken place.

www.iasbo.org

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A Cycle for Continuous Improvement

To ensure effectiveness of any remote education program, there needs to be a continuous improvement cycle of inquiry every step of the way. A continuous improvement cycle can be an onerous process and one that should be taken in incremental steps to ensure the quality of the process is of a high level and that the process provides information that is helpful for improvement.

Important aspects of a continuous improvement process must include the role of the educator, the role of the student, the role of the school leader, equity across the system, accessibility on all platforms, stakeholder engagement, ongoing professional learning, as well as systems and structures within the organization. By following a comprehensive cycle of inquiry, manageable steps toward improvement can be made to ensure sustainability over the longer term.

Budgeting for Unfinished Learning

Budgeting for unfinished learning is like peeling an onion, one layer at a time. Each onion, just as each school district, is different and has different layers that will need to be considered when adding options like remote education programs to the opportunities for students. Is a remote education program right for your district? Yes, if you put the time into the process when you start and all the way through the implementation.

Budgeting for unfinished learning is like peeling an onion, one layer at a time.

Let’s take what we learned from last year and focus on what is most important as we move forward.

Reimagining Education

Let’s remember the words of Einstein and stop doing the same thing over and over while expecting a different result. Change may be uncomfortable, but it is necessary and appropriate. The global pandemic has given us all the chance to reimagine what education needs to be. The 2021-22 school year will continue to be overlaid with public health unknowns. With this in mind, let’s take what we learned from last year and focus on what is most important as we move forward. The old traditional march through the curriculum must end. It is time for a new learning environment full of options in all our schools — one that truly identifies and respects the individual needs of each member of the learning community.

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

PERSPECTIVE / On the Profession

SCHOOL BUSINESS 101 How did your budgeting process look different this year considering pandemic changes and the return to in-person instruction? district might have had a ‘relatively’ easier time than most with our FY22 budget process, since we brought students “ Our back in person for the entire FY21 school year. We had a robust basis of cost from FY21 that we could leverage for FY22 budgeting purposes.

I think that one of the biggest changes in terms of our FY22 budget was trying to assess the revenue and cost associated with our food service program (once the summer food service program was extended as being free for all students for the entire FY22 school year). In terms of operations, we decided to permanently hire our ‘COVID Custodians’ who were initially hired on a temporary basis for FY21. The other largest change in the FY22 budget was related to the ESSER funds that our district received. We received input from staff, families and community members during multiple board meetings. Then, cabinet members and building leaders worked together to design plans to spend those additional funds.”

MINDY BRADFORD, Executive Dir./Finance & Operations, Yorkville CUSD 115

is always a game of building blocks. Like any other year, we started by establishing our “ Budgeting foundation, including known personnel and operational expenses. As we continued to build up, we leveraged tried-and-true formulas used and updated over the years. Then came the finishing touches, everything we didn't know at the time and struggled to predict, including services to support our students as they returned to in-person learning possibly for the first time since March 2020. While it was a challenge, we reverted to what we do best: we brought together experts and stakeholders and processed options. Through this collaboration, we were able to compile our best estimate of revenues and expenditures. At the end of the day, the challenges were different, but the collaborative, zero-based budgeting process works the same.”

DR. R.J. GRAVEL, Associate Superintendent, Glenbrook HSD 225 biggest change this year was factoring in how we planned on using all our ESSER “ The funds over the next 1-3 years. Many of these expenditures will be one-time in nature, so we had to look at our general ledger to ensure that we had accounts established to meet the needs of the organization in FY22 and beyond.”

DR. BRIAN O'KEEFFE, Asst. Supt./Business Operations, Wheaton CUSD 200 a typical year we are pretty specific on the budget as a planning document and try to strictly “ Inadhere to it. Last year and then again this year, we had to do a better job of embracing the unknown.

Through spring and summer there were a lot of variables that were not yet dialed in: remote learning, quarantine support, extra nurses and custodial staff, wage adjustments due to labor shortages, increased use of substitutes, supply chain disruptions, etc. To accommodate for this, we increased some miscellaneous expense line items and have made it clear that budget amendments will most likely be necessary. The board has been supportive and understanding in recognizing the operations of a school building will need to change throughout the year in response to the outside variables.”

JUSTIN VEIHMAN, Chief School Business Official, Palos CCSD 118

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Amending the

When a board of education adopts the fiscal year budget each September, it approves the spending plan for the year based on the best information available to the district administration at that time. However, unforeseen circumstances (a pandemic comes to mind) may occur during the school year that requires an amendment to the adopted budget.

The mechanics of the process are similar to the procedures followed for adopting the original budget .

Analyze the Data

The district should review financial activity regularly to determine if an amendment is necessary, and it is important to analyze the data at the State Budget Form level. These variances dictate whether a line item transfer will suffice, or an amended budget must be adopted. If a district can address a budget discrepancy via a transfer from another line item within the same fund, this can be done by a board resolution. This helpful option allows the CSBO to reallocate existing dollars within a fund to align with trends that have emerged in specific functions. The total aggregate amount of any line items transfers cannot exceed 10 percent of the total budget of that fund to use this vehicle. If it does, the district must follow the amendment process.

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021 2021

ARTICLE

By Myron Spiwak

DIR./BUSINESS SERVICES NEW TRIER TWP. HSD 203

Important Considerations for Amendments

Review

Timeline

Requirements for a budget amendment include: • Post notice of a budget hearing and availability of budget for public inspection for at least 30 days prior to the budget hearing.

• Adopt the amended budget at a public meeting held after the budget hearing.

• Post the amended budget on the district website.

