Grundy Reporter

Illinois State Board of Education Finance and Audit Committee met Jan. 11.

Here are the minutes provided by the committee:

I. Roll Call

Chairperson Chris Benson brought the meeting to order at 9:31 a.m. Roll call was taken, and a quorum was present with four members. Chairperson Benson made the declaration, “An in-person meeting is not practical or prudent because of a disaster. Physical presence for the meeting is unfeasible due to the disaster.” All attendees joined via phone. She verified that each member could hear one another and follow the discussion, and that they were able to testify.

Members Present

Chairperson Chris Benson (virtual)

Roger Eddy (virtual)

Dr. David Lett (virtual)

Dr. Nike Vieille (virtual)

Other Board Members Present

None

Staff

Dr. Carmen I. Ayala, State Superintendent

Kirsten Parr, Board Services Coordinator

Kim Clarke, Executive Assistant to the State Superintendent

Dr. Brenda Dixon, Research and Evaluation Officer

Carisa Hurley, Director of Early Childhood

Cara Wiley, Director of Wellness

Dr. Dana Kinley, Executive Director of Systems of Support

Dr. Jennifer Kirmes, Executive Director of Teaching and Learning

Dr. Ernesto Matias, Education Officer

Krish Mohip, Deputy Operational Education Officer

Martin McGreal, Director of District/School Leadership

Tassi Maton, Internal Audit Officer

Robert Wolfe, Financial Officer

Irma Snopek, Policy and Communications Officer

Mark Haller, Director of Nutrition

Oriana Wilson, Executive Director of Programs

Jeremy Duffy, Legal Officer

Scott Norton, Director of Software Solutions

Dr. Erica Thieman, Director of Standards and Instruction

Dr. Christine Paxson, Director of ESSA/IL-EMPOWER

Joanne Clyde, Director of Multilingual

Sergio Hernandez, Director of Family and Community Engagement

II. Public Participation

There was no public participation.

III. Approval of Minutes: December 14, 2021

Dr. Vieille made the motion for the Finance and Audit Committee to approve the December 14, 2021, meeting minutes. Mr. Eddy seconded the motion, and it passed by roll call vote.

IV. Review of Contracts and Grants Over $1 Million – for January Approval

A. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million – Approval of FY23 Invitation for Bid Procurement for five (5) IT Contractors for Special Education Software Applications

There were no questions for this item.

B. Contracts & Grants over $1 Million – Approval of FY23 Invitation for Bid Procurement for five (5) IT Contractors for Child Nutrition Software Applications

There were no questions for this item.

C. Contracts & Grants over $1 Million – Approval of FY23 Invitation for Bid Procurement for five (5) IT Contractors for other Agency-based Software Applications

There were no questions for this item.

D. Contracts & Grants over $1 Million – Approval of FY23 Invitation for Bid Procurement to identify vendors for the Illinois Virtual Course Catalog

There were no questions for this item.

E. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million – Approval of Preschool Development Grant Birth Through Five - Year 3

There were no questions for this item.

F. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million – Approval of Preschool Development Grant Birth Through Five - Illinois Board of Higher Education

There were no questions for this item.

G. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million -- Approval of Preschool Development Grant - Northern Illinois University - Longitudinal Data System

There were no questions for this item.

V. Review of Contracts and Grants Over $1 Million – for February Approval

A. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million - Approval of FY23 Intergovernmental Agreement with Regional Office of Education #35 to support Capacity Builder Learning Series for Priority Learning Standards and Curriculum Evaluation Tool

Dr. Thieman provided information on this item.

Chair Benson noted that there has been a mindset shift for many teachers and administrators regarding learning standards. Dr. Thieman agreed and noted her team has been collecting data on this. She believes that the initiative will be a relief for classroom teachers. Chair Benson also thanked Dr. Thieman for the website link that showed the ISBE standards.

B. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million -- Approval to award grant to Southwest Organizing Project (SWOP) for the Parent Mentoring Program from federal Coronavirus Urgent Remediation Emergency Funds

Mr. Hernandez provided information on this item.

Dr. Lett asked who makes the decision about which districts are involved. Mr. Hernandez noted that SWOP makes these decisions and partners with the Logan Square Association. Dr. Ayala added that ISBE is the fiscal agent for the project, and Mr. Wolfe confirmed that is correct.

Dr. Lett was impressed with how the grant is impacting downstate Illinois. He also encouraged the team to think about rural areas. Mr. Eddy agreed and hopes the team caters to areas farther south. Mr. Hernandez noted it is a planning year, and his team is currently working with SWOP and can partner with local county health departments.

Dr. Lett added that one group that gets lost is rural poverty, and he hopes that this community is not lost when reviewing applications and partnerships.

Dr. Vieille also was impressed with the program, and she wondered what the particular areas of improvement were and how the team collected the data.

Dr. Benson asked if Coronavirus Urgent Remediation Emergency (CURE) funding is short-term funding, and the answer was yes.

Dr. Benson asked if the team had found any connections between its work and literacy grants. Mr. Hernandez said he has not looked at this connection yet but would be happy to.

C. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million -- Approval to release RFSP to procure qualified vendor to conduct IL EMPOWER program evaluation

Ms. Paxson provided information on this item.

Dr. Lett asked what the length of the previous contract was, and the answer was three years. He asked why the team decided to switch to a five-year contract, and Dr. Paxson noted it will assist with the continuity.

D. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million -- Approval of Illinois Resource Center Professional Development and Technical Assistance Sole Source FY23-24

Ms. Clyde provided information on this item.

Chair Benson noted that the Illinois Resource Center (IRC) works with many targeted districts and asked if there are any other districts. Ms. Clyde noted that the professional development and technical assistance programs are open to districts across the state. She added that the team outlines some of the particular counties because statute requires that whoever their vendor is must have experience with large districts and districts in those areas.

Mr. Eddy asked how districts that are not specifically targeted find out about the program, especially populations with a large English Learners (Els) community. Ms. Clyde stated that there are multiple methods that can occur. She mentioned that the contract involves the work of IL-EMPOWER, so if a district has an EL population, it could qualify for IL-EMPOWER assistance with Illinois Resource Center services. She also noted through doing compliance monitoring, the team identifies districts with EL populations and refers them to the IRC. Finally, she noted the team advertises professional development through the ISBE PD calendar and a multilingual newsletter. Illinois Resource Center has its own mailing list.

E. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million – Approval of 21st Century Community Learning Centers – IFB - Professional Development and Technical Assistance

Ms. Wiley provided information on this item.

Mr. Eddy asked who the current provider is, and the answer was AIR.

F. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million – Approval of 21st Century Community Learning Centers – IFB -- Monitoring

Ms. Wiley provided information on this item.

There were no questions.

G. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million – Approval of 21st Century Community Learning Centers - Request for Proposals

Ms. Wiley provided information on this item.

Dr. Lett asked if districts could submit proposals for less than the proposed dollar amount. Dr. Ayala noted that often proposals do not come in at the exact amount and it depends on the district. She also shared that there is a possibility for amendments.

H. Contracts & Grants Over $1 Million – Approval of McKinney Vento Homeless Education – Request for Proposals

Ms. Wiley provided information on this item.

There were no questions for this item.

I. Contracts & Grants over $1 Million – Approval of FY23 IGA Procurement for NIU to provide project management and staffing for the Data Warehouse Team for Business Continuity

Mr. Norton provided information on this item.

Mr. Eddy asked how the five-year renewal process will work at the five-year mark, and who will review. Mr. Norton noted the team will look at the previous annual review and what is required under the intergovernmental agreement (IGA) and then it will observe the overall performance. He also shared that the amounts are fixed. Mr. Wolfe added that if circumstances change, the team will come back to the Board for approval.

Dr. Lett asked about the projected savings. Mr. Norton explained that all the people in the Data Warehouse are contractors and discussed the details of how the team determined the savings.

VI. Internal Audit Updates

A. Current Audits

i. FY21 Financial Audit

Ms. Maton noted that KEB and OAG are still working on the final review and, hopefully, within the next two weeks a draft report will be shared for review.

ii. FY21 Statewide Single Audit

Ms. Maton noted that the audit testing on ISBE has been completed for the statewide single audit, but since it is a statewide audit so testing at other agencies still needs to be completed.

VII. Discussion

A. Essential Elements Review Report

Dr. Ayala and Mr. Wolfe explained the eight tasks to the committee. Dr. Ayala noted that these are findings from the Ad-Hoc Committee. She added that Ad-Hoc Committee and Professional Review Panel had an eight-month deadline and thanked members for their work.

Chair Benson agreed that teaching foreign languages for younger teachers is a great initiative, but she is worried about finding teachers during this time.

Mr. Eddy noted that this is a local decision for districts since each district has its own needs. For example, districts can decide if they would like professional development.

For Task D, Chair Benson noted that one of the goals was to remove the burden of resources for schools off of property taxes and to shift it over to the state resources. Since there is a lag with funding, she wondered if this is a goal that can be obtained in the future. Dr. Ayala noted that the new money is allocated based on the equity portion of the Evidence-Based Funding formula, and she believes they are moving in the right direction.

For Task F, Mr. Eddy asked if a working group is being put together or if team members are waiting for a resolution from the General Assembly. Dr. Ayala noted the team is still waiting for a response from the General Assembly.

Chair Benson appreciated the carefulness and thoughtfulness of the report.

Dr. Lett is worried about the future if districts do not see significant progress. He explained that communities are just trying to get by due to the pandemic, and progress and improvements may not be a current priority.

Mr. Eddy liked how the initiative measured accountability. For example, districts having to report back how funds are being used is a way to measure accountability.

VIII. New Business: Items for the Next Agenda

Dr. Lett noted that it is difficult to meet professional development requirements at this time, especially licensure and licensure renewal, and wondered if there could be some temporary relief. He thought this was a topic that members of the Education Policy Planning Committee could discuss. Dr. Ayala added that ISBE staff would need to put a group together to discuss it.

IX. Next Meeting: February 1, 2022

X. Adjourn

Mr. Eddy moved to adjourn. Dr. Lett seconded, and it passed by roll call vote. Chair Benson adjourned the committee at 11:18 a.m.

https://www.isbe.net/Documents_Board_Meetings/011122-FA-Minutes.pdf