CLFOGE's BOE Speech by Colleen Bailey

Katherine Rosch - EC Public Comment to D47 Board

Andrew Rosulek - Potential Reduction in Full-Time EC Educators

Lilly Bailey - Speech for BOE

Bryan Kyroac - BOE Speech on Fairness

Thank you to all those who spoke eloquently and passionately, came out wearing green or plugged in to the BOE meeting last night. In person, supporters filled the room and overflowed into the atrium. There were about 15 speeches made from parents, concerned citizens, recent graduates, current students and employees of D47 & 155, all petitioning the board and superintendent to reconsider these changes. We are proud of this effort and will continue to work for fair access to appropriate learning opportunities for our advanced learners and the support of the teachers/staff that guide them!

At the meeting we had just over 550 verified signatures on our petition, linked below. As of this update, we have 657!

We are hopeful our efforts have encouraged those making these decisions to reconsider funding cuts and restructuring of the EC program and its staff, however we have no additional insights at this time. We encourage everyone to do your due diligence in researching BOE candidates for the April election and make sure to vote! We'll update you when we have more to share. Please feel free to reach out to the CLFOGE Board at any time with questions, comments, concerns! 

03/19/25 -- 03/18/25 District Update Letter on Staffing Changes

CLFOGE Board members are in frequent contact with our EC teachers in an attempt to understand the ongoing changes being made and to know how best to advocate and support them and our advanced learners. The term "extension with an interventionist" has not been defined for the EC teachers as of this moment. They hope it means they will be able to continue providing enrichment to k-3 students, but past communication from CORE administration said the interventionist position would be based on building needs. A main concern for the elementary EC teachers, shared by us parents, is equity for all students across all buildings to have access to necessary supports.

What can we do? Continue letting CORE administration know your concerns. Contact your principals and encourage support of K-3 enrichment for advanced learners. Ask questions to understand the needs of your school population and how that is impacting the role of your specific school's EC teacher. Vote April 1 for school board candidates that share your concerns.

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February 2025 ---- ATTENTION ALL EC, PEP & 4/5 Enrichment Parents and Supporters,

As many of you know, we are currently facing challenges from District 47 related to reduced staffing of the extended curriculum program in our schools. Many of you reading this understand the monumental loss this could be for our children and their classmates. Now, it is our job to support our kids and their teachers by showing the school board and superintendent how vital these programs are and ask that they find other areas to make budget cuts.

We encourage you to step up and show your support in the following ways:

1. Plan to attend the February 18 school board meeting. Show up, bring your kids, and wear green in support of the EC program. The meeting begins at 7pm, and early arrival is encouraged. The more people who attend, the more effective our voices will be.
2. Consider sharing your personal experience by speaking at the meeting. Our goal is to maximize the number of voices the board hears. Please be respectful and stick to the facts: the district has publicly communicated that they are cutting EC staff, but hasn’t provided specifics beyond that. Note that if you plan to address the board, you must sign up prior to the start of the meeting.
3. Take this survey to help us coordinate our message. We want to clearly convey the importance of EC to all of our children and families and ensure all voices can be heard, even if you can’t be present at the board meeting.
4. Sign this petition to show your support.
5. Contact the individuals below in the district office and let them know your concerns:

• Kathy Hinz, Superintendent: khinz@d47.org, 815.788.5012
• Aimee Kasper, Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum, Instruction & Assessment: akasper@d47.org, 815.788.5030
• 
  

Please help us keep momentum and attention on this topic. District 47 needs to adequately maintain gifted education programs in our schools!

Sincerely,

The CLFOGE Board

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Top concerns regarding gifted education and the proposed staffing reductions by District 47:

1. Decreased access to appropriate learning opportunities for advanced students that already don't get their academic needs met on a daily basis.
2. Retention of quality teachers specifically trained to assess and meet advanced learner's specific academic, social and emotional needs.
3. Impact on motivated students that benefit from 4/5 book/math clubs seeking to move into higher academic tracks. 
4. Decreased inclusion of high-risk/historically underrepresented groups in EC if access to and assessment for these enrichment programs are reduced.
5. The effect that reduced supports at the elementary level will have on enrollment of students seeking higher level courses in middle and high school.

* We will update these concerns with information gathered from the survey linked above.

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Resources: 

An Overview of D47's Elementary EC program - A great read to supplement your understanding of D47 EC and PEP programs, curated for us by D47 EC elementary teachers.

NAGC's Position Statement & Framing Papers Guiding Best Practices

There are some concerns CLFOGE is hearing in regards to the new resources D47 will be using to cover 6th & 7th grade EC curriculum and students' readiness for high school honors geometry that these EC students take in 8th grade. In March 2024, D47 BOE approved updating math resources for middle school that were 20 years old, says Dr. Stadlman, D47 Director of Math, Science and STEM. As of the 2025/26 school year, 6th grade EC math students will be using Imagine IM (Illustrative Math) resources to cover EC content. They'll roll-up the use of these new resources for 7th grade during the 2026/27 school year. Here is a presentation found in the March 2024 BOE meeting minutes that presented the math updates.

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From the 2024 March BOE Meeting Minutes:

Type: Action

Recommended Action: Motion to approve the elementary and middle school math adoption, not to exceed

Our aim as educators is to help our students achieve optimal outcomes. In mathematics, our resources for elementary and middle school need to meet current best practices in instruction and encourage student engagement through inquiry, hands on exploration, critical thinking, and student discourse. Elementary and Middle School Math committees have been meeting for several years scouring research, analyzing information about teaching and learning, and evaluating resources that support these goals. The committees will be recommending resources that support teacher facilitation of learning that promotes student growth in mathematics.

D47 Board of Education Math Adoption Presentation_March 18, 2024_Slides.pdf (5,425 KB)

Motion & Voting:

Motion to approve the middle school adoption math 1,203,955.00 as presented

Motion by Debra Barton, second by Emily R Smith.

Final Resolution: Motion Carried

Yes: Tim Mahaffy, Debra Barton, Emily R Smith, Courtney E Hand, Laura LW Stanton, Lisa Messinger

No: Jonathan R Powell

Motion to approve the elementary adoption, not to exceed $1,898,477.00 as presented.

Motion by Emily R Smith, second by Laura LW Stanton.

Final Resolution: Motion Carried

Yes: Jonathan R Powell, Tim Mahaffy, Debra Barton, Emily R Smith, Courtney E Hand, Laura LW Stanton, Lisa Messinger

https://www.d47.org/board-of-education/school-board-candidates

This District 47 School Board Candidate Questionnaire and Parent Guide were created by members of the Crystal Lake D47 Parent Group Advisory Council (PGAC), a non-partisan group of PTA/PTO volunteers who do not endorse specific candidates. The district was not involved in developing the questions or responses below and is simply sharing this information to inform the community. School Board candidates provided their answers, which have been posted unedited. Election Day is April 1, 2025.

With the support of CLFOGE board members, Colleen Bailey signed a witness slip on behalf of CLFOGE membership as a proponent of IAGC's own legislative bill - SB 1983 sponsored by Senator Mary Edly-Allen - that went in front of the Senate Education committee of the Illinois Senate on March 18th, 2025. This bill serves to make amendments to clarify and update gifted education provisions.

What is SB1983?

Please see the attached one-pager to outline the details of SB1983 and the implications for advanced learners