Rick Nagel

Geneva Says Fond Farewell to 500 Years of Teaching Experience

Some amazing, wonderful Geneva teachers closed chapters in their lives with retirement scheduled for the end of this year.

When the final bell sounds at the end of the May 31 school day, expect hugs, kisses and maybe a few tears, as Geneva public schools say goodbye to an accumulated 500-plus years of experience. At Monday night's School Board meeting, principals at six Geneva schools plus Assistent Superintendent Craig Collins had a chance to say some kinds words about the folks who's served the district as teachers and support staff. Speaking purely on a personal note, Debra Scholle remains one of the favorites teachers of our youngest, Brenda Bevans was remarkable in her support of our oldest daughter—and of her parents—as was Diane Rogowski at Geneva High School. Jim Burger taught both me and my youngest daughter (40 years apart) at Geneva High School—we'…

• Videos (1)

Coultrap Will Come Down in August—at Cost of About $686,000

"Some type of memorial" will be put in place at the Coultrap site, another meeting with neighbors will be scheduled and the Fourth Street administrative facilities will take on the Coultrap name. The cost of demolition is $545,900.

The historic Coultrap building will fall sometime in August, and School District 304 will pay Alpine Deomolition $545,900 to do it. The School District will pay another $140,200 for asbestos abatement at the school. Those were two of the action items of the April 22 board meeting. The board also determined that it would rename—or "rededicate" the Fourth Street centraol office as the "Coultrap Educational Services Center" in memory of Harry Coultrap, the educator that played such an important role in the development of Geneva schools and its "tradition of excellence." School Board President Mark Grosso said he would ask for assistance in creating "some sort of memorial" at the Coultrap facility site and asked that staff set up another …

•  4 Comments
• Photos (5)

School District 304 Gets OK to Hire Safety Coordinator, Accounting Specialist, Mechanic

The positions are part of a reorganization, with new job descriptions created as other staff members retire.

School District 304 is creating several new positions as part of a reorganization designed to improve school safety and prevention programs, bus maintenance. accounting and early-childhood programs. At last week's board meeting, the Geneva School Board voted unanimously to support the recommendations for several new or redefined positions, including a fulltime safety/security supervisor, early childhood coordinator, coordinator of business services and bus mechanic. The district also will hire a half-time student prevention coordinator. Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources Craig Collins presented the board with proposed changes and underlined that most of them were "re-purposing" existing jobs. In the case of the student prevention …

• Photos (3)

Cabeen to TaxFACTS: 'Put Your Mouth Where Your Money Is'

The citizens group that sometimes criticizes local government and elected officials gets a dose of criticism itself on Monday night.

Candidates and elected officials sometimes criticize TaxFACTS privately, but they rarely take the citizens group to task head on, perhaps for the sake of civil discourse or concern about the flak they might receive in response, from the podium or the comments field. Not so for Robert "Larry" Cabeen, the former School Board candidate who gave the TaxFACTS organization a small dose of criticism at Monday night's meeting. "Put your mouth where your money is," Cabeen said. "It might actually cut costs." Cabeen stepped to the podium during the first public comments portion of the Board of Education meeting at Williamsburg Elementary School. He offered well-wishes to the board members who won election and commented on technology spending, for …

•  48 Comments
• Videos (1)

John R

2:36 pm on Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Gdt, this will be my last exchange, with whoever you are, as I've said this can be exhausting. What I said was "They are mean and spiteful". They being some of the people who identify with and advocate for TF. Maybe they are wonderful people but are just misunderstood. Who knows and who really cares. All I care about is figuring out a way to keep our property taxes in check. And you know what my …   more ›

Don't Be Alarmed—School District 304 Plans Emergency Drill April 26

On the day of the drill, please do not be alarmed if you see emergency responders, smoke, ambulances, and/or media on the Geneva Middle School campus.

Geneva School District 304 is keeping the specifics of the drill a secret, but in the wake of school shootings at Newtown and others, it's not hard to imagine what the drill might entail. Geneva School District 304 Superintendent Kent Mutchler sent a letter to parents notifying them of the "districtwide, full-scale emergency drill" that will take place between noon and 3:30 p.m. Friday, April 26, at the middle school campus on Viking Drive. Viking Drive and Blackman Road will be blocked off during the drill, beginning around noon. The drill "is planned to provide Geneva School District staff the invaluable opportunity to evaluate their emergency response procedures and make adjustments where necessary," Mutchler said. Students will be …

•  5 Comments
• Photos (10)

Avett Green

10:20 pm on Friday, April 26, 2013

Your point is? The fact that this drill didn't include 11 to 13 yr. olds doesn't make it any less valuable training for those in charge if a disaster occurs.   more ›

School District 304 Plans to Re-Name Fourth Street Office After Coultrap

In the wake of the Coultrap Building demolition, School District 304 aiming to rededicate its administrative offices after the esteemed local educator.

The item on Monday's Geneva School Board agenda says it all: With the pending demolition of the Coultrap facility that once was Geneva's high school, later its middle school and a grade school, School District 304 apparently wants to make sure the Coultrap name is preserved and honored in a facility of standing bricks and mortar. As Kelly Nowak wrote in a history column on Geneva Patch, Harry Mansfield Coultrap arrived in Geneva in 1912 and became one of Geneva's early, if not first, superintendent of schools. Three elementary schools were constructed during his tenure, between 1916 and 1929: on Fourth Street, Sixth Street and Harrison Street. A "modern" high school building was constructed on Peyton Street in 1923, which is the building …

• Photos (2)

You Can Bid for a Piece of Coultrap at Silent Auction April 20-21

Auction items include student desks and chairs, adult desks, coat racks removed from the walls, historical glass doors from the original building, tables, and other items salvaged from the building.

Area school districts and the general public are invited to an auction of items remaining at the Coultrap facility on Saturday, April 20, and Sunday, April 21. Auction items include student desks and chairs, adult desks, coat racks removed from the walls, historical glass doors from the original building, tables, and other items salvaged from the building. Money raised will be used by School District 304 to defray the cost of the facility’s demolition later this year. The silent auction will be held from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, April 20, and from 8 to 11 a.m. on Sunday, April 21. The Coultrap building is located at 1113 Peyton Street, Geneva.  Please use the Lincoln Avenue entrance. District staff will contact the winners of the …

• Photos (1)

QuickStory: Geneva School Board Rejects Online Charter School

The discussion is cordial, but School District 304 votes 7-0 for a resolution against a virtual online charter school in Geneva.

Illinois Virtual Charter School @ Fox River Valley brought many of its big guns to Monday night's School Board meeting in Geneva—including President Sharnell Jackson—but after a presentation and cordial conversation, the School District 304 Board of Education unanimously rejected the proposal to bring the charter school here. "It was a bit late," School Board member Mary Stith said. "And the problem I‘m wrestling with is taking this money away from our district." Stith said it costs about $6,300 to educate a student in Geneva each year, and the charter school could take as much as $8,000 per pupil from district coffers if it were to start up a Fox Valley charter school option that would serve students in Geneva and 17 other area districts…

•  2 Comments
• Videos (1)

Pieces of Coultrap to Be Auctioned Off April 13-14

Auction items include desks, chairs, coat racks removed from the walls, historical glass doors from the original building, tables, and other items salvaged from the building.

Members of the Geneva community are invited to participate in a community auction at the Coultrap facility in preparation for the building’s demolition later this year. Auction items include desks, chairs, coat racks removed from the walls, historical glass doors from the original building, tables, and other items salvaged from the building. Money raised will be used by the District to defray the cost of the facility’s demolition. The silent auction will be held from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, April 13, and from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. Sunday, April 14. The Coultrap building is located at 1113 Peyton Street, Geneva.  Please use the Lincoln Avenue entrance. District staff will contact the winners of the items between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. Sunday, …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (1)