|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Blog From The Superintendent |
10/4/2009
The International Association of School Business Officials (ASBO) recently awarded Glenbrook High School District 225 the Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting (CAFR) for the 2008 fiscal year. About 400 districts across the country apply for the award each year, but only about 30 districts receive the distinction. Placing it in perspective, there are approximately 870 school districts in Illinois alone. The application process is lengthy and demanding, as well as the standards of success that must be met, but what does the award really mean to the district?
The CAFR award “validates the credibility of the school system’s operations and measures the integrity and technical competence of the business staff.” The document assembled for review by ASBO includes the annual audit of district finances and includes trend data about the school community for the last 10 years. In its finished form, the CAFR becomes an important reference document whenever the district seeks renewal of their bond ratings. At the present time, the district enjoys AAA bond ratings from both Moody’s and Standard and Poor’s, which places it in the very elite of Illinois and the United States. Whenever the school district seeks financing through bond issues, these ratings translate into lower interest rates and substantial savings for the taxpayers of District 225.
Assistant Superintendent for Business Affairs, Hillarie Siena authored the CAFR document while she was the Director of Business Affairs. She is shown here in the picture with Skip Shein, president of the District 225 Board of Education and superintendent, Mike Riggle. Her effort is a great example of how the business office staff goes above and beyond the requirements of their positions to serve the schools and the school community in the best possible manner. Congratulations to Mrs. Siena and the entire District 225 business department on this great accomplishment!
9/20/2009
Last year, GBN Special Education Teacher, Tara Hoeft-Runde decided to set a personal goal of competing in an ironman competition for the first time. She began preparing herself for what is known as one of the most grueling events in sports. On Sunday, September 13, Tara competed in the Ford Ironman competition in Madison, Wisconsin.
The competition consisted of a 2.4 mile swim, a 112 mile bike ride and a 26.2 mile run. Tara not only completed the race, but she finished in 13 hours and 13 minutes! She finished 44th out of 132 competitors in her age group and was the number 1094 finisher out of 2397 overall. It was a great accomplishment for Tara and one that will serve to inspire her students and colleagues. According to the other teachers in the special education department, Tara is already talking about doing another ironman event! Congratulations, Tara!
9/13/2009
A new tradition began on the first day of school for the students and staff of the Glenbrook Academy with an opening ceremony held in the Student Activity Center at Glenbrook South. With all four grade levels present, it was a time to renew old friendships,welcome the new freshmen members and hear the advice of a former graduate. It was also time to welcome new leadership as GBS Social Studies Teacher, Matt Whipple, led the festivities as the new director. Matt will be assisted this year by GBN English Teacher Chris Morgan and GBS French Teacher Scott Field.
As part of his opening remarks, Mr. Whipple shared with everyone that the academy began 29 years ago with freshman students from Glenbrook North and Glenbrook South. A sophomore at GBS at the time, Mr. Whipple was not eligible to be a member of the new program and was extremely upset with not being part of something that sounded like a unique and great opportunity. According to Mr. Whipple, he complained vociferously to his mother about his disappointment and she was only able to offer words of consolation and encouragement for his academic pursuits. Mr. Whipple then proudly announced that after 29 years, he was finally a member of the academy!
In addition to his social studies teaching, Mr. Whipple served as the head debate coach at Glenbrook South High School for many years. He brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to the position and is dedicated to being a strong advocate for the students and staff of the academy.
8/28/2009
The common greeting “welcome back” is heard in schools across the country as students, teachers, and support staff return to school from the respite of summer. Personally, I am always excited when the students and staff return and enjoy saying “welcome back,” but never as much as I did during the opening staff meeting on Tuesday.
On July 11, 2008, Jim Ossey, a Glenview resident, GBS parent and long-time paraprofessional at GBN was called to active duty in the U.S. Army and was quickly deployed to Iraq. His presence was truly missed at school last year as he fulfilled his obligation. On June 25, 2009, Major Ossey returned from the Iraqi war and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious service during his time there.
As I welcomed Major Ossey back, the Glenbrook staff rose to give him a standing ovation, which was one of the best starts to the school year that I have witnessed. Most everyone has heroes for one reason or another. For his willingness to give of himself in service to his country, Jim is a hero to me. Welcome home Major Ossey and welcome back to the Glenbrooks!
3/27/2009
 The first Monday of March is designated as Kazimier Pulaski Day in Illinois and for many years, District 225 has observed the day as a non-attendance day for students and an institute day for professional development activities for teachers and support staff. For the second consecutive year, GBN and GBS collaborated to conduct district-wide activities under the theme of Teachers Teaching Teachers. Glenbrook teachers, administrators and support staff gathered at Glenbrook North High School for a variety of workshops developed and presented by teachers and administrators under the theme of "Teaching and Learning in the 21st Century."
At the beginning of the 2008-2009 school year, every Glenbrook teacher and administrator who are actively engaged in teaching students or developing curriculum was issued a new Apple MacBook as part of the district's vision for technology. Major improvements were made to the technology infrastructure throughout the district and all Glenbrook buildings are now equipped with both wired and wireless access to the internet. This was a drastic improvement in the work environment for teachers and staff with access to district resources from any area of the school or from home, and it is changing the way they learn, prepare and teach. The image shown here is a photo taken from the balcony of the GBN CPA showing Glenbrook teachers using their laptops and wireless access to the internet to interact with keynote speaker, David Warlick during the opening session. The availability of these types of resources for our teachers will help them prepare students with 21st Century Skills as they leave the Glenbrooks.
1/20/2009
It is with great pleasure that we launch a new website to the world that will incorporate the schools, programs, events and activities of Glenbrook High School District 225 and provide a platform for communication and internet-based activities. Our goal is to provide users with greater utility, increased content and services along with improved consistency and efficiency for users.
The launching of the new District 225 website will be a phased approach, starting with the activation of the district homepage at the end of January and the school homepages by mid-February. As with all transitions of this magnitude, there will be problems that will have to be fixed, but it is our hope that these will be minor and temporary. The design of this website is the result of numerous discussions with staff, students and parents, as well as best practices in the area of website design. The redesign of the District 225 website is one of a number of technology initiatives that will be deployed as part of the technology vision for the district that was adopted by the Board of Education last spring.
Thank you for visiting our new website and we appreciate your patience and understanding as our staff continues to populate areas of the site with content and learns to use the full power of the software.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|