• Submit the amended budget electronically to ISBE within 30 days of adoption.

Here are some things to consider once you have decided to amend the budget. If this is something that has not been done recently by your district, be sure to have a concrete explanation for the superintendent and board about the reason and methodology for the changes. Many districts adopt an amended budget nearly every fiscal year, but the goal for the CSBO should be to present an original budget in September that does not require any amendments.

Even though the situation that initiates the need for the amendment may arise early in the fiscal year, it makes sense to wait until May or June to complete the process.

Pay close attention to the board meeting schedule for the year, however. There are public notice and public inspection requirements that must be met, and some districts have earlier meetings (or perhaps skip a month) in the summer. The amended budget must be adopted by the board prior to June 30.

Message

The message you convey about the amended budget is important. Ideally, the reason is clearly because an event occurred that could not be foreseen. The amendment process can certainly be used to correct a budgeting mistake, but that is not the best scenario for the CSBO. Mistakes happen of course, and it is better to correct them and have an accurate budget.

As long as the district is going through the process, one recommendation would be to use this opportunity to review the entire budget and make any other significant revisions to the original budget that would not have warranted an amendment on their own. Once again, this is something that should be explained, and would likely be limited to a few additional items rather than several pages of revisions.

Once the process has been completed, do not forget to reflect the new budget amounts in any reports that you prepare, particularly if you are modifying data that was generated by your accounting system. Any headings that refer to the fiscal year budget should be edited in order to differentiate between the original and amended amounts.

This brings up another key point: make sure you are familiar with the necessary steps in your software to formally amend or revise your budget, as you do not want to lose the valuable historical data, and also do not want to create a situation where the general ledger does not match the State Budget Form provided to ISBE.

Utilize Your Resources

Amending the budget is a pretty straightforward process. Hopefully this overview has reinforced your confidence in the process and perhaps given you a usable tip or two. The district’s audit firm can likely answer any questions, and as always, take advantage of the many resources available through Illinois ASBO and ISBE if you need more information about this or any topic!

www.iasbo.org

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

ARTICLE

By Susan Harkin

SUPERINTENDENT COMM. UNIT SCH. DIST. 300

David Hill, Ed.D.

SUPERINTENDENT COMM. CONS. SCH. DIST. 93

Curtis Saindon

ASST. SUPT./BUSINESS, CSBO WOODRIDGE ELEM. SD 68

Schools and states across the country have been allocated significant financial resources from the American Recovery Program’s Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ARP ESSER) Fund. School districts need to be strategic and timely in making decisions on how to best utilize these funds. The best way to determine how to spend the funds is relatively straightforward in practice. However, it may feel more challenging because these funds are new, the grant timeline is quick and there is a much broader range of possibilities compared to other federal education grant programs.

Read on to learn how three districts have allocated their ESSER funds to support school operations and educational outcomes.

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COMMUNITY CONSOLIDATED School District 93 (CCSD93) Enrollment: 3,700 students Budget: $76M ESSER Funding: Approx. $4.8M CCSD93 has used the following framework to plan for the spending of the district allocated ESSER funds: • First, we determined local needs and identified a set of potential approaches to meeting those needs.

• Second, we did our research to determine what was possible and what is not feasible.

• Third, we surveyed our community in an effort to align our needs with the needs identified by our families.

• Finally, we prioritized spending in a cost-effective manner.

As we worked to determine local needs to identify potential approaches, we listed the following two categories to focus our planning: cleaning/sanitizing and student learning loss. Those two categories helped us determine what was important to maintain in-person learning in a healthy and safe environment while also recognizing and appreciating that learning gaps exist for our students as a result of the global pandemic.

Cleaning/Sanitizing

We then took our potential approaches and gathered information on how financial resources could be spent to improve the cleaning and sanitizing of classrooms and spaces across the district. We began our research by conducting an inventory of all cleaning equipment to determine the quantity and quality of our existing cleaning machines. This exercise revealed that many of our vacuums, cleaning machines, floor scrubbers, etc. had gotten old and were not as efficient and reliable as they were when new. Cleaning was a priority for us, so vendors were contacted to obtain pricing to purchase new and more efficient cleaning machines.

Sanitizing was another approach that we believed was important. In addition to new equipment, ESSER funds were also used to purchase masks, sanitizer, gloves and other supplies necessary to clean and sanitize our buildings. Additionally, we needed to develop a process to sanitize/ionize a classroom or space after a positive COVID-19 diagnosis was confirmed. The next step was to conduct research on possible solutions to sanitize/ionize a classroom quickly and efficiently. As a result of our work, vendors were contacted to provide demonstrations, pricing and availability of machines in an effort to ionize classrooms and spaces quickly and efficiently after a positive COVID-19 case.

Our commitment was to provide our students and staff

with a healthy and safe learning environment to ensure that in-person learning could occur and continue safely.

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021 2021

ARTICLE / District Use of ESSER Funding

Addressing Learning Loss

Learning loss was also a critical priority for these financial resources. It was determined that our district wanted to use some of the available funds to provide opportunities for students to receive different interventions/opportunities to close some of those learning gaps and provide social and emotional support. The following programs were researched, discussed and ultimately implemented in our district: • Summer school for two consecutive years, offered to four hundred targeted students, focused on improvement in English Language Arts and math state standards.

• Providing stipend opportunities for teachers to provide before and after school tutoring for our students who we knew needed additional help in a variety of subject areas.

• Hiring additional licensed staff positions to reduce class sizes in primary grade levels to ensure that fundamentals were reinforced with our youngest learners.

• Restorative circle training for staff to implement daily community circles in each classroom designed to provide social and emotional support for our students.

