1. Presentation: Linda Hasenmyer and Mary Jane Morris With Consortium For Educational Change Regarding School Improvement Grant - 2011. (Mary Jane Morris was unable to attend due to a death in her family.)
   For the uninformed...

   Teachers at CJSHS have been working with the Consortium for Educational Change (CEC) to acquire a $250,000 federal grant to be applied to school transformation. (Meridian previously applied for the grant and was denied, but plans to apply again. Egyptian applied for the grant last year and was approved. Cairo - due to its repeated failure to reach achievement levels established by ISBE now has the honor of being able to apply for these Big Bucks. In fact, as Linda Hasenmyer pointed out (using adjectives like "sad" and "shocking"), Cairo is really, really bad...scoring at 8% of students meeting/exceeding state standards when the state scores at 53%.

   Yes, CSD #1 finds itself in the infamous worst 5% of schools in the State of Illinois.

   Of course...

   Being the union-loving, status quo protecting, negative person that I am...I would offer the "lame excuse" that Alexander County is always #1 or #2 in unemployment in Illinois. I would cite a recent report that put Alexander County at the bottom of the list for healthy counties in Illinois. And if you have driven the streets of Cairo (hopefully during the daylight hours so that you can dodge the major potholes that will seriously damage your vehicle should you hit them), you have seen the abject poverty in which our students and their families live.

   Any study in the world will tell you that P-O-V-E-R-T-Y is the factor that has the greatest impact on student learning. Children raised in homes mired in poverty face insurmountable obstacles that directly, negatively impact student achievement. According to the grant application prepared by Linda Hasenmyer et al, 100% of students in CSD #1 are classified as poor...P-O-O-R.

   I could go on...but I won't.

   The reason I won't is that Linda Hasenmyer told me tonight that I don't know what the hell I'm talking about...that I can't possibly understand. Since Linda is the one making the Big Bucks (and hoping to chalk up another $250,000 grant in Cairo) and I am a retired dinosaur, who am I to argue?

   Clarification...

   Linda did NOT actually tell me personally that I didn't know, didn't understand. Linda, in fact, has always been very polite to me...even mentioned tonight that I had attended a meeting or two concerning the grant.

   Linda simply made a statement during her presentation that rubbed this old CAT's fur in the wrong direction. In fact, I threw a temper tantrum of sorts and left the room for the remainder of her presentation. (Actually, kudos to Linda for her presentation. Her PowerPoint presentation was well organized and she spoke in a volume not often heard at Cairo BOE meetings. I could clearly hear her...even while sulking in the hallway.)

   As for my leaving...

   I called myself doing the lesser of evils. I had whispered some snide remarks to another member of the audience a couple of times earlier in Linda's presentation...which caused a couple of BOE members to glance in my direction. (One of the pitfalls for a person who is hard of hearing is that they often talk and evidently whisper louder than they think they are. I truly did NOT mean to be disruptive.)

   Anyway...

   After making several remarks which this sensitive old CAT took as placing the blame for low student test scores solely at the feet (paws?) of teachers, Linda was even more pointed when she said "middle class teachers don't understand poverty". Well, after sitting through Superintendent Swopes' racial take on the same theme...that "white teachers can't teach black children", well, I thought it best to remove myself from the room before I said something I would regret.

   I could go on...I could really, really rant...but I'm going to sleep on it.

   
   

   One final comment, a follow-up to my earlier post today about education reform and its arrival in the State of Illinois...complete with "union label".

   CSD #1 is now marketing its own brand of Kool-Aid!

   Drink with caution.

   Moving right along...

   
   

   Oh, one other thing.

   One of the BOE members offered a dose of reality during the presentation. The BOE member listened as Linda described the wonderful parent outreach activities, including a person hired to sit in the new CJSHS "parent room" daily, to welcome and assist the multitude of visitors. The BOE Member wondered...what will this person do WHEN no parents show up. The BOE Member (like the rest of CSD #1 educators) KNOW...they ain't comin'.

   
   

   Ooh, ooh, ooh...

   Almost forgot!

   I take comfort...I was not the only rude person in attendance. I may have gotten up and left the room toward the end of the presentation, but while I was there, I did stay awake. However, another person (who shall remain nameless), sitting front and center at the head of the table was observed napping. I'm inclined to cut him some slack. I've made that drive from Chicago to Cairo and it can flat wear you out...

   
   

   (CAT Tracks Editor's Note: Guess I should repeat my disclaimer from this morning. I attended tonight's BOE as a private citizen, a taxpayer of CSD #1. My catty commentary is mine and mine alone. The CAT will have to make its own decision on this mess. Personally...I would think long and hard before giving up one ounce of contract language...so that CSD #1 can get $250,000 to "play with". Most likely they will give it to lawyers...like the $10,000 they donated this month, the $160,000 they paid lawyers last year! Hmmm...let's do the math: The new $250,000 minus the annual donation to the "Old Lawyer's Home"...CSD #1 officials will have $90,000 to play with. Oh, minus golfing green fees, food for BOE meetings, and other ESSENTIAL, high priority items. BTW: Don't expect the District to be thankful and hold you in in high esteem for your sacrifice. When it suits them, they will fire your fuzzy butt in a heartbeat. If you are "lucky", they might do you like they did one of your colleagues just last month...wait until the year before you are due to retire, fire you, and brag about how they are going to hire somebody else to sit in the empty parent room at CJSHS. Ahhh...the CSD #1 brand of loyalty. And these folks say "Trust Us!" In short, good luck to all of you...you will need it!!!)

2. Library Grant - ??? - The steam coming out of my ears probably caused me to miss what was said about this topic. May have been one of those annual things.

3. Shawnee Division Committee Meeting - May 5, 2011 - Superintendent Swopes encouraged the members to attend.

4. School Board Members' Conference - May 14, 2011 More encouragement to attend.

5. ISDA Property Casualty Program - A question was raised about whether the insurance should be opened for bids. It was noted that it "could be", but that legally it did not have to be unless someone objected and asked that it be opened. There were expression of satisfaction with the current carrier. It was also pointed out that the current company was offering a 3-year renewal with a fixed rate for the duration. No motions were made, no votes were taken.

6. President McBride told the BOE members about a letter from the Regional Office of Education...a workshop...how she had attended last year and that she recommended it highly.

7. Checks Deposited - District Account

   $10,389.40 - Spec. Ed. Transportation
   1,130.29 - Fresh Fruits & Veggie Grant
   5,907.96 - Healthcare & Family Services (TAMES)
   34,451.87 - Regular Transportation
   24,333.21 - Spec. Ed. Extraordinary
   17,263.22 - Federal Lunch
   9,131.98 - Federal Breakfast
   185,188.09 - State Aid - Feb. - 2nd Payment
   5,927.92 - Healthcare & Family Services (TAMES)
   33,061.00 - Early Childhood Block Grant
   1,597.60 - State Lunch/Breakfast
   1,958.69 - Driver Education
   50,807.31 - Personal Property Replacement Tax
   2,618.75 - Lease - CCEC - Shawnee College
   100.00 - First Student Transit- Rent (2 months)

XI. Closed Session - The BOE voted to enter closed session at 7:42 p.m. The BOE voted to exit closed session at 9:15 p.m.

XII. Requiring Action/Decisions By Board of Education

1. Personnel employment, resignation, release, discipline, or compensation
   a. Accept Resignation of Rachel Harrell as High School Cheerleading Sponsor - Motion made, seconded, and passed.

2. Approve Amended District Budget- 2010-2011 - Motion made, seconded, and passed.

3. Approve Amended Calendar - 2010- 2011 - Motion made, seconded, and passed.

4. Approve Proposed Calendar For FY 2012 - Motion made, seconded, and passed. (I'll post the calendar in a separate CAT Tracks.)

5. Recommendation By The Superintendent For The Approval of The School Improvement Grant - 2012. Skipped without comment.

6. Approve Board Policy Manual Updates - Motion made, seconded, and passed.

7. Approve JAMP Request Regarding Student Graduation...Student #4-21-11-1 - Motion made, seconded, and passed.

8. Accept Contribution to Cairo Jr/Sr High School (Ryan O'Shea) From Oris B. Hastings Charitable Foundation- $2,520.00 - Motion made, seconded, and passed.

XIII. Other - In lieu of the item above, Superintendent Swopes made a recommendation for the BOE to authorize him to file papers pursuing the $250,000 School Improvement Grant. Motion made, seconded, and passed.

XIV. Old Business - None

XV. Adjourn - Motion made, seconded, and passed to adjourn at 9:20 p.m.

CLOSED SESSION IS FOR THE PURPOSE OF CONSIDERING INFORMATION RELATIVE TO THE APPOINTMENT, EMPLOYMENT, PERFORMANCE OR DISMISSAL OF INDIVIDUAL EMPLOYEES WHICH MAY BE OF A TEMPORARY CONFIDENTIAL NATURE, STUDENT DISCIPLINE, PLACEMENT OF SPECIAL EDUCATION STUDENTS, DISCUSSION OF LITIGATION PROBABLE, IMMINENT, FILED OR PENDING AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING OR RELATED ISSUES.

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