September 18, 2024

At