These are just a few examples of how CCSD93 is spending ESSER funds to help minimize learning loss and accelerate academic growth. CCSD93 has worked hard, throughout this ESSER grant process, to identify specific uses for the funds all designed to help our students maximize their academic, social and emotional potential.

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WOODRIDGE ELEMENTARY School District 68 Enrollment: 3,000 students Budget: $54M ESSER Funding: Approx. $4.5M When COVID-19 hit us like a tidal wave back in February/March of 2020, we, like many other school districts were ill prepared to transition to remote learning on a moments’ notice. Initially we thought we might be off through Spring Break and then back in school. Looking back, we really had no clue how big and all-consuming this pandemic would become for our nation and the world. When the Governor initially declared a statewide school shutdown in mid-March it allowed us a little time to evaluate what we needed to do to provide real remote learning options for our students. We were not a one-to-one school district, and we did not send devices home every night with our students, but instead left them at school on charging carts in the classrooms overnight. ESSER COVID Relief funding, whether through the CARES Act, CRSSA, or the most recent aid package through the ARP Act, all helped us deal with different aspects of providing educational services for our students while also addressing the unique needs created by the pandemic. To briefly put that funding in perspective, we are an elementary school district of just under 3,000 students in DuPage County, with just under 40% low income, and we received about $300K in round one, about $1.2M in round two and about $3M in round three.

Our initial ESSER I monies were directed toward purchasing additional Chromebooks so we could get to full one-to-one status and buying cases so they could safely be transported home. We also purchased some online and distance learning software and curricular supports to assist with remote learning. Additionally, we broke down our charging carts and bought some additional charging bricks to ensure that all devices could be charged remotely at home. Finally, we helped our low-income families secure adequate internet service by partnering with Comcast to provide a year of free service to our low-income families.

ESSER II funds were used during the 2020-2021 school year to provide additional teachers to allow for hybrid learning, where some students were in-person (about 80 percent) while others remained at home (about 20 percent). We hired 15 additional teachers to support remote learning. We also provided for some additional curricular and SEL supports to help our students cope with their current situation and prepare to transition back to in-person learning.

ESSER III funds will be spent this school year and next, and will focus on reducing class size, especially in the early elementary grade levels, to help combat learning loss and get our kids back on track. We hired 20 additional teachers this year and we expect to keep as many as possible onboard next year with the leftover funding available at year-end. We are also providing a “jump start” summer school this year and next year, as well as additional “after school specials” programming, to provide additional academic supports to those most in need. Finally, we are ramping up our SEL efforts and keeping a keen eye on the mental health of our students and our staff.

In closing, we moved from technology supports to hybrid/remote learning supports to addressing learning loss with ESSER relief funds, and all our efforts were intended to help students cope with the effects of the pandemic and then recover from the impact of the pandemic.

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021 2021

ARTICLE / District Use of ESSER Funding

COMMUNITY UNIT School District 300 (CCSD300) Enrollment: 20,357 students Budget: $348M ESSER Funding: Approx. $30M Throughout the pandemic, District 300 has focused on using ESSER funds to keep our staff and students safe and provide academic support to our students. At this point, the district has spent all of its ESSER I funding, has committed its ESSER II funding, and is making plans for using ESSER III funding.

For ESSER I funding, like most districts, these funds were used to purchase PPE and provide additional supervision/ staffing to return our students to their classrooms after the winter break. In most cases, we needed to quickly make decisions to ensure we had the PPE in place when students returned. There was not much stakeholder involvement during this time.

For ESSER II funding, the administrative team focused on determining what educational supports would be necessary for our students when they returned in the fall. The district looked at providing core instruction support in our primary grades at our elementary schools and interventionists for our middle and high schools. Once an instructional support model was developed, the plan was reviewed with our building principals for their input and revised accordingly.

For ESSER III funding, the district focused its attention on addressing the challenges of bringing 100 percent of our students back. That funding has included paying and hiring staff to assist with a testing clinic to support our test to stay program. We have hired additional staff in our buildings to enforce COVID-19 prevention strategies such as case management and masking policies. We have purchased additional PPE, such as HEPA filters, due to our buildings’ increased number of students. Our initial ESSER III funding has allowed us to make purchases to keep our students safe in our facilities.

As we enter our third school operating under COVID-19, we are just beginning to understand where our students are academically and emotionally. As we gain knowledge about our students and by dialoguing with our principals, we will determine what support should look like. We have also solicited community feedback on the use of ESSER III dollars on the district website. This fall, we began to solicit input from our principals and our community to determine how the remaining ESSER III funding will be used. Due to District 300’s large ESSER III dollar allocation, we are also looking at the possibility of facility enhancements to improve our HVAC systems to align with COVID-19 ventilation recommendations.

One of the biggest challenges associated with ESSER dollars will be when these funds are no longer available. One will wonder what COVID protocols will never go away post-pandemic. We know that going through an airport is vastly different post-911. If our COVID protocols become the norm, they may, unfortunately, be a drain on all of our budgets moving forward, and at what expense to our current programs?

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Putting People at the Center of the Budget

Our district motto is Head Ready+Heart Ready=Life Ready, endorsing the notion that emotional wellbeing is just as important as academics for life success.

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

ARTICLE

By Jodi Megerle

ASST. SUPT./STUDENT SERVICES RIVER TRAILS SCHOOL DISTRICT 26

As the 2021-2022 school year came into view, teachers and staff could not wait to welcome students back into buildings full time. We were so excited to plan for a “normal” start to the school year. However, as COVID has proven repeatedly, no matter how much one prepares, things continue to change and we have discovered that things are not back to “normal” quite yet.

