FEBRUARY 2024
FAMILY NEWSLETTER
SUPERINTENDENT'S MESSAGE Dear CCSD21 Families and Community Members, Welcome to February! And thank you for all of your patience as we dealt with both inclement weather and ACCESS testing. We have a number of updates to share with you all this month, many of which can be found in the next few pages. First and foremost, we are happy to announce that during its January meeting, our Board of Education approved a number of bids for construction projects to take place across the district this summer. These include the final library and media center renovations at Holmes Middle School and Longfellow, Poe and Whitman Elementary Schools, and new playgrounds for Frost, Kilmer and Poe Elementary Schools. We also officially entered an intergovernmental agreement with Elk Grove Village-based Community Consolidated School District 59 for shared services concerning a new director of school safety and security. We also named Danny Malik of the Arlington Heights Police Department to that role. Other highlights: ● Stephanie Stallman will officially become the principal of Poe on July 1, succeeding Christy Campbell, who is retiring after 12 years! ● Congratulating Anastasia Netzel of London Middle School and Crystal Jimenez of Field Elementary School for their recent honor as the Illinois Principals Association’s (North Cook Region) Middle School and Elementary School Principals of the Year. We are really looking forward to February being a very successful and strong month for the district, and we’ll see you in March! Respectfully, Dr. Michael Connolly Superintendent of Schools Watch the full video message here: Message from the Superintendent – February 2024 IMPORTANT DATES TO REMEMBER… ● ● ●
Friday, February 16 – School Improvement Day (AM Classes Only, No Pre-K) Monday, February 19 – No School (Presidents’ Day) Thursday, February 22 – Board of Education Meeting, 7 p.m.
BUSINESS OFFICE UPDATES ● Introducing ParentView! In continued partnership with our transportation provider, First Student, we are delighted to announce the launch of the ParentView app, a powerful tool that will allow you to see real-time tracking of our school buses. Read more about it here. Micheal DeBartolo Assistant Superintendent for Finance & Operations/CSBO micheal.debartolo@ ccsd21.org Tel. 847-520-2707
● CCSD21, CCSD59 enter intergovernmental agreement to share new director of school safety and security: The idea evolved from district administration determining the immediate needs of the district, as well as the future issues identified for inclusion in its security efforts. Read more here. ● CCSD21 approves construction bids for summer projects at seven schools: The major projects include the final library and media center renovations at Holmes, Longfellow, Poe and Whitman, along with new playgrounds at Poe, Frost and Kilmer. Read more here. ● CCSD21 making ‘good progress’ on transportation committee: The committee of parent volunteers and administrators was formed to review the current practices, processes and procedures of the district’s transportation program. Read more here.
COMMUNICATIONS UPDATES ● ICYMI! During the January board meeting, the district recognized this year’s recipients of the Donna Rae Steckling Educators Grant. Available for teachers in the first three years of their career, the grant was established in 2021 to foster learning and invigorate a new generation of educators. See the recipients here.
Cassandra Young Director of Community Engagement cassandra.young@ ccsd21.org Tel. 847-520-2728
● State Senator Ann Gillespie visits Riley! The legislator dropped by the school to read some books to two classrooms, answer questions about her day-to-day life, and generously donated a handful of books to the LMC! See photos from the visit here. ● IPA names London’s Netzel, Field’s Jimenez as regional Principals of the Year: The Horace Mann/IPA Principal of the Year award recognizes excellence among middle and elementary-level principals. Both become candidates for the statewide IPA Principal of the Year award, which will be announced later this year. Read more here.
COMMUNICATIONS UPDATES (CONT.) Happy Valentine’s Day! (contributed by Sofia Horwitz, communications intern and senior at Buffalo Grove High School): Happy February to everyone reading! I hope you all got through those extremely cold days without too much trouble and stayed warm. As we start the new month, it’s time to re-energize ourselves and continue pushing through the last bit of winter. After all, spring is just around the corner. Read more here.
