Friday, February 10, 2012
After Wednesday's meeting, which brought back full-day kindergarten, Patch outlines how this affects the district's overall plan to reduce its budget.
Toward the end of Wednesday's Summit Hill School District 161 board of education meeting, board member Denise Wildeveld asked out loud what cuts had actually been made to trim the district's budget deficit. It's a reasonable question given how quickly the district's financial landscape keeps shifting each time the board meets. Earlier in the meeting, board members reversed a decision they made at a budget workshop last week to eliminate full-day kindergarten as a way to cut about $3 million over three years from the district's budget. READ: Go Over the Transcript From Patch's Live Blog of Wednesday's Meeting Patch has put together what's been discussed at board meetings and in interviews with board members to give readers a look at what …
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Mary Drew Elementary School
20130 S Rosewood Dr, Frankfort, IL
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Wednesday, February 8, 2012
As part of trimming the budget over the next three years, the Summit Hill school board wants to eliminate full-day kindergarten. But some argue such a cut will hurt the students.
For the parents and board members of Summit Hill School District 161, two hours have become one of the most important things when it comes to the budget cuts facing the district. Two hours is the time difference between full- and half-day kindergarten programs in the district. As part of a plan to cut $3 million over the next three years, the board wants to eliminate the full-day program, a move that has divided district parents and even members of the board. Supporters of full-day kindergarten, including board members George Perros, Denise Lenz and Stacey Borgens, argue that dropping the program will have an adverse effect on the education of students. LIVE BLOG: Follow Wednesday's Meeting While It Happens Even the board members and …
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Mary Drew Elementary School
20130 S Rosewood Dr, Frankfort, IL
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Dr. Julian Rogus School
20027 S 88th Ave, Frankfort, IL
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After saying it would cut the program from the 2012-13 school year last week, the Summit Hill school board voted to keep full-day kindergarten by a 4-3 vote. Discussion to close at least one school next year is now on the agenda for the next meeting.
Going into Wednesday night's Summit Hill School District 161 board of education meeting, the fate of full-day kindergarten in the district was all but sealed. The board had decided at its Feb. 4 workshop to eliminate the program as part of its attempt to cut $3 million over three years. The only hope for saving it seemingly rested in creating a tuition-based model where parents picked up the tab. But in the textbook definition of "a shocking turn of events," a majority of the board defeated a measure for the district to go to only a half-day kindergarten program, a move that brought back the full-day kindergarten program for the 2012-13 school year. READ: Board Chooses Cost-Cutting Route, Drops Full-Day Kindergarten The deciding vote came …
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Summit Hill school district takes the first step in creating a financial plan to cut about $3 million over three years. This direction emphasizes an array of cuts but will not close schools or put a referendum on this November's ballot.
Throughout the months long process of planning the financial future for Summit Hill School District 161, board of education members have made it known that the district faces difficult challenges, but that's why they were elected: To make the tough decisions. And Saturday's workshop underscored just how tough those decisions are as members passionately debated cuts before deciding to adopt a proposed streamlining model that focuses on cost-cutting for the 2012-13 budget. READ: Board Ready to Decide D161 Budget Fate That model, which was introduced at the board's Jan. 26 meeting, would shave a little more than $1 million in 2012-13 as part of the first step in a three-year plan to cut $3 million from the district budget. Here are some of …
My Two Cents
10:50 am on Sunday, February 12, 2012
Thanks Rose!! more ›