Fortunately, River Trails School District 26 has maintained the goal of supporting kids both academically and emotionally, even prior to the pandemic. We have focused efforts on both student and staff wellbeing for several years now through our district’s strategic plan. This plan includes a very specific interest in social emotional learning (SEL) for both staff and students. Our district motto is Head Ready + Heart Ready = Life Ready, endorsing the notion that emotional wellbeing is just as important as academics for life success. We are in year two of a five-year plan and have committed to detailed objectives supporting students’ and staff members’ social emotional learning and growth. This long-term effort provided our district with a solid foundation prior to COVID-19; however, we know there is much learning and growing to do.

Reviewing District Resources

In preparation for the return of students and staff, we utilized the most current research to identify priorities going into the 2021-2022 school year. Current district priorities coupled with recent COVID-19 research has focused our direction and in turn, how to allocate district resources. Some of the greatest resources supporting this work are money, time and staffing (human capital), all of which have extreme value and are available in limited quantity. Therefore, it is our responsibility to monitor the return we are getting from our investments, ensuring we are maximizing our valuable resources.

A reallocation of financial resources and time has allowed the district to make significant changes to our approach, with little to no excess cost to the school district. Financially, we have redistributed building monies from academic supports to SEL supports. The district has traditionally set aside grant funding to purchase and replenish academic interventions at each of our buildings, which will continue, with a change in allocation.

Allocating Resources to Support Students

Research has shown that early identification of students in need of social emotional support is critical as we return to school full time. Therefore, some of the academic monies have been reallocated this year to support social emotional interventions, such as a universal SEL screener to use kindergarten through eighth grade. The screener is designed to gather information on social emotional functioning. In our younger grades, some of the areas we will target include classroom belonging, engagement and supportive relationships. These areas directly correlate with students returning from various learning structures during the 2020-2021 school year. Older students at the middle school will provide feedback related to growth mindset, engagement and teacher-student relationships. The gathering of this information allows us to be more deliberate and focused with our built-in SEL time at both elementary and middle schools. We can specifically design lessons to support students’ actual needs rather than following a typical scope and sequence of lessons. If different grade levels of students show varying need, we can adjust accordingly. A more purposeful focus allows us to better use our time, one of our most valuable resources.

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Additionally, the district has identified several high-impact, low-cost strategies to ensure a smooth return to school for students:

Relationship Mapping

Relationship mapping is a simple practice that enables schools to ensure every child in their building has a strong connection with at least one member of the staff. This can take place during an existing staff meeting or late start time and costs nothing to the district. Staff members answer five yes/no questions about students in the grade levels they work with to examine the quality and depth of their relationship with each student.

Following this activity, the teams create plans to connect with specific students or adjust everyday practices, such as welcoming rituals, to further relationships.

Self-Regulation

Another low-cost strategy to help with the transition back to school is an emphasis on self-regulation.

Self-regulation is the ability to manage one’s emotions and behavior in accordance with any given situation, including the ability to resist highly emotional reactions to outside stimuli. Self-regulation also develops skills to calm oneself and adjust to a change in expectations.

Peace Places

We know that returning to school may be overwhelming to our students’ nervous system, especially considering the length of time children spend at school. Large group settings, such as the cafeteria or the gymnasium may cause overstimulation in some of our students. To help teach and support

As the Assistant Superintendent for Student Services, I planned and considered the return of students since the start of the pandemic, in spring of 2020. It had been a constant goal of having students learning in person.

Over the months, I joined every online seminar, read every article and attended every professional development session I could in order to prepare for students to come back into our buildings once again. I hoped that through all the online learning, I would find the magic solution to a fantastic start to this school year, with the goal of supporting students both academically and emotionally.

ARTICLE / Budgeting for Emotional Wellbeing

students with self-regulation, the use of a “Peace Place,” or sometimes referred to as a “Peace Corner,” has been added to each of our elementary classrooms. Peace Places are structured areas of a classroom, just like any other area of the classroom, which have a specific purpose. Students learn the purpose and how to use the area to identify strategies that work so that they can continue learning and rejoin the class when they are ready.

Brain Breaks

Brain breaks are another way to keep students (and adults) regulated and are easily built into a daily schedule.

Allocating Resources to Support Staff

For most of the summer months, the return to school focus has solely been on the students. It was not until late in the summer that we realized we were neglecting an especially important piece of this puzzle. The staff.

Listening to the current research on staff stress, staff burnout and emotional strain is both concerning and troubling. The Illinois Education Association (IEA) reports that one-third of teachers in Illinois are considering leaving the profession. The American Federation of Teachers reports that 80 percent of staff feel anxious, worried, exhausted or depressed since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis. Social emotional support for educators has reportedly been an afterthought to student SEL and regrettably, we fell into the same pattern. Even though staff wellness is already a district goal, we had not planned as deliberately for staff return as for students. After hearing the correlation of teacher stress to student stress, it was clear this required equal attention. One study tracked the stress hormone, cortisol, in students from different classrooms over time. In short, the findings showed that teachers who reported higher levels of burnout had students with higher levels of cortisol. While this is not new information, hearing it again, using a COVID-19 response lens, coupled with the latest burnout numbers solidified it for me. Therefore, the focus immediately shifted and began planning for staff to have the same or similar supports as our students. The first order of business was to have the staff also participate in our universal SEL screener.

We have also reallocated our late start professional development time to include one staff wellness day per month. These days will be used to respond to data obtained in the survey, but also have a very deliberate focus on training for self-care, mindfulness, self-care buddies, wellness buddies, gratitude and other supports designed to reduce stress and burnout. As an additional support to staff, the district utilizes our Benefits/Wellness Committee to help plan staff wellness days and contribute financially to this venture. We decided as a group to reallocate these funds to specifically focus on enhancing our staff wellness.

