• The 2022-23 School Calendar
  
  

• A Transition from Early Release Days to Late Starts
  
  

• A K-6 Childcare Interest Form for Late Start
  
  

• A Strategic Plan Feedback Reminder

Dear D300 Parents/Guardians,

We hope students and families are enjoying their summer; the district is busy preparing for a terrific 2022-23 school year.

At the June 14th board meeting, the Board reviewed the updated 2022-23 school year calendar. You can click here to find a copy of the updated 2022-23 school year calendar.

The first day of student attendance for the 2022-23 school year will be
Tuesday, August 16th.

Overall, there are no changes to the number of student attendance days or contact minutes over previous school years. However, notable changes to the calendar include the following:

• The addition of one staff professional development date; and

• A transition from monthly Early Releases to monthly Late Starts.

Due to the pandemic and substitute teacher shortage, the District has not been able to provide dedicated professional development to our staff for the last couple of years. The additional professional development day and monthly late starts will provide dedicated staff training to support school improvement efforts, specifically in academics and social-emotional support for students.

With an additional professional development day, the last day of school for 2022-23 is as follows:

• Friday, May 26, 2023, if District 300 does not use any emergency days; or,

• Monday, June 5, 2023, if District 300 uses all five (5) identified emergency days.

We will update the school calendar and email a notification to all parents if the District uses any emergency days.

Late Starts will take place on ten (10) selected Wednesday mornings next year with a delayed bell time of two (2) hours for all K-12 schools. The student bell times for Late Starts are listed below:

The late starts will be held on the following Wednesdays:

Other pertinent information related to the transition to Late Starts include the following:

• All students eligible for bus transportation services will continue to receive transportation on Late Start days. Bus stop pick-up times will be scheduled later in the morning to reflect the Late Start schedule for each respective level.
  
  

• Breakfast and lunch service will continue to be provided on Late Start days.
  
  

• Elementary schools will maintain the current practice of Late Start days as non-letter, non-specials programming days.
  
  

• Preschool programs will continue to follow a different professional development schedule as they have in the past, and this calendar will be made available to families in the future.

District 300 seeks to determine parent interest in childcare services for our kindergarten through 6th grade students during each Late Start. Families would be responsible for transportation to Late Start childcare at school locations. There will be a fee for this service, which will be communicated at the time of enrollment.

If you will be a K-6 parent/guardian for the 2022-23 school year and are interested in this opportunity, please fill out the 2022-23 (K-6) Late Start Childcare Interest Form by
June 29, 2022, at 5 p.m. Indicating your interest will support our planning process. Once planning is confirmed, we will communicate the finalized enrollment process with all families.

As a reminder, District 300 invites you to help shape our district’s future by providing feedback for our 2022-2027 strategic plan.

All parents/guardians, alumni, and community members are invited to select one of the following two feedback opportunities to provide insight that will help develop our next strategic plan.

For more information, please click here to review my original Strategic Plan Feedback message from June 9, 2022.

District 300 will host two more Virtual Strategic Plan Focus Groups open to parents/guardians, alumni, and community members. Individuals interested in attending a focus group must register in advance by clicking on their preferred date below and completing a registration form.

Virtual Strategic Plan Focus Group Registration Links:

• Click here to register for the Focus Group scheduled for June 20th from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
  
  

• Click here to register for the Focus Group scheduled for June 29th from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Each focus group will provide participants with an opportunity to participate in the following activities:

• A SWOT analysis activity to identify the district’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats;
  
  

• Three ThoughtExchange activities, where participants will:
  - Share their thoughts on the district’s priorities;
  - Provide insight on the district’s challenges over the next five years; and
  - Review and provide feedback on the Strategic Plan’s five proposed goal areas.
  
  

• And a “Portrait of a Graduate” activity, developed by Batelle for Kids, where participants will discuss the skills, attributes, and characteristics they believe District 300 students should possess upon graduation.

Individuals unable to attend a Virtual Strategic Plan Focus Group can provide feedback by completing the Four Online Feedback Activities below.

Please note: Individuals can watch an instructional video overview by clicking here to assist with completing the Four Online Feedback Activities.

In this first step, you will provide your input or “thoughts” regarding the district’s priorities via a web-based platform called ThoughtExchange. After sharing your input, you will rate the "thoughts” submitted by other District 300 stakeholders. By rating other participants' feedback, you will help District 300 determine prospective focus areas that are the most important to our community.

In this second step, you will provide feedback to another question via ThoughtExchange regarding potential issues the district may face. Then, after sharing your “thoughts,” you will rate the feedback submitted by other users.

In this third step, you will provide feedback to another question via ThoughtExchange regarding the district’s proposed Strategic Plan goal areas. After sharing your thoughts, you will then rate the feedback submitted by other users.

Please note: To participate in this activity, you will need to review the district's proposed Strategic Plan goal areas, which you can view by clicking here or within ThoughtExchange.

In the fourth step, you will be asked to select the six most important competencies you would like a District 300 student to possess upon graduation.

If you have any questions related to the Strategic Plan, please email Communication.Services@d300.org.

I hope you and your families are enjoying a relaxing summer.

Sincerely,

Susan Harkin

Superintendent