Mark Klaisner's blog

Money in every school district is tight. This goes for District 74 also. The average is about 5 years between referenda - by design of the law. It has been five years since our last referendum. Our current projections show several years until our next referendum. This timeline is something of which to be very proud!

We have accomplished this feat with much commitment, frugality and planning. I intend for us to remain on this track.

I have two new vehicles for communication to tell you about.

We have recently sent a newsletter to all residents of our community. I am very excited about this publication. 80% of our homes do not have children in our schools. I think this is another avenue to keep our community informed. The newsletter contains information on a variety of topics and is very informative.

If you did not receive a copy and would like to have one, please email me at mklaisner@sd74.org and I will have one mailed to you.

The second vehicle for communication is a survey that I hope you will consider completing. It can be accessed through the front page of our website.

This SHORT survey asks five questions about how well we are communicating and the best ways to deliver information to our families and our community at large.

Please take a couple of minutes and share your thoughts with us.

At last week's School Board Meeting, the Board of Education voted to approve new start and end times for all three schools in our district.

The main reason for these changes was to allow more instructional time for our students and more flexibility for our internal schedules. There are many programs we would like to implement to address the full range of student needs. We believe that the new schedules will assist in this endeavor.

The proposed times (see below) are the result of years of discussion and surveys of our parents, committees, staff and administration. As the superintendent of our district, I am very excited about this step toward improving our instructional delivery.

I know that this change will take adjustment by all of us, but I know you will join me in celebrating a better schedule. We will be advertising these changes in start and end times now so that our families and our staff members can plan ahead for next year.

The next step in the strategic planning process will be a strategic planning day.

On February 11th, a group of about 50 "stakeholders" will meet to review the progress so far on the current strategic plan. Then they will discuss new goals for the following year.

I will look forward to reporting the excellent progress we have made in the last year. In addition, I will report our new proposed goals.

At the March School Board meeting, we will present the proposed goals for the strategic planning leading to future successes in our district. After Board approval, we will widely publicize the new strategic plan.

This is a season of much celebration and excitement. Our school district is forever moving forward and there are much success and many accomplishments to celebrate!

The final aim of our Strategic Plan is Community Connections. There was a day, not too long ago really, when schools didn’t worry about this. However, in our current day and age, it is more important than ever that we work together as a community to foster the education of the next generation. These commitments include learning, conversations, financial support, partnering, volunteerism and connections with our community officials and businesses.

First and foremost, as a district, we must work to open communication and foster understanding. It is essential that the school district informs the community of the current status and operations while providing opportunities for input related to the future directions of the district.

On behalf of the Board of Education and the district administrators, I would like to wish you a blessed holiday season, a rich time with family and friends, and a healthy New Year.

We look forward to 2008 as it promises to be another outstanding year as we focus on learning and the growth of our students.

This is the fifth week in my sequence about District 74’s strategic plan. This entry will focus on Aim 4, Positive School Climate. This is a very important aim. Our history as well as our plan in Lincolnwood School District 74 is to continuously promote a positive environment.

As I have mentioned in previous blog entries, the environment within our school buildings must be conducive to learning as well as helping students “feel” safe. Additionally, parents and community members should be very welcomed and encouraged to partner in the education and success of our students.

This is the fourth week in my sequence about District 74’s strategic plan. This entry will focus on Aim 3, Effective and Efficient Operations.

To be responsible with our limited resources, we must continue to have one of our foci be “Effective and Efficient” operations. This strand group established four goals for our current strategic plan.

The first goal in Aim 3, Effective and Efficient Operations, is the creation of procedures to facilitate effective communication. This is an excellent first goal. It is crucial to have effective and efficient communication if we are going to work together to improve operations. Included in the strategies in this area are connections with the village and the Parks and Recreation department.

This week's blog continues my discussion about our strategic plan.

Aim #2 is entitled “Safe and Secure.” We believe very strongly that students as well as professional educators perform better when they feel safe and secure. Of course, we are talking about more than locking the doors. Everyone in our schools must know that they are important and valued while also knowing that they are physically safe.