As a smaller district, we also utilize our community partnerships to help support these needs. One such partnership is with our special education cooperative, Northwest Suburban Special Education Organization (NSSEO). We have been able to shift some of our purchased supports and coaching to include more behavior training and a Board-Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) to help support our staff and the needs of the students. In addition to coaching, this partnership has offered SEL focused professional development support sessions for parents and staff. Last year, we partnered to offer a ten-week, Stress to Resilience workshop for our district staff. Some of the parent topics included Behavioral and Supports for Distance Learning, Tools and Strategies for Managing Stress and Anxiety and Support for Students with Autism. These workshops did not incur any additional costs for the district and are included in our membership fees.

Looking to the Future

Thinking about the word “normal,” it makes me chuckle. As educators, we have been challenged to find “normal” in every aspect of the school day. Some might even say this is our new “normal.” I can proudly and confidently say that in River Trails SD 26, it is, and has been our “norm” to focus on both the head and the heart in all aspects of our work. I am confident that even after COVID-19, we will continue these same practices and continue to prioritize the balance of academics and social emotional well-being in everything we do. #RTSD26LifeReady

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The Adequacy Impact of

Flat EBF Funding through Inflation In FY22, Illinois will increase year-to-year formula funding under the Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act (EBF) by $300 million.1 However, due to the state’s historic fiscal problems, which were worsened by the impact COVID-19 had on the economy, that increase almost did not happen. Indeed, the initial FY22 General Fund budget proposal would have flat-funded the EBF at FY21 levels.

Fortunately, President Biden got Congress to pass the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), a national relief package that made $1.9 trillion in federal funding available to help state and local governments cope with fiscal challenges created by the pandemic.2 Under ARPA, Illinois gets $8.1 billion for General Fund and other state expenditures over FY21 through FY24.3 Illinois used some of that ARPA funding to cover the year-to-year increase in EBF funding made in FY22.

Consequences of Inadequate Funding It is imperative Illinois get its fiscal house in order so it can adequately fund the EBF. That is because two negative consequences result whenever Illinois under or flat funds the EBF. First, every time Illinois does not invest appropriate state-level resources in schools, it effectively shifts more of the responsibility for education funding to local property taxes.

That is not acceptable given Illinois remains more reliant on property taxes to fund education than any other state in America.

Second, each time Illinois under funds the EBF from state level resources, it frustrates the core objective behind that statute: that every child in Illinois receive a quality education, irrespective of where that student lives. Funding the EBF makes that objective attainable, because it ties the dollar amount taxpayers invest in schools to covering those educational practices which research shows actually enhance student achievement over time.

Which is great. Illinois finally has a system of education finance that can be expected to generate positive student outcomes statewide. However, that will not happen in any statistically meaningful way unless two conditions are satisfied.

First, districts actually utilize new funding received under the EBF to implement those evidence-based practices which enhance student achievement as identified in statute. Of course, many districts will not be able to do so until the second condition is satisfied: the state fully funds the EBF. This is no “chicken or the egg” quandary. Faithful implementation of evidence-based practices requires adequate funding to do so. Put another way, inadequate resources on the front-end guaranties inadequate outcomes on the back-end. That is especially the case in Illinois, which has underfunded K-12 education so significantly over time, that many districts have to use new EBF funding to replace deficit spending that was covering basic educational expenses.

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021 2021

ARTICLE

By Ralph Martire

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR CENTER FOR TAX & BUDGET ACCOUNTABILITY

Fully Funding EBF Formula funding under the EBF is based on the number of resources the statute identifies each school district needs (the “Adequacy Target”) to: • Implement the research/evidence-based practices that correlate to enhancing student achievement delineated in the legislation.

• Pay for the cost of standard operational expenses such as building maintenance and back-office work.

To achieve “full funding,” the state should cover 90 percent of the aggregate gap between the total amount of school funding currently received by and the sum of all “Adequacy Targets” for all school districts below their respective Adequacy Targets. Fully funding the EBF is not set at 100 percent of such gap, because federal support generally covers anywhere from eight percent to 10 percent of all K-12 funding in the state.

As it turns out, the EBF does address how the state should fund it. Section (g) of the EBF sets a target of increasing state funding for K-12 education by at least $350 million on a year-to-year basis. However, the actual minimum increase for formula funding is $300 million (the “Minimum Target Level”), not the $350 million specified in statute. The reason for this is the Property Tax Relief Grant (PTRG) established in the legislation.

To fund this PTRG, the dollar amount of any year-to-year increase in funding the state appropriates for the EBF that is in excess of $300 million, up to and including

$350 million, is dedicated to the PTRG – not formula funding. This effectively reduces the state’s Minimum Target Level for year-to-year increases from the $350 million specified in statute to $300 million.

Making at least the annual Minimum Target Level increase in EBF funding is crucial. Otherwise, recent gains made in funding equity will be diminished. This is because the procedure for distributing new formula funding under the EBF has proven to be highly equitable. Hence, per pupil education funding gaps by income, race and ethnicity all decline when the model gets new funding. However, without new funding, reducing those gaps is impossible.

Consider that, under the EBF new state formula funding is distributed based on which of four, funding “Tiers” a district is in. Tier I is comprised of the least adequately funded districts. Tier II includes districts that are above the cut-off for Tier I but have less than 90 percent of their respective Adequacy Targets. Tier III districts are funded at 90-100 percent of Adequacy, and Tier IV have resources totaling 100 percent or more of their respective Adequacy Targets.

