More than 20 Oakton Elementary School parents and teachers on Monday sent a message to the Evanston/Skokie School District 65 Board of Education: Oakton wants smaller class sizes.
Appealing to the D65 board, Oakton parent Richard Engling cited a recent district announcement of cuts of two teaching positions at the elementary school. The move would cause an increase in the number of students per class and limit student achievement, Engling said.
“There’s no question that students at Oakton need more attention,” Engling told the board. “We want you to provide us with the teachers we need to lower class sizes to 15.”
The board voted in 1999 to hire extra teachers for D65 elementary schools after the Oakton PTA and School Improvement Team determined that a 15-student class size would help boost student achievement, Engling said. Oakton’s high number of low-income minority students and a constant influx of new students throughout the year require extra resources, he said.
“We believe achievement is beginning to rise, but it’s not enough,” Engling said.
Board member Greg Klaiber asked whether district class sizes would be decreased next school year. “I’ve been receiving phone calls and e-mails from parents at Oakton who are very concerned about the situation, and I’ve been receiving phone calls and e-mails from parents who are concerned about the exact same situations that occur at many other schools in the district.”
Superintendent Hardy Ray Murphy acknowledged the need for smaller class sizes but said the district is limited by predetermined staffing ratios it must follow next year. Murphy said the staffing model could change in March 2002 when the district will consider “unique situations” at Oakton and other schools.
“I think we are aware of these concerns,” Murphy said. “If at some time it is advantageous for us to talk about the staffing model at Oakton, we will certainly come forward with that.”
Also at the meeting, the board recognized students from King Lab School’s Science Olympiad team.
The students placed 7th at the regional Science Olympiad competition in March and 23rd at the state competition in Champaign-Urbana last month. Team members demonstrated two projects at the meeting, including the “battery buggy” — a small, battery-operated car.
In other business at Monday’s meeting, the board:
• Discussed changes in its contract with the Childcare Network of Evanston, which assists with child-care and Head Start in the district. Because of a statewide shift from site-administered contracts to child-care certificates, CNE may no longer determine families’ eligibility for subsidies. But CNE will continue its other services.
If approved by the board, the new contract will cost an estimated $81,468, which is $28,402 less than the 2000-2001 contract.
• Discussed curriculum coordinator Randee Blair’s proposed changes to the middle school social studies curriculum, which is amended every five to seven years. The curriculum guidelines were last written in 1995. The district will vote at a future meeting on purchasing textbooks to fit the revised curriculum.
• Approved bid awards for various materials and repair work, some of which will be funded by referendum money.
