Southern Illinois News

Anna Jonesboro Community High School District 81 Board of Education met Sept. 23.

Here are the minutes provided by the board:

The Anna Jonesboro Community High School held its budget meeting on September 23, 2024, it was called to order by Vice-President Mrs. Johnson. Upon roll call at 5:46 p.m. the following members were present: Mr. Houseman, Mrs. Johnson, Mrs. Plott, Mr. Mix, Mr. Mays, and Mr. Ford.

Public Hearing for FY2024-25 School District Budget.

On motion by Mr. Houseman and seconded by Mr. Mix to adjourn the Budget Meeting at 5:57 p.m. On roll call, all members present voting yes. Motion carried.

MINUTES

The Anna Jonesboro Community High School held its regular meeting on September 23, 2024, it was called to order by Vice-President Mrs. Johnson. Upon roll call at 6:01 p.m. the following members were present: Mr. Houseman, Mrs. Johnson, Mrs. Plott, Mr. Mix, Mr. Mays, and Mr. Ford.

On motion by Mr. Houseman and seconded by Mr. Mays to approve the Agenda and the addition of adding volunteer football coach to personnel. All members present voting yes. Motion carried.

On motion by Mrs. Plott and seconded by Mr. Ford to approve the Consent Agenda which contained the following items: approval of board minutes on 8/19/24 and 8/24/24; approval of closed session minutes; approval of payment for bills, accept resignation, and acceptance of financial reports. On roll call, all members present voting yes. Motion carried.

Recognition of Visitors and Correspondence, Public Comments: None.

Items of Interest from Student Council: Good Evening AJ Board members, administration, and guests. My name is Chesnee Marks and I am the Senior Representative. I am also here with Tess Wilkins, Media Coordinator. Student Council is happy that our announcements are back. We have been busy getting ready for Homecoming. Classes are starting to paint windows and decorate hallways for competition. Make sure to check on facebook to vote for your favorite shirt design next week. Parade will be October 4th @ 1 at the Anna City Park. Dance will be Saturday, October 5th 6:30-10:00. We will be open to the public 4:30-5:30 for trick or treating and photo ops. If you get a chance walk through our hallways. Spooky creatures have popped in to get us ready for Homecoming. You can also check out our meet the candidates on the bulletin board outside the Principal’s Office. Our next blood drive is October 29th. Please sign up on redcross.org

Items of Interest from Teachers: FFA competed in the Section 24 Horse Judging contest on September 6th, as a team they placed 5th out of 14 schools, individually Ella Helton placed 5th and JR Wright placed 6th out of 135 students, At the SIU Horse Judging Contest Addison Bonner placed 8th individually and Reese Lofton placed 9th individually out of 175 participants. FFA also got the privilege of holding the flag for the national anthem at the military appreciation football game on September 20th. The Culinary Arts classes were honored to help cater the meal for Coach Dillon’s services. The Textile Occupation class is gearing up to make all the class shirts for homecoming. The class officers have come up with some very cool designs and we are excited to have the shirts in the homecoming competition this year. Students have been working with the glowforge laser cutter as we are making some fall decorative door hangers. Mrs. Miller and Ms. Webb took 35 juniors and seniors to Murray State University for a campus tour on September 5th. Students got to meet with an admissions representative, take a walking tour of campus, and eat in a campus dining hall. Mrs. Miller and Ms. Webb also took 61 students to SIU campus last Wednesday for SIU Day. Attending students chose two sessions related to their fields of interest and got to tour labs, meet with professors, and experience campus. AJCHS has 26 identified McKinney-Vento students this year. Mrs. Sawyer has attended two mandatory McKinney-Vento trainings. She has interviewed all 26 students and has already provided backpacks, school supplies, clothing, shoes, and other services to many of those students as needed. Ms. Charicata has been implementing a new SEL curriculum with this year’s freshmen. This curriculum was procured through a grant with the University of Colorado Boulder and will include a close partnership with the university. The curriculum is provided weekly to students during freshman study halls. Ms. Charicata is also participating in the ROE’s SEL Cohort with Ms. Stevens. Finally, the Student Services Office is providing monthly hygiene bags and weekly food bags to twelve students. These numbers may grow as more students are identified through needs surveys and referrals from staff. Last Monday the BioMed class visited Southeast Nursing School. The students were able to learn about the different programs offered at the college including nursing, radiology, sonography, and laboratory technology. On Friday BioMed traveled to SCC to learn about their nursing program as well as their criminal justice program. BioMed covers health care and forensic science. Both of these field trips allowed the students to see that they have local options to pursue careers in these fields. The National Honor Society is offering a complimentary babysitting service during Parent/Teacher conferences on October 7 and November 7. This service is designed to help parents engage in uninterrupted conversations with teachers while their children, ages 3-10, are supervised by NHS, Beta club, and student council members. Children will participate in a variety of fun and educational activities, such as crafts, reading, and playtime. The program will be located in the cafeteria, ensuring parents can easily drop off and pick up their children before and after their meetings. This service aligns with the National Honor Society's commitment to community service and support for families.

Curriculum Director Finders presented on new curriculum mandates in Illinois.

Principal Rice spoke about upcoming dates, emergency services, academic intervention breakdowns, building leadership team, principal’s advisory team.

Superintendent Detering reported on the status of the Science Room Renovations, HVAC unit cost, kitchen freezer and inspection report, transportation accidents, vehicle rotation list and possible purchase of new van for next year, maintenance grants, and updates on the Bowling Team.

On motion by Mr. Houseman and seconded by Mr. Mays for the Board to enter into closed session at 6:50 p.m. for the following reasons (1) the purpose of appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employee of the public body or legal counsel for the public body, including hearing testimony on a complaint lodged against an employee of the public body or against legal counsel for the public to determine its validity. 5ILCS 120/2(c)(1) On roll call, all members present voting yes. Motion carried.

On motion by Mr. Houseman and seconded by Mrs. Johnson to return to regular session at 8:56. On roll call, all members present voting yes. Motion carried.

On motion by Mrs. Johnson and seconded by Mr. Mays to uphold the suspension of Student A. On roll call, 5 Yeas (Houseman, Johnson, Plott, Mays, Ford) 1 Nays (Mix). Motion carried.

On motion by Mr. Houseman and seconded by Mr. Mix to approve the Adaption of FY 2024-2025 School District Budget. All members present voting yes. Motion carried.

Administrator and Teacher Salary and Benefits Report.

On motion by Mr. Mix and seconded by Mr. Mays to approve the overnight trip for FFA. All members present voting yes. Motion carried.

On motion by Mr. Houseman and seconded by Mrs. Plott to approve Kalli Harden as Volunteer Band Personnel. All members present voting yes. Motion carried.

On motion by Mr. Ford and seconded by Mr. Houseman to approve Lance Meisenheimer as Volunteer Cheer Personnel. All members present voting yes. Motion carried.

On motion by Mr. Houseman and seconded by Mr. Mix to approve Jeremiah Johnson as Volunteer Football Coach. All members present voting yes. Motion carried.

On motion by Mr. Houseman and seconded by Mr. Mays to adjourn the Regular Meeting at 9:12 p.m. On roll call, all members present voting yes. Motion carried.

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