Under the EBF, Tier I districts initially receive 50 percent of all new funding the state allocates to education in a fiscal year. Tier II districts share 49 percent of such new state funding with Tier I districts. Finally, Tier III districts receive 0.9 percent, while Tier IV districts receive the remaining 0.1 percent of all new state-EBF funding in a fiscal year.

When fully funded – the EBF will create a K-12 system with the capacity to provide an education of sufficient quality for all students to graduate high school, college and career ready, irrespective of income, race, ethnicity or geography.

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

ARTICLE / EBF Adequacy Impact

As shown in Figure 1, this distribution mechanism is powerful from an equity standpoint, allocating almost 89 percent of all new funding to those districts that are least adequately funded.

Figure 1. Allocation by Tier of New State-Level Funding under the EBF Since FY18 (no new funding in FY21) New Tier Funding

FY18

FY19

FY20

FY21

FY22

Total

% of New Money

Tier I

$326,630,217

$267,425,205

$279,548,555

$0

$260,762,838

$1,134,366,815

88.68%

Tier II

$36,313,680

$29,596,928

$29,818,112

$0

$36,237,158

$131,965,879

10.32%

Tier III

$3,299,490

$2,700,201

$2,812,424

$0

$2,700,000

$11,512,114

0.90%

Tier IV

$366,609

$300,022

$312,491

$0

$299,999

$1,279,121

0.10%

Total

$366,609,996

$300,022,356

$312,491,581

$0

$299,999,996

$1,279,123,929

100.00%

Source: CTBA analysis of ISBE EBF calculations

This is crucial for Illinois, given the state’s former formula was one of the least equitable in America. Indeed, it was not only inequitable by income, but also by race and ethnicity. As shown in Figure 2, when funded, the EBF reduces gaps for all students regardless of race or ethnicity.

Figure 2. Average Per Pupil Adequacy Gap by Race, FY18 and FY22 (Excluding Tier IV Districts) Avg Adequacy Gap Per Pupil by Race/Ethnicity

Per Pupil Adequacy Gap, (weighted) 2018

Per Pupil Adequacy Gap, (weighted) 2022

$ Change

% Change

White

$ 3,620

$3,572

($48)

-1%

Black

$5,001

$4,803

($198)

-4%

Latino

$5,096

$4,879

($217)

-4%

Total

$ 4,370

$4,256

($114)

-3%

Source: CTBA analysis of ISBE EBF calculations

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Moreover, every region of the state gets harmed when the state fails to put new funding into the EBF, because, as shown in Figure 3, every region benefits when the EBF does receive new state funding.

Figure 3. Geographic Allocation of New Funding Under the EBF Region

Total New Funding

Cook

$178,082,413

Collar

$274,048,928

CPS

$184,786,855

Downstate

$327,593,904

Statewide

$964,512,100

Source: CTBA analysis of ISBE data (note $14 million in allocations from FY18 is not included above due to issues involving ROE funding)

In addition to creating the Minimum Target Level for increasing K-12 funding on a year-to-year basis, the EBF also commits the state to funding the formula fully within 10 years of its initial implementation, which would be June 30, 2027.4 The bad news is, according to ISBE, as things stand today the state is still $4.5 billion short of funding the EBF fully. In fact, as shown in Figure 4, even if Illinois satisfies the Minimum Target Level of new funding every year hence, the EBF will not be fully funded on an inflation-adjusted basis until 2042.

Figure 4. EBF Funding if $300M Minimum Target Level is Not Adjusted for Inflation ($ Millions) FY21

FY22

FY28

FY34

FY37

FY42

Aggregate Funding Gap Before Annual Distribution (infl. adj.)

$4,528

$4,624

$3,514

$2,191

$1,437

$24

New Annual Tier Funding Amount

$0

$300

$300

$300

$300

$24

Remaining Aggregate Funding Gap after Distribution of New Tier Funding

($4,528)

($4,324)

($3,214)

($1,891)

($1,137)

($0)

Total Nominal Dollars Put into EBF Since FY18

$979

$1,279

$3,079

$4,879

$5,779

$7,003

Source: CTBA analysis of ISBE FY18, 19, 20 & 21 EBF Calculation using Bureau of Labor Statistics ECI historical data

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

ARTICLE / EBF Adequacy Impact

To meet the statutory deadline, the year-to-year increases in EBF formula funding will have to increase from $300 million to $797 million starting in the 2022-2023 school year, as shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5. Fully Funding The EBF On An Inflation-Adjusted Basis In 10 Years From EBF Enactment ($ Millions) FY21

FY22

FY25

FY28

Aggregate Funding Gap Before Annual Distribution (infl. adj.)

$4,528

$4,624

$3,054

$797

New Annual Tier Funding Amount

$0

$300

$797

$797

Remaining Aggregate Funding Gap after Distribution of New Tier Funding

($4,528)

($4,324)

($2,257)

$0

Total Nominal Dollars Put into EBF since FY18

$979

$1,279

$3,671

$6,063

Source: CTBA analysis of ISBE FY18, 19, 20 & 21 EBF Calculation using Bureau of Labor Statistics ECI historical data

Doing so makes all the sense in the world, because when fully funded—the EBF will create a K-12 system with the capacity to provide an education of sufficient quality for all students to graduate high school, college and career ready, irrespective of income, race, ethnicity or geography.

