Posted in 220, Agendas, Barrington Education Association, Board of Education, Deception, District 220 referendum, His Master's Voice, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Springfield, Unions, Video Streaming, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on January 23, 2024| Leave a Comment »
The District 220 Board of Education meets this evening at 7:00 PM at the District Administration Center, 515 W. Main Street. Topics on their agenda include:
A copy of the agenda can be viewed here. The meeting will be live-streamed on the district YouTube channel.
Posted in 220, Barrington Education Association, Barrington High School, Board of Education, BOHICA, Clown Car, Contests, Deception, District 220 referendum, Elections, Ethics, Goat Rodeo, His Master's Voice, Look For The Union Label, New Normal?, Organizations, Politics, Property Taxes, Public Safety, School Districts, Taxes, Topics Of Interest, Transparency, Unions, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on December 21, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“At the December 19th Board meeting, the Board approved a contract with consulting firm EO Sullivan. The firm will help guide the district’s community engagement process over the next 10 months, as the district prepares to place a referendum question on the November 2024 election ballot.
A potential referendum question would include significant upgrades to the fine, visual, and performing arts spaces at BHS. ‘It could also possibly include projects that would impact all Barrington 220 schools such as additional safety and security upgrades.’ (The lobbying has clearly already begun)
The Board is planning to create a Referendum Advisory Committee to gain feedback about which projects should be included in a potential referendum question. The Board is anticipated to approve the committee charge at its next meeting on January 9.”
Click here to listen to the discussion.
Editorial note: According to their website, EO Sullivan focuses on, “Issue Advocacy, Lobbying Strategies and Influencer Persuasion.
Posted in 220, Barrington Education Association, Barrington High School, Board of Education, His Master's Voice, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Uncategorized, Unions, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on December 20, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“At the Dec. 19th Barrington 220 Board of Education meeting, the Board heard an update on free full-day kindergarten, which launches at the start of the 2024-25 school year. Students in full-day kindergarten will experience additional learning time in core subject areas: literacy, math, science, global studies, and health. In addition, students will participate in elementary specials throughout the day such as art, music, STEM, library, and physical education.
Click here to view a sample schedule.
The Board also heard an update on the new Kindergarten Lab Program or “K-Lab” at Barrington High School, which will also launch at the start of the 2024-25 school year. This free, opt-in program will be a full-day kindergarten program. It will include two kindergarten classes (46 students total), and it will provide unique learning opportunities to students, thanks to its location at BHS. At the meeting, the Board approved a contract with DLA architects to renovate existing space at BHS to build the new K-Lab classrooms. More information about the program will be made available to families next month.”
Posted in 220, Barrington Education Association, Board of Education, BOHICA, Deception, District 220 referendum, Elections, Ethics, His Master's Voice, Look For The Union Label, OP/Ed, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Springfield, Unions, What the Ficke (Bradford)?, WTF on December 19, 2023| Leave a Comment »
By Nick Binotti | WIREPOINTS
Several Ivy League schools have been put under a national microscope recently for applying the right to free speech inconsistently. These universities are giving some groups unwavering protection to protest, while shutting down other groups altogether. These inconsistencies have one common denominator: Higher education’s unwavering devotion to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
DEI’s focus on race, gender and is credited for much of the divisiveness on college campuses these days and Illinois’ university system is not immune. Look no further than the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) where Communication 9 goes as far as to tie faculty performance evaluations to professors’ commitment to DEI. We outlined problems with the university’s initiative here.
But what also deserves attention are the growing DEI bureaucracies and the significant financial costs associated with them. Illinois’ universities are building out big teams led by executives with big pay, the highest among them Sean Garrick, Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). His total compensation in 2023 is reported at $352,000, according to the Illinois Board of Higher Education.
But he’s just the tip of the DEIceberg.
Top heavy DEI roles come at a big cost.
In a state with the most units of local government in the country, it should be no surprise that Illinois’ higher education system is fragmented. Each university has its own DEI bureaucracy and, within each bureaucracy, its own flavor of DEI leadership.
The result is an administrative hodgepodge that can make it difficult to track how pervasive DEI is embedded in each institution. Chief Executives, Chancellors, Vice Chancellors, Associate Vice Chancellors – the titles for DEI executives are nearly as diverse as the department themselves. And their total compensation is anywhere from Doris Houston’s $155,000 at Illinois State University to Garrick’s $352,000.
Keep in mind the names in the table below are only the top officials listed in the Illinois Higher Board of Education’s salary database. There are many, many more lower-level functionaries we’ll have to work to identify in future reporting.
Read more here.
Related: “Florida Eliminates Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Initiatives in Higher Education,” “COVID-19, equity/diversity are top priorities in Dist. 220 superintendent search,” “Barrington school district to hire director of equity, race and cultural diversity,” “District 220 expands equity initiatives,” and last, but certainly not least, “District 220’s private equity campaign”
Posted in 220, Barrington Education Association, Board of Education, Deception, District 220 referendum, Ethics, His Master's Voice, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Unions, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on November 28, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“At the Nov. 21 Barrington 220 Board of Education meeting, the Board heard an update from district leaders about Barrington 220’s annual report card, which is assembled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE). The report card reflects data from the 2022-23 school year in areas of student achievement, growth, attendance, indicators of college and career readiness, as well as school climate and culture. During the 2022-23 school year, Barrington 220 students performed better than more than 90% of students across the state.
Illinois has five summative designations for schools: Exemplary, Commendable, Targeted, Comprehensive, and Intensive. All Barrington 220 schools received either exemplary or commendable status, and it is important to note that the schools that received commendable designations are very close to earning exemplary.
