LF_110316

LakeForestLeader.com news
the lake forest leader | November 3, 2016 | 7
Lake Forest D67 Board of Education
D67 plans to improve social and emotional development
Neil Milbert
Freelance Reporter
The Lake Forest District
67 Board of Education discussed
plans to improve
students’ social and emotional
development at its
meeting on Tuesday, Oct.
25.
Michael Simeck, the superintendent,
said the D67
schools are making students’
social and emotional
development a priority.
“So much of what helps
kids to be successful in life
as adults and as learners is
social and emotional (development),
and schools
for years have placed all of
the emphasis on academic
skills and frequently neglected
their social wellbeing
and development,”
Simeck said.
“Our district goal is to
develop what our social
and emotional expectations
are for students — whether
it’s persistence or whether
it’s curiosity. These are
the things that will help us
be successful and that will
then play a large role on
how we report on students
as people and as developing
learners.”
The District 67 strategic
plan calls for each student
to have growth targets,
academically, socially and
emotionally.
“This is a new goal we
have this year and will
repeat year after year,”
Simeck explained. “(The)
most challenging (part) of
all is social and emotional
growth. The program we’re
working with calculates
what is an expected rate
of growth of a student. We
will determine what social
and emotional learning
standards will be and create
instructional goals.”
The district goal is for
all students to meet or
exceed their grade level
benchmarks and individual
growth targets.
Field trip report
Board member, Suzanne
Sands, and the Leadership
Council representatives
from 17 other school districts
took to a field trip to
the new North Suburban
Special Education District’s
transitions program
facility at 405 Lake Cook
Road on Tuesday, Oct. 25.
“We were educated as
a group on the challenges
families face when special
education students are out
of the system at age 22,”
Sands said. “There isn’t
much funding in Illinois for
them beyond that. I believe
we’re 50th in the country.
“The best thing is greater
independence for these
young adults before their
22nd birthday so if things
don’t go well there’s still a
safety net.”
NSSED has been in
communication with adult
services organizations who
support special education
students after they leave
the program. These discussions
help parents prepare
their children for a successful
transition.
Sands also gave her colleagues
on the board an
overview of NSSED revenue
sources.
NSSED has a total of
$48.7 million in revenue,
$14 million of which is
non-operating revenue
which consists of funds
deposited to an NSSED account
and is immediately
dispersed to member districts.
Payments from the
state are made directly to
the teacher retirement system
and the revenue from
member districts is allocated
to staffing contracts.
The remaining $37 million
of the revenue is operating
money of which
$30.6 million is derived
from local revenue (program
tuitions), $2.2 million
from state sources and $1.9
million from the federal
government.
Halloween
From Page 7
ening allergies, which the
family must take precautions
for every single day.
The national food allergy
organization called
Food Allergy Research
Education began the Teal
Pumpkin Project in honor
of children who have food
allergies and to include all
trick-or-treaters throughout
Halloween.
“From the beginning
when you are a family that
has children with food allergies
you try to include
all children,” Bunning
said. “What is nice about
holidays that involve decorations
is you don’t have to
focus on the food.”
A few years ago Bunning
found a giant pumpkin at
an art and craft fair in Lake
Forest and decided to spray
paint it teal in honor of the
Teal Pumpkin Project.