FOOTNOTES

1. CTBA analysis of (i) Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, Fiscal Year 2022 Proposed Budget, “Operating Budget Details (xls),” https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/budget/Pages/default.aspx; and (ii) Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, Fiscal Year 2022 Proposed Budget book, https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/budget/Documents/Budget%20Book/FY2022-Budget-Book/Fiscal-Year-2022-Operating-Budget.pdf.

2. Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, “FY 2022 Enacted ARPA Summary,” June 21, 2021, https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/ budget/Documents/Budget%20Book/FY2022-Budget-Book/FY22_Enacted_ARPA_Summary_6.21.21.pdf 3. Governor’s Office of Management and Budget, “FY 2022 Enacted ARPA Summary,” June 21, 2021, https://www2.illinois.gov/sites/ budget/Documents/Budget%20Book/FY2022-Budget-Book/FY22_Enacted_ARPA_Summary_6.21.21.pdf 4. 105 ILCS 5/, Evidence-Based Funding for Student Success Act, (2017).

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Illinois ASBO Your New Home for Anytime, Anywhere Learning

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

ARTICLE

At the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, the way people were learning, networking and communicating experienced a major shift. As shelter-in-place orders and travel restrictions were mandated, meetings and networking evolved to embrace the online learning space. As an association, Illinois ASBO reflected on how to best support our members while still giving them the opportunity to experience the indispensable professional development we pride ourselves on. From there, the idea for Illinois ASBOnline came alive, and we have been working throughout the last year to bring you a flexible, online hub for learning.

The vision for a virtual learning platform took shape as the executive leadership defined what they wanted from an online experience. Above all, Illinois ASBOnline would be an expansive, diverse information hub accessible anywhere, anytime. New and veteran school business officials constantly look for information they need to perform their jobs effectively but are often constrained by busy schedules, demands of administration and travel distances. Even if they were unable to step away from their desks for a half day, full day or weeklong professional development conference, Illinois ASBOnline provides that vital information at their fingertips. The demands of a school business official are expansive and complex, so Illinois ASBO recognizes that there is a need for instantaneous access to information that can help them serve their school district and the members of their school community. Illinois ASBOnline is that solution.

Let’s explore the types of products and professional development tools you can engage with using Illinois ASBOnline.

MICRO-CREDENTIALS Micro-credentials, presented by Illinois ASBO, are the perfect way for a school business official to showcase their existing competency in a variety of areas within the profession. Along with proving mastery in a specified, targeted area of the job, school business officials can earn a sharable digital badge that boosts their online portfolios, social networks and email signatures. Set yourself apart in annual reviews, job searches

By Rebecca Wolz LMS ADMINISTRATOR ILLINOIS ASBO

and networking through this unique demonstration of the skills that are being constantly used in your day-to-day work.

Members can also earn either PD clock hours or Academy Credit for completed micro-credentials.

Get Started Now: If you are ready to show off your core skills, register for one of our three ISBE approved micro-credentials, Leading for Health Life Safety, Tax Levy Process or Collective Bargaining. Micro-credentials are continuously being developed, so look out for new opportunities to be the first to earn new badges! Once registration is complete, you can access the micro-credential on-demand through Illinois ASBOnline to complete the defined competency assessments. For each micro-credential, an assessor will evaluate the body of work based on several criteria, and a digital badge will be awarded upon completion.

SCHOOL BUSINESS 101 One of Illinois ASBO’s newest professional development offerings is the School Business 101 presentation series.

School Business 101 presentations serve as an introduction to many areas that are integral to the foundation of the profession.

School Business 101 presentations have been developed by Illinois ASBO members and cover topics like food service, flooring, investments, building envelope construction and many more! Set aside 30 minutes to watch an overview on a topic or download a presentation resource document to take learning on the go.

Have a topic that you think will benefit the new school business official? New topics are being developed through Illinois ASBO’s Professional Development Committees, so contact your PDC Chair to submit a presentation idea. We look forward to bringing you even more refresher courses for school business officials that are new to the profession, or for seasoned professionals wanting to brush up on a particular topic in a quick, high-level way.

Get Started Now: School Business 101 presentations are currently available for free to every member through Illinois ASBOnline. Log on and get started today!

www.iasbo.org

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ANNUAL CONFERENCE SESSIONS The highly anticipated Illinois ASBO Annual Conference provides a space to get together, collaborate, network and learn from your peers every year. A select number of Annual Conference sessions are recorded and converted for on-demand viewing. You can view the recorded, livestreamed sessions from the last two conferences now on Illinois ASBOnline.

Get Started Now: If you attended the 2020 Virtual Conference or the 2021 Annual Conference, these sessions are available at no cost to you! If you are a new member or missed these conferences, you can still register online to purchase access to these valuable sessions.

LUNCH AND LEARN WEBINARS Even before the pandemic began, Lunch and Learn Webinars have been a staple in Illinois ASBO’s professional development offerings. Designed to give school business officials quality learning without leaving the office, Lunch and Learns are orchestrated by the Online PD Task Force. They help members spend a working lunch addressing tactical issues within the profession from the comfort of their desks.

Get Started Now: Archived Lunch and Learn webinars are currently available for free to members through Illinois ASBOnline. Need PD clock hours? Register and pay for only the hours you need, and Illinois ASBO will keep track of your completed professional development credit hours!

Get Started Now: Complete the Risk Management Virtual Academy, available now within Illinois ASBOnline, on your own schedule. Once you complete the prework, pre-recorded webinars and post work, Illinois ASBO will track and report your Administrator Academy Credit. Look out for more online academies to be offered through Illinois ASBOnline in the future!

ARCHIVED WEBINARS In addition to the Lunch and Learn webinar series, Illinois ASBO has provided members with several live, online webinars for professional development and learning. Recorded webinars will be available to watch at any time — from COVID Conversations to the COVID-19 Webinar series, Leadership Center webinars and more!