EQUITY & LEARNING UPDATES
Beatrice Reyes Childress Assistant Superintendent for Equity & Learning beatrice.childress@ccsd21.org Tel. 847-520-2743
● Take the 5Essentials Survey: Students, teachers and parents across Illinois have an opportunity to participate in the annual statewide survey, which is designed to generate a detailed picture of the inner workings of your child’s school. Read more about the survey here (scroll down). To take the survey, visit this link. ● Coming Up - Illinois Assessment of Readiness: Our students take federally required assessments every spring to help us understand how they are growing academically when compared with their peers across the state. The IAR assesses students in grades 3-8 in both English language arts and math. Read more about the IARs here. ● Please help us by taking the Panorama SEL Survey: Students are important partners as we work to improve our communication, academic program and overall experience for everyone. We are therefore asking for feedback from students in grades 3-8 via an online survey they will complete at school. The survey shouldn’t take more than 20-30 minutes to complete. Read more here (scroll down).
Let’s Celebrate! Did You Know… As a district, we are proud to celebrate the diversity of our learning community! Some of the celebrations taking place during the month of February include: Black History Month, Groundhog Day, Chinese New Year, Abraham Lincoln’s Birthday, Ash Wednesday/Lent Begins, Valentine’s Day, George Washington’s Birthday, Mardi Gras, and President’s Day. If you’d like to learn more, click on the links! If there is a celebration that we missed, don’t hesitate to reach out and share it with our Language Services Department.
EQUITY & LEARNING UPDATES (CONT.) Looking for Reading FUN? Join us at the Indian Trails Library! The Indian Trails Library has many events and workshops for students and their families during the month of February. Check out the calendar of events for specific activities and times this month
HUMAN RESOURCES UPDATES CCSD21 names Stephanie Stallman as new principal of Poe: Stallman has spent the past three years as the school’s assistant principal, and succeeds the retiring Christy Campbell. Read more here. Robert Gurney Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources robert.gurney@ccsd21.org Tel. 847-520-2724
● Now Hiring! Recess and Lunch Supervisors: Are you looking for some extra cash after the holidays? Need some more spending money? Then consider helping us by becoming a recess and lunch supervisor at your local school! If you are interested, apply here. More information can be found here.
SUPPORT SERVICES & SCHOOL SAFETY UPDATES ● February is National Children’s Dental Health Month, and we are excited to be a part of this amazing initiative! More than 600 consents have been turned in to receive free preventive dental services at school. In partnership with the Miles of Smiles Dental Program, we will continue to visit schools in the coming weeks. Learn more about oral health for young children. Kim Cline Assistant Superintendent for Support Svcs. & School Safety kim.clilne@ccsd21.org Tel. 847-520-2717
CCSD21, 59 name Danny Malik as director of school safety and security: He will oversee the development and implementation of comprehensive safety and security programs at each district, which includes assessing potential risks, establishing and refining emergency response plans, and conducting regular drills to ensure preparedness. Read more here.
INFORMATION SERVICES UPDATES
Mike Frantini Chief Technology Officer mike.frantini@ccsd21.org Tel. 847-520-2732
● Virtual reality at CCSD21: The VR headsets have exploded in popularity at elementary schools across the district! Teachers have used them to bring lessons to life by taking students on virtual field trips around the world without leaving the classroom! Topics include space, Europe, Latin America, the Revolutionary War, fossils and more! Here is an example from Ms. Arnold’s third grade dual-language class at Frost Elementary School:
BOARD OF EDUCATION January 18, 2024 Board Meeting The livestream video of the January 18 Board of Education meeting can be viewed here.
Next Meeting The next regularly scheduled Board of Education meeting of Community Consolidated School District 21, Wheeling, Cook County, IL, will be held on February 22, 2024 at 7 p.m. at the CCSD21 Community Service Center and Administrative Office, 959 W. Dundee Rd., Wheeling IL, 60090
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COMMUNITY CONSOLIDATED SCHOOL DISTRICT 21 959 W. Dundee Road Wheeling, IL 60090 Tel. (847) 537-8270 www.ccsd21.org
Empowering Every Student, Every Day