One area of focus for the district is improving student attendance, which weighs heavily on a school’s summative designation status. Chronic absenteeism has increased in Barrington 220 and across the state since the pandemic. In addition, the district is focusing on how it can accelerate growth for all students through rigorous academic opportunities. Click here to listen to the presentation.”
Posted in 220, Agendas, Barrington Education Association, Barrington High School, Board of Education, Countryside Elementary School, Deception, District 220 referendum, Entertainment, Ethics, His Master's Voice, Pension Funding, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Real Estate, Resident Surveys, School Districts, Transparency, Unions, Video Streaming, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on November 7, 2023| Leave a Comment »
The District 220 Board of Education meets this evening at 7:00 PM at the District Administration Center, 515 W. Main Street. Topics on their agenda include:
A copy of the agenda can be viewed here. The meeting will be live-streamed on the district YouTube channel.
Posted in 220, Barrington Education Association, Board of Education, BOHICA, Countryside Elementary School, District 220 referendum, Ethics, His Master's Voice, Look For The Union Label, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Unions, Video Recordings, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on October 18, 2023| Leave a Comment »
“At the Oct. 17 Barrington 220 Board of Education meeting, the Board supported the district’s recommendation to implement free full-day kindergarten at all Barrington 220 elementary schools, beginning at the start of the 2024-25 school year. Full-day kindergarten will extend core instruction (math, science, literacy, etc.) throughout the school day. It will eliminate the district’s fee-based Kindergarten Enrichment Program.
In addition to implementing full-day kindergarten at all elementary schools, the Board supported the district’s recommendation to create a free full-day kindergarten lab program at Barrington High School. This opt-in program will also begin at the start of the 2024-25 school year. The ‘K-Lab’ will include two kindergarten classes (46 students total), and it will provide unique learning opportunities to students, thanks to its location at BHS. Students will be enrolled in the program utilizing a lottery system similar to the district’s Spanish Dual Language and Chinese Immersion programs. More details about the K-Lab will be provided in the coming months”.
Posted in 220, Agendas, Barrington Education Association, Barrington High School, Board of Education, BOHICA, Deception, District 220 referendum, Ethics, His Master's Voice, Intergovernmental agreements (IGA), Look For The Union Label, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, Real Estate, School Districts, Taxes, Unions, Video Streaming, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on October 17, 2023| Leave a Comment »
The District 220 Board of Education meets this evening at 7:00 PM at the District Administration Center, 515 W. Main Street. Topics on their agenda include:
A copy of the agenda can be viewed here. The meeting will be live-streamed on the district YouTube channel.
Posted in 220, 300, Barrington Education Association, Barrington High School, Board of Education, His Master's Voice, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Topics Of Interest, Unions, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on October 11, 2023| Leave a Comment »
BY CHEYANNE MUMPHREY | AP
High school students’ scores on the ACT college admissions test have dropped to their lowest in more than three decades, showing a lack of student preparedness for college-level coursework, according to the nonprofit organization that administers the test.
Scores have been falling for six consecutive years, but the trend accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students in the class of 2023 whose scores were reported Wednesday were in their first year of high school when the virus reached the U.S.
“The hard truth is that we are not doing enough to ensure that graduates are truly ready for postsecondary success in college and career,” said Janet Godwin, chief executive officer for the nonprofit ACT.
The average ACT composite score for U.S. students was 19.5 out of 36. Last year, the average score was 19.8.
The average scores in reading, science and math all were below benchmarks the ACT says students must reach to have a high probability of success in first-year college courses. The average score in English was just above the benchmark but still declined compared to last year.
Many universities have made standardized admissions tests optional amid criticism that they favor the wealthy and put low-income students at a disadvantage. Some including the University of California system do not consider ACT or SAT scores even if submitted.
Godwin said the scores are still helpful for placing students in the right college courses and preparing academic advisors to better support students.
Read more here.
Posted in 220, 300, Barrington Area Library, Barrington Education Association, Board of Education, Deception, Elgin Community College, Harper College, His Master's Voice, Look For The Union Label, Politics, Pritzker’s Rules of Order, Property Taxes, School Districts, Unions, What the Ficke (Bradford)? on October 5, 2023| Leave a Comment »
A pile of challenged books appear at the Utah Pride Center in Salt Lake City on Dec. 16, 2021. Attempted book bannings and restrictions at school and public libraries continue to surge, according to a new report from the American Library Association. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, File)
(The Center Square) – As Gov. J.B. Pritzker continues to discourage libraries from removing controversial books from their shelves, a grassroots organization says the state of Illinois should turn its attention elsewhere.
On Jan.1, Illinois will become the first state in the country that would cut off state taxpayer funding to any libraries that remove books currently on the shelves. Under the new law, Illinois public libraries can only access state grants if they adopt the American Library Association’s Library Bill of Rights, which stipulates that “materials should not be proscribed or removed because of partisan or doctrinal disapproval.”
On Tuesday, Pritzker attended an event at the University of Chicago to commemorate National Banned Books Week. The school plans to build a collection of books that have been historically banned, creating an accessible library open to the public.
“Tyrants and fascists rise up and authoritarian regimes take hold, and what’s the first thing that they do? They ban the books that disagree with them,” Pritzker said.
Shannon Adcock, president of the advocacy group Awake Illinois, says it is another example of state government overstepping its bounds.
“We have local library boards and trustees, we have local school boards of elected school board members that are there to take an oath to represent their constituents and to be stewards of their local tax dollars,” Adcock told The Center Square.
Read more here.
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