Get Started Now: Watch any archived webinar for free on Illinois ASBOnline and register for PD clock hours if needed.

A CHANGING LEARNING LANDSCAPE Illinois ASBO is very excited about the endless possibilities that an online learning resource hub provides. As the landscape of the school business profession continues to shift and change, Illinois ASBO is here to bring you the quick access you need to the latest in policy, regulations, school business practices and more.

ADMINISTRATOR ACADEMIES Administrators in the State of Illinois must complete professional development requirements to maintain their licensure. Illinois ASBO provides several opportunities to earn Administrator Academy credit to help members fulfill these requirements.

Ready to get started?

Information, tutorial videos, and more are available at

www.iasbo.org/iasbonline 40 |

UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

RESOURCES How to Plan Your Day for Productivity If you have ever read a book by Daniel Pink, you know you can expect a provocative subject and a good amount of research to back up his perspectives. His newest book, When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing is no exception.

Many view timing as an art, but Pink would argue that there are better decisions that can be made based on something other than intuition and guesswork. Here are a few critical reviews:

“Consistently applying the principles laid out in the book could have dramatic impacts on one’s life and on society.” — Washington Post “[When] reveals that timing really is everything... This marriage of research, stories and practical application is vintage Pink, helping us use science to improve our everyday lives.”

— BookPage

One example that would be relevant to nearly every reader here is how you order your day for productivity. Did “Pink delivers the bad news about our you know that nearly in every culture time-based weaknesses with some there is a positive mood rising in the good news about how to compensate morning, dipping in the afternoon, for them. More delightful still, many and rising a little higher even in the of these tips involve simply slowing evening? Well, consider then when down, taking breaks and stealing naps. you do your best work. Pink would Alas, none of this advice will prevent argue that the afternoon is not the time time from flying by, but at least there to start a new project that requires are proven ways to fill our hours a bit concentration or creativity. But how better.” — The Wall Street Journal are most workdays organized? Most jobs require team engagement in the morning and leave individuals alone in their office in the afternoon. Reading When might answer many questions about productivity in just this one example.

Further, did you know that your emotional balance follows this same pattern? With that in mind, would you rather make those meaningful phone calls that require patience, clarity, etc. in the morning or the afternoon? Don’t procrastinate! Mornings are better for both the caller and the called.

On Their List Book reviews from your peers on relevant career topics

Michael A. Jacoby, Ed.D., SFO, CAE Executive Director/CEO Illinois ASBO Dr. Jacoby has served as an educator for over 40 years: six years in the classroom, 16 years as a school business official, four years as Superintendent of Schools and 15 years with Illinois ASBO. His passion for leadership development is well known as the content leader of the Illinois ASBO Leadership Center, where he advocates for leadership through the development of others.

Pink goes on to unravel our sleep habits, the secrets of group timing, beginnings-midpoints-endings of anything, the power of breaks and a case for a modern siesta.

If you want to make better decisions at the right time, this is a great and relevant read! www.iasbo.org

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THE FINAL WORD SPEAKING UP ABOUT SCHOOL FINANCE & BUDGETING WHITNEY DRAEGERT

DIR./BUSINESS SERVICES, CSBO TWP. HIGH SCH. DIST. 113

My Role in Education

As the Director of Business Services, my responsibility is to support Township High School District 113’s education process. To be good stewards of the financial resources entrusted to us, we need to be efficient and effective with the use of district funds to ensure we are providing the maximum resources to our students.

The Biggest Budgeting Challenges

The biggest budgeting challenge facing districts is the things we cannot plan for. Every year, districts make financial predictions based upon historical data. However, districts must be flexible when something comes from left field in the middle of a fiscal year, like the COVID-19 pandemic, for example. As the health and safety guidance constantly evolves, students’ and staff’s ability to adapt and be flexible is continuously tested. Without knowing what additional guidance will come out during the fiscal year, districts must be creative with established budgets.

Budgeting Issues to Watch

New legislation and unfunded mandates are important to be aware of. These are always difficult to budget for. One of the topics we want to keep an eye on is the pension cost shift. Being educated on potential new legislation and unfunded mandates will allow you to begin brainstorming and discussing how to handle the new legislation and/or unfunded mandates that might be coming your way.

One Thing Districts Can Do Now

Constant communication between departments is one of many things school districts can do to improve the budgeting process. This communication can help determine which departments need some additional education on the budgeting process. Historical data can also be used to not only ask the right questions, but also the tough questions. To be a good steward of taxpayer dollars, there should be conversations around the values and mission of the district as the spending plan is prepared.

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UPDATE Magazine / Winter 2021

Registration Now Open for the

2022 BOOKKEEPERS CONFERENCE Friday, March 11 | Rolling Meadows, IL Join your fellow support professionals for the Bookkeepers Conference!

Finish out the school year at the top of your game with a full day of learning and networking.

Visit www.iasbo.org/bookkeepers

to see the schedule and register.

Be the

Best Support Professional

YOU can Be

Did you know that by attending professional development through Illinois ASBO, you can earn a certificate to bring back to your district to demonstrate your commitment to excellence in your role?

Join the Illinois ASBO Support Professionals Program to start learning today!

Find more information at www.iasbo.org/supportpro. www.iasbo.org

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A New Way to Experience the UPDATE Online Introducing the Illinois ASBO UPDATE Magazine website! Dive into articles from each issue in a reader-friendly online format, explore past issues and topics and engage with other related content on this new resource for Illinois ASBO members.

Start exploring now at www.iasboupdate.org