Geneva's New 3-Year Teachers Contract Could 'Sunset' Step Increases, Salary Spiking

The contract established with Tuesday night's vote offers across-the-board "step" raises in the second and third years as well as generous retirement incentives, but it also signals a sea change in compensation practices of the past.

At last, it's over. Geneva School District 304 put an end to eight months of contract negotiations Tuesday, when it voted 6-0 to ratify a new three-year agreement with the Geneva Education Association. In a brief opening statement, School Board President Mark Grosso called for the community to come together and "begin mending any strained relationships that may have occurred during this process." The contract summary released Tuesday by the Geneva Board of Education signals fundamental changes in the ways District 304 rewards employees for quality work. Under past contracts, teachers received yearly across-the-board "step" increases, plus cost-of-living increases, plus up to nine "lane" salary increases for completing coursework toward …

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DJP

7:56 pm on Sunday, November 25, 2012

@TommyFortune: This school district has well over 10,000+ teacher resumes on file. Teachers who are disgruntled over no tuition reimbursement and want to "walk" they will be replaced by someone who is more than happy & eager to take their place.   more ›

School Board Looks At Overcrowding Tonight

Kindergarten class sizes are getting larger at Williamsburg Elementary and the board will consider options to solve the problem at a special meeting tonight at 7 p.m.

A special meeting of the Board of Education is tonight at 7 p.m. at Coultrap, 1113 Peyton St. to address issues of kindergarten class sizes at Williamsburg Elementary School and possible bussing to other schools. Parents received a letter dated June 26 from District 304 that enrollment numbers are at 25 and 26 students for kindergarten class sections. The board will consider whether to bus some of those students to either Western Avenue Elementary School or Heartland Elementary School for the 2012-2013 school year.  Other considerations the board will discuss to solve the overcrowding problem are to add an instructional aide at Williamsburg, reassign students to Western or Heartland, or add an additional class section to Williamsburg. 

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Geneva Middle Schools' Innovative Math, Reading Intervention Programs Boost ISAT Scores

Students and teachers work during study halls and after school to catch up on basic skills.

The reading and math intervention classes at Geneva Middle Schools North and South are starting to pay off, both middle school principals told the School District 304 Board of Education Monday. “Last year we expanded the math intervention program, and the ISAT scores of the students who participated in it increased an average of 19.8 percentage points,” Geneva Middle School North principal Larry Bidlack said. The 2-year-old math intervention programs started with a weekly math lab class, run by school administrators and guidance counselors, for students who were struggling with fundamental math skills coming into sixth grade. “Some students were spending so much time on basic computation that they couldn’t keep up with the class,” Bidlack …

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Geneva School Board's Monday, Nov. 28, Agenda Includes Executive Session on Collective Bargaining

On the Monday District 304 School Board agenda are opportunities for public comment, discussion of the 2012-13 school calendar and possible action following an executive session on collective bargaining.

Geneva's Board of Education has distributed its agenda for Monday night's meeting. The District 304 board has been encouraging members of the public in recent weeks to comment and give feedback on the four options on the 2012 tax levy. Property taxes will be going up from $307 to $403 for a home wiht a market value of $288,000. The levy does not appear to be part of the regular meeting agenda, but the public is invited to comment according to the agenda below. Among the items of interest Monday, the School Board will take a look at the 2012-13 School Calendar, discuss revisions to its bylaws for board member ethics and adjourn to an executive session regarding collective bargaining, with possible board action to follow.  Here's the agenda …

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New Burgess Field On Track for Fall Football, Soccer

District 304 board re-approves donations, plans construction for spring.

It’s official: Burgess Field will get its new artificial turf surface in time for next fall’s football and soccer seasons. “This is just another indication of just how great this community actually is,” said District 304 Board of Education member Matt Henry just before the board formally accepted a $450,000 anonymous donation to fund the $1 million project and authorized staff to seek construction bids. Board members had already accepted both the $450,000 gift and $45,000 raised by The Friends of Burgess Field last April. But difficulties in assessing the field rebuilding project’s scope last spring pushed the project back a year and put those donations back in limbo, since they could not be spent during the 2010-11 budget year. Last fall …

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Bob McQuillan

11:28 am on Friday, November 18, 2011

"By the comments of a few people who use this as their public chat room, you'd almost get the feeling that priorities are misaligned." Ken, who are you talking about? If you are talking about the FACTS group or me, you can't be farther from the truth. None of our group has ever questioned the educational value the District provides to our children. Many FACTS members have advanced degrees, have …   more ›

Geneva Schools Make Advanced Placement Honor Roll

Just 367 school across the U.S. earn the honor.

Geneva Community Unit School District 304 is one of fewer than 400 public school districts in the nation being honored by the College Board with a place on the 2nd Annual AP® Honor Roll, according to a District 304 press release. The School District earns the honor roll spot for simultaneously increasing access to Advanced Placement coursework while maintaining or increasing the percentage of students earning scores of 3 or higher on AP exams. "Achieving both of these goals is the ideal scenario for a district’s Advanced Placement program because it indicates that the district is successfully identifying motivated, academically-prepared students who are likely to benefit most from AP coursework," the press release says. Since 2009, Geneva …

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State Report Cards: 91.2% Geneva Students Test Above State Standards

Percentage also exceeds No Child Left Behind target of 85 percent. But two schools and the district did not make "adequate yearly progress" as defined by NCLB.

Average scores achieved on state tests by Geneva School District’s students far outpaced the average statewide scores, according to building and district report cards compiled and released recently by the Illinois State Board of Education. The report cards show that 91.2 percent of Geneva’s students tested at or above state standards on all state tests. The state average for students meeting or exceeding standards on state tests is 76.5 percent. Following the state’s graduated growth model for compliance with the No Child Left Behind Act, this year’s target percentage for meeting or exceeding standards was 85.0 percent. The No Child Left Behind Act calls for 100.0 percent of students to meet or exceed standards by 2014. “We are extremely …

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Geneva Schools Learn Nutrition Lessons From A to Z Garden Bar Oct. 17-21

A to Z Garden Bar explains the many benefits of eating fruits and vegetables while introducing children to some new varieties of produce.

The food service department at Geneva’s elementary schools hosts a fun and educational program called A to Z Garden Bar that will be held the week of Oct. 17 to 21! Sponsored by Sodexo, the District’s foodservice provider, A to Z Garden Bar is designed to explain the many benefits of eating fruits and vegetables while introducing children to some new varieties of produce. The event includes a self-service salad bar containing fruits and vegetable that begin with each letter of the alphabet. During the one week A to Z Garden Bar event, students will be encouraged to try a variety of healthy foods and to include more fruits and vegetables in meals and snacks.  With the assistance of the Restaurant Management students at Geneva High School, …

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Beth Bales

Beth Bales: Decorate Your Home and Give the Gift of Music

The Geneva Music Boosters organization is in the midst of its annual Wreath Sale. Proceeds from this annual fund-raiser raise nearly half of the group's annual income.

Christmas greens mean greenbacks for the Geneva Music Boosters organization, now deep in its major fund-raiser, the annual Wreath Sale.  Follow Geneva Patch on Facebook! The organization is selling round wreaths in several sizes; centerpieces; swags for mailboxes, lanterns and doors; shaped wreaths (candy cane, heart, tree, star or snowflake) and, among a few other items, our family’s annual purchase, 25 feet of roping. It would not be Christmas without Music Boosters roping draped on our porch railings.   As the Boosters say, “Beautify your home with fresh greenery while you beautify your schools with a contribution to the gift of music this holiday season.” And what a gift it is.  During the last school year, Music Boosters provided: …

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5 Things You Should Know

Food Bank Grand Opening, Sen. Kirk Speaks, an IDOT Open Meeting and More--5 Things You Should Know for Tuesday, Sept. 27

World Tourism Day 2011 will be celebrated throughout the world.

Attend a public IDOT meeting and have your voice be heard about future road construction projects in our area. You'll find out more below.  Plus, the Northern Illinois Food Bank will celebrate it's grand opening of their new Geneva facility this morning.  And, Geneva School District 304 would like parents to attend a free workshop on effective parenting; you can find out how to sign up below.  Here are five things going on for Tuesday, Sept. 27: 1. The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) will hold a public meeting from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn in St. Charles. The purpose of this meeting is to discuss the Proposed Fiscal Year 2013-18 Highway Improvement Program with input from the community on overall highway system …

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John Walsh

12:03 pm on Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Senator Kirk's presentation was just the usual partisian Republican talking points.   more ›