Dear Butler D53 Families and Staff,
I hope that you and your families have enjoyed the first week of summer!
The Board of Education held its regular monthly meeting on Monday, June 14, 2021 to discuss a number of important topics. An audio recording of the full meeting can be found on the district website.
District 53 will continue to provide in-person instruction next school year and will follow guidance from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and DuPage County Health Department (DCHD) on safety protocols for schools and in-person learning next year. The Board of Education approved the Butler D53 Caring Cadence Plan for Reopening Our Schools, as presented in Option 1. In this option, synchronous, parallel-remote learning will be provided by District 53 Teachers only for students under a local quarantine order or students with a medical exemption per Illinois State Board of Education.
The District will consider requests for a medical exemption to in-person instruction and access to home/remote instruction during the 2021-2022 school year, on a case-by-case basis. All approved medical exemption requests will apply for the duration of the school year, without the option to request to transition to in-person instruction until the next school year. The District reserves the right to eliminate or modify any remote learning opportunities, at any time, consistent with federal, state, and local guidance. Medical exemptions require an application to be completed and returned via email to the School Nurses Donna Lichtfuss (dlichtfuss@butler53.com), or Anjanae Stieber (astieber@butler53.com) on or before July 31, 2021.
Additionally, the Board of Education approved the Great Minds [Wit and Wisdom] Grades 6-8 ELA program with the option to purchase ALP Grades 4-5 modules for two years. This adoption comes after an intensive review, pilot, and analysis of several different ELA programs to provide the academically enriched curriculum for which our district is known.
As previously mentioned, District 53 classrooms will be equipped with enhanced technology to further support our Flip the Classroom (FTC) Model Program. New MacBook Pro laptops and iPad Pro tablets have been purchased for teaching staff for their learning environments. Teaching staff have the opportunity for professional development and training over the summer.
Lastly, we look forward to welcoming Dr. LaTonya Wilks-Daniels, our new Director of Student Services, on July 1, 2021. Thank you to the parents, staff, and Board of Education members who served on the Superintendent's Advisory Committee for final candidate interviews.
As a reminder, regular and consistent communication from Brook Forest and Butler Junior High will begin again in early August.
If your child(ren) are interested in Sessions 2 or 3 of Summer School, please contact Farheen Beg (fbeg@butler53.com) for course availability and registration.
Stay well, be safe, and enjoy your summer!
Dr. Paul O’Malley
Superintendent of Schools