[{"_1":2,"_100":-5,"_101":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6116905,"mediaKeyId","2731625-14873dd46583388c675cf73252db099d","parentId",2731625,"title","Board approves staffing, contracts, course changes and student-support pilot; roll-call summary","audioSeconds",468,"startMs",4280000,"endMs",4748000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2731625-14873dd46583388c675cf73252db099d&start=4280&end=4748","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2731625-14873dd46583388c675cf73252db099d/thumbnail_4280000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6116905/Illinois/Board-approves-staffing-contracts-course-changes-and-student-support-pilot-roll-call-summary","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6116905-03fb2e93819fd0f55d82378586bb980f/orig.mp4?Expires=1770864623&Signature=QlHy-ej3wTjknM1bfDDbkErOcdU02CIk~F82ZtTW5tOr72MS9dkOh-ix117vTC9kpDDScLaIs6isz-RzuMXMxZsA3ghkIyL-ZtyS5ek-gM-Tn74LSDjpBw5V7JseOdxgGxgRqXTJtQ8Tv5mRuTVOPRJZO0ccz5hs7DbKfFZdeMNn~gMtj0hNg3PbVXdCzDxv3wuXk6oEqt9yvM9ncLGmL0iABsuh4AK8cJkQBvlv49PtxM9idnBWHbW5l4foM~koGvlWassr3sgKDJby0xrjYgUgyJx3bI5frRKTAGihY4LVUcnhR~xwQ2by02wvFTGq5nlQxBDCjCiTPZOFC~er-Q__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Joliet Twp HSD 204","date","2025-03-22T01:00:12.317Z","article","The Joliet Township High School District 204 Board of Education voted on a package of action items during its regular meeting. Most items received brief discussion and were approved by roll call.

Key approvals and votes

- Staffing recommendations (Agenda item A): Board approved the district's 2025'6 staffing request (462.4 FTE). Vote: recorded affirmative roll call.

- Special board meeting for May 5, 2025 (Action item C): Approved.

- 2025-26 Board meeting dates (Action item D): Approved; the board confirmed meetings will generally fall on the third Tuesday of each month.

- IHSA membership renewal for Central and West campuses (Action item E): Approved.

- Agreements with community partners (Action items F and G): Continued partnerships with Redeemed Connection Ministries NFP and Involved Inc NFP were approved. The Involved Inc partnership was funded with IDEA funds and limited to students with IEPs, the transcript records.

- ROE 56 Alternative Learning Opportunities Program intergovernmental agreement (Action item H): The board approved a pilot placing a student-success advocate provided by the Regional Office of Education (ROE) at each campus. The pilot will assign 32 students per campus to receive additional academic, behavioral and social-emotional support. The presenter described the ROE employee as being provided by the ROE and the district will request bilingual candidates where appropriate.

- Course eliminations and additions (Action items I and J): The board approved recommended course eliminations (including Music Appreciation 2 and select lower-enrollment offerings) and a package of course additions that included Heritage Spanish 3, Latin American Studies, semesterized Sociology and Psychology courses, and History of American Popular Music.

- Donations (Action item K): Approved.

- Resolution authorizing preparation of the 2025-26 budget (Action item L): Approved.

- Breakfast and lunch pricing recommendation (Action item M): Approved; pricing will be maintained for the 2025-26 school year.

- 2025-26 fee and refund schedule (Action item N): Approved. The board also approved continuing a policy to waive the $160 summer-school fee for students eligible for free/reduced-price meals who successfully complete summer school (previously funded with ESSER funds).

- Agreement with ATI Physical Therapy (Action item O): Approved a three-year contract for athletic training and sports-medicine services; administrators said outsourced services were currently more cost-effective than hiring full-time athletic-trainer staff.

- Exempt and non-bargaining compensation proposals (Action items P and Q): Approved, including a 3.34% package increase for the non-bargaining group.

- Personnel resolutions (Action item R, series R1'R14): The board approved resolutions authorizing notices to remedy for individual employees listed in closed session as part of personnel actions discussed in closed session.

Several motions were made and seconded on the record; roll-call tallies recorded affirmative votes for each listed action. Where funding sources were mentioned on the record, the transcript cited IDEA for the Involved Inc summer supports and ESSER as a prior funding source for the summer-school fee waiver.

What the approvals mean

Most approvals were routine or continuations of existing partnerships; the ROE 56 pilot stands out as an operational pilot that places ROE-employed student-success advocates on campus to work with selected students during non-academic time. The ATI contract commits the district to a three-year arrangement for athletic training services while administrators continue to evaluate long-term staffing alternatives.

The board did not take up new districtwide policy changes in this session beyond budget and personnel approvals; they will continue facilities planning, staffing implementation and course scheduling in the weeks ahead.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","JTHS 204 Board Meeting 3.18.2025","oneSentenceSummary","At its March meeting the Joliet Township High School District 204 board approved the district's 2025'6 staffing request and a slate of routine and program actions, including agreements with community partners, course eliminations and additions, a student-support pilot with ROE 56 and a three-year contract for athletic training services.","taxTitle","Joliet Twp HSD 204, School Boards, Illinois","taxId",38584,"location","Illinois","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6116911,"Joliet Central master facilities update calls for T&I link, first-floor renovations and flexible shops",849,3330000,4179000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2731625-14873dd46583388c675cf73252db099d&start=3330&end=4179","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2731625-14873dd46583388c675cf73252db099d/thumbnail_3330000.jpg","/articles/6116911/Illinois/Joliet-Central-master-facilities-update-calls-for-TI-link-first-floor-renovations-and-flexible-shops","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6116911-250d0fab7f5013f53cbbd8ff45b54e8b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770864623&Signature=UxEJEWKwHFtpmScVKDeWHj4r85RJvSd0il7KJLZ5l8vHPaZH56JOLSV4568vsAphMTEJ2U8KJCNDJ83RhF~1z7SxqnXcWfyPNsNXHfmA-bwLMHw6xa2KDuXzxDX8uaptGURsOAczI-iBcus-B~qHBX8VmmRlVI6YTCdrBrKr0emHpeFLrbHIM5umuA8mIxFLcKvAA5qjh9iXjc0a-DtFmkqGn-wl5jy-tlK4PqiVcYifArY7q4nz~pHRlCXUlfOesY9ECzUrThenTNAit3llT4eYPhH2aaqizdmHHgE6MdJvPdW8jBoFQLUOBD7vJA8ppKC9G98-OjdbnexB1-4PMQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Architects from White and Company, working with Gilbane, presented an update on the Joliet Central master facilities plan and a Phase 2B proposal to the Joliet Township High School District 204 board.

Mideeshia of White and Company summarized the package as an update to the previously adopted master plan and said the work follows earlier campus projects including recent culinary arts and athletic-field renovations. The Phase 2B scope includes a two-story link between the main building and the T&I (technical and industrial) building, a new first-floor hallway inside T&I, first-floor renovations in the Smith and T&I buildings, and smaller program spaces such as small-group rooms and faculty resource rooms.

Steve Shearer (White and Company) said the project aims to \"consolidate CT and visual arts into the T And I Building\" and to \"create an improved hallway on the First Floor of T And I,\" allowing students to move between studios without walking through active lab spaces. The design includes four small classrooms or resource rooms within the new link and plans for overhead garage doors in several lab spaces to move large projects in and out.

Design and budget details presented include separate construction-cost buckets for the Smith first-floor renovation, the T&I link addition, and the T&I first-floor renovation; the architects said their cost estimates carry design and construction contingencies and an escalation allowance to account for tariffs and market volatility. The team said schematic design is underway, with design-development work to follow and a target for early fall bidding. Construction work would begin in summer 2026 with phased turnover, the presenters said.

Board members asked about subsurface conditions in downtown Joliet and the project team replied they routinely plan for unforeseen conditions and will scan slabs and evaluate electrical and plumbing locations before heavy work begins. A board member praised the accessibility improvements the project would bring to students with mobility needs, calling the links and corridor work an \"equitable\" improvement.

No formal vote was taken on the presentation. Administrators said the district will return with design-development budgets and updated schedules and will present West Campus work in a future meeting.","Architects outlined a Phase 2B plan for Joliet Central that would add two building links, connect the Smith and T&I buildings, add classrooms and group rooms, and renovate T&I first-floor labs; bidding is targeted for late-year and construction for summer 2026.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6116916,"Joliet Township board approves 2025–26 staffing request as enrollment edges down",2124,2236000,4360000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2731625-14873dd46583388c675cf73252db099d&start=2236&end=4360","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2731625-14873dd46583388c675cf73252db099d/thumbnail_2236000.jpg","/articles/6116916/Illinois/Joliet-Township-board-approves-202526-staffing-request-as-enrollment-edges-down","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6116916-b595fdabc39d716beb55452e2e0399f7/orig.mp4?Expires=1770864623&Signature=ZhzRlM2rYmPROrat8KJvdiM9by91u2FuQzoLMhvR2YoXDFuO-c4SPkVQlYI57CSSeueQ3D~5k5PTs08uScV4Rm8AKsdRhWH7yfkyT6qmGXI64PLJyTUdXWxSpCue-akgD-mc85VB1Gv~gHRByUaGNYpriWS1hUMMfsXn8MZhCBs8B1FLgJ~a-a1OcVxT~6U0P0KYpcDXR02lXoJEbKaisjkWQbzJeUQ7Nnl1m2q2WhG9m3uawYdvAHdG55pVadm0qyGP~XBky6Ms9VbViTRexFSMyVSAk9WoB-h63Q5OfNJfsOcYeiLWsIz-0WRIHRRjGx0yjWZ7Eke5F0~ezeScsA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","The Joliet Township High School District 204 Board of Education on Tuesday approved the district's staffing recommendations for the 2025'6 school year, authorizing a formal request for 462.4 full-time-equivalent (FTE) positions.

During a presentation to the board, Diane McDonald (presenter, district staff) said, \"we are formally requesting 462.4, FTE for this upcoming school year.\" She told the board the request represents an increase of 1.8 FTE from the current year and comes while the district is seeing a decline in student enrollment.

The staffing presentation placed the FTE request in context: the district submits an annual fall housing report to the State of Illinois and is using projected enrollments to guide hires. McDonald outlined priority hires and program changes included in the request: a bilingual social worker and an instructional coach at West Campus (already board-approved), a math interventionist at Central Campus, additional MTSS release time for Central and West to support English learner students, and 0.2 FTE added for an EL testing coordinator at Central. She also said paraprofessional vacancies remain and the district will continue summer hiring efforts for bus drivers, security and instructional aides.

McDonald described workforce challenges: \"This upcoming school year 20 five-twenty 6, we have 7 teachers right now, that will be retiring,\" and said the retirees are concentrated in high-need subjects including math, science, ESL and special education. She noted the district posts anticipated openings early for high-need positions to begin recruiting sooner.

The presentation also covered program- and course-level staffing decisions. McDonald explained how the staffing pool supports programs such as the Freshman Academy, MTSS teams, bilingual EL programs and new pre-AP biology for ninth grade. She described the process for low-enrollment classes (defined in the presentation as fewer than 20 students selecting a class) and said some specialized classes did not meet thresholds or lacked certified staff and therefore were not recommended to run.

Board members asked clarifying questions during the presentation about building layout and staffing distribution, and the presenter described differences in security staffing at Central because of the building's four-floor layout. The board praised efforts to maintain manageable work weeks for staff and to focus FTE on equity and student support.

After the presentation the board moved the staffing recommendations to a vote and approved them during the action items portion of the meeting. The motion to approve staffing carried on a roll-call vote; recorded voting members responded in the affirmative.

The district will post and recruit for the approved positions, and administrators said they will continue to monitor retirements and enrollment shifts as staffing is finalized over the spring and summer.","The Joliet Township High School District 204 board approved the district's 2025'26 staffing request of 462.4 FTE after a presentation showing modest FTE growth amid falling enrollment and several planned retirements.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Board approves staffing, contracts, course changes and student-support pilot; roll-call summary

Joliet Central master facilities update calls for T&I link, first-floor renovations and flexible shops

Joliet Township board approves 2025–26 staffing request as enrollment edges down