THE JOURNAL & TOPICS NEWSPAPERS | WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16, 2008
Dist. 64 Bringing Back Teachers, Staff Next Year
By DWIGHT ESAU
Journal Reporter
A couple of years ago, it was cut and eliminate programs and people in Park Ridge-Niles School District 64.
Today, it's restore, add, and expand.
The district continued its financial and educational turnaround Apr. 7, restoring several teaching and administrative positions cut previously in the budget-cutting era, and approved limited addition of new staff for 2008-09.
In another positive development one year after the successful tax rate referendum that pumped additional revenues into the district, the board of education was notified by the Illinois State Board of Education that the district has been lifted to the top category - financial recognition - for the first time ever.
District 64 is among about 70% of Illinois districts that have achieved this recognition.
Earlier this year, the district's administration recommended a staffing expansion plan that cost $730,000. But in an effort to maintain fiscal responsibility, the board approved about two-thirds of it, and saved additional money by making one position temporary for three years rather than permanent.
The board:
* Restored five teacher positions to work with students to bolster literacy in grades 4-5.
* Restored the 10-month Lincoln Middle School assistant principal position to 12 months and added summer school supervision to the job's responsibilities.
* Reinstated the Roosevelt assistant principal position, but reduced it to 10 months.
* Added a full-time psychologist position to provide support to teachers in early intervention programs. The district says its current ratio of three psychologists for 4,369 students ranks last among area districts.
* Limited a new early intervention/response to intervention coordinator position to three years to provide extra support as the initiative is launched in all schools. The administration had recommended that the position be permanent.
"We are pleased that the board was willing to restore staffing eliminated during the long period of cutbacks prior to the referendum," said Superintendent Sally Pryor.
"The new positions - even on a limited basis - also will give us crucial momentum to launch a new, mandated early intervening services initiative that we believe will positively impact student learning."
Proposals to add two assistant principals at four elementary schools, and a new coordinator for the Jefferson Extended Day kindergarten and after-school programs were not approved at this time.
In another new initiative, the district plans to monitor and share student achievement data annually with the community through new scorecards tied to the district's educational ends standards.