This post has news updates from Unit 4 and an overview from January's school board meeting. The biggest news is this month the Board of Education finalized its decision for the next Superintendent of the Unit 4 School District. From the From the Unit 4 announcement this past week:
The Unit 4 Board of Education has selected Mrs. Shelia Boozer to lead Unit 4 Schools pending negotiation and formal Board approval of her employment contract. She will succeed Dr. Susan Zola, who is retiring in June after leading the District for four years.
Mrs. Boozer currently serves as the Director of Teaching & Learning and Technology in Springfield District 186. It is a large and diverse unit district that serves approximately 14,000 students in 36 schools. Over the past 23 years in education, she has had an excellent educational career as a teacher at the elementary and middle school levels, and assistant principal and principal at both the elementary and high school levels. Mrs. Boozer used her adeptness to build relationships with students and their families, as well as motivate and encourage staff and students to succeed.
More at the full announcement here. Video of the announcement is available on the Unit 4 website here (starting roughly at the 3:30 minute mark). The News-Gazette coverage highlighted her energy and the historic first:
She’ll be the first Black woman to serve as the district’s superintendent.
“I think it’s significant based on what’s happening across our nation,” [school board President Amy Armstrong] said. On Wednesday, “we saw the inauguration of the first Black female vice president, and I think for our student body that is majority Black, they can look up to a Black woman that is leading this district forward. And all of our students will be able to say, ‘I can do that.’
“It’s exciting for us that what you’re seeing at the national level is showing at the local level with women in leadership, and we’re excited that in Unit 4, we’re going to have our first Black female superintendent.”
Full article available here. Background on the final three applicants was covered in the News-Gazette here and there final presentations to the board are available on zoom video with link and password from the Unit 4 website here.
January Unit 4 Board of Education Meeting 1/11:
The January Board meeting (agenda available here, Part 1 video, Part 2 video) focused primarily on how to safely provide in person learning for the most students during the pandemic in an equitable manner. The News-Gazette had an overview that week:
For at least the first two weeks of the second semester, Unit 4 schools will remain completely remote, Superintendent Susan Zola said during Monday’s school board meeting.
“Similar to other districts across the state, we’re going to give our districts a few more weeks on our distance-learning platform,” Zola said, “and the first opportunity that we might see students back in person might be Jan. 19th.”
The board also voted unanimously to move forward with the district’s plan to implement an option for the superintendent to call for an e-learning day in lieu of a snow day or another type of emergency day.
That full article here.
Current Superintendent Susan Zola started her report around the 1:23:35 mark of the Part 1 video (there was a long closed session at the beginning of the meeting before returning to open session at the 1:11 mark). She explained the difficulties of coming up with a back to school plan where the needs of students are at odds with the pandemic limitations. She also noted that parents are at odds on what they believe is the best solution.
Zola made a special point to demand civil disagreement and constructive criticism as opposed to racist hate, threats, and wishing harm upon staff and board members.
Principals from the district gave their reports as well for different grade school and high school considerations starting at roughly the 1:32 mark in the Part 1 video. Both the Superintendent and the principals made clear there wasn't an ideal plan that could satisfy the competing desires and concerns of all parents. They explained how they tried to provide the best educational opportunities within the constraints of the pandemic between remote learning and limited in person classes, additional study halls and after school programs.
In the Q&A that followed there were concerns about access for the at least 129 homeless families with children in the district and waiting on approval for the surveillance testing program through the University. That testing system is still a few weeks away. There was also a discussion of construction delays during the pandemic and how it could impact opening schools in the future. For now, at least, the district is able to work within the available space given current restrictions.
There were several parents and district students who participated in public comments starting at the 2:43:50 mark in the Part 1 video and continued on into the Part 2 video. Parents pleaded for in-person learning for a host of reasons from their ability to work, organize their lives, for their kids to succeed in learning and for their family's sanity. Students had feedback about difficulties with remote learning, communicating with teachers, struggling to do well in their studies, and the logistics of classes and afterschool programs during the pandemic. Many missed their friends and teachers. WCIA had feedback from parents, students and the teachers union in their coverage. Excerpt:
Brylie Klaudt is an eighth grader at Edison Middle School. She said factors like accessibility, resources, and not being able to talk to both teachers and friends on a consistent basis make it difficult to be fully engaged as a student.
“I don’t think i’m getting the education I’m supposed to be getting,” Klaudt said. “I really feel like it’s just dumbing us down and shoving all this work in our faces with such a short period of time,”
Interviews and video segment with the full article here.
The school board's comments at roughly the 14:15 minute mark into the Part 2 video also repeatedly thanked the public who provided constructive and polite criticism. They noted multiple incidents by the public involving racist comments and unacceptable behavior. They asked for decorum and understanding in these trying times and to now that the board members they disagree with still have the best intentions for their students.
After board comments there was a quick explanation of few other school board meetings related to the Superintendent discussions. There are no videos for those meetings on the website as they were almost entirely in closed session and held at another location.
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