Earlier this month, the District 94 Board of Education met to discuss plans for the 2024-2026 school years, focusing on upcoming initiatives and progress for the current 2024-2025 academic year.
The Oct. 1 meeting began with Steve Balhan, head of the D94 math division, presenting the transitional mathematics curriculum. According to Balhan, this curriculum is designed to bridge the gap between high school and college, aiming to reduce the need for remedial courses at the college level. In collaboration with the College of DuPage, the program has improved college preparedness and led to higher course completion rates among students.
Next, the board welcomed auditor Nick Cavaliere from Baker Tilly to review the district’s annual financial audit. Cavaliere reported no compliance concerns and highlighted a surplus of funds across the district.
“The District’s financial position continues to be healthy. There were surpluses in most of the funds, including the general fund, which consists of educational accounts, working cash accounts, and immunity fund accounts… each fund essentially presented a surplus for the year,” Cavaliere said.
Doug McMahan, CEO of Allied Facility Partners, addressed the board regarding energy consumption and cost management. Representing his company, McMahan requested the board consider hiring Allied Facility Partners to oversee the district’s 2025 summer construction projects.
The board also discussed the distribution of Evidence-Based Funding (EBF) and how the district compares to its peers in DuPage County. Despite most districts being classified as tier four (meaning they have more than 100% funding adequacy), District 94 remains in tier one, where funding adequacy is less than 78%.
While acknowledging the funding gap, the board noted that EBF has allowed the district to make progress toward closing that gap.
Further discussions included the district’s long-standing agreement with Johnson Controls Fire Protection, which inspects and repairs fire safety systems. The board recommended approving $25,070 in repairs, but mentioned they may seek other partnerships for fire protection in the future.
On the topic of student data security, the board reviewed the SOPPA (Student Online Personal Protection Act) agreement. The district has been working with technology providers to ensure compliance with state regulations, with the goal of safeguarding students’ personal information.
“As technology continues to play a pivotal role in our educational system, it is imperative that we align our data management practices with state regulations to ensure the safety and security of our students’ personal information,” Dan Oberg, Director of Business Services, said.
The meeting also touched on furniture orders for the district, including items for the English department, student services, and the family outreach coordinator. The total cost is expected to exceed $10,000.
The board then discussed changes to the district’s Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) policy. The proposed shift would move from a fixed year period (July 1 to June 30) to a more flexible structure based on the employee’s first day of leave, aiming to prevent scenarios where employees could take two 12-week leaves within the same fiscal year.
The final topic covered proposed course changes for the 2025-26 school year. Notable changes include the removal of the Physics prerequisite for Forensic Science, the addition of Healthcare 3 and 4 for the 2026-2027 school year, and new music courses such as Piano 1 and 2 and Advanced Guitar. A name change for TSI 1 and 2 to Computer Maintenance 1 and 2, along with the addition of I.T. Fundamentals, were also discussed.
“One trend we have noticed in the last five years is a movement away from students wanting to take vocal performance classes that require public performances. We are seeing more enrollment in guitar classes and a piqued interest in piano,” Prinicipal Dr. Will Dwyer said as the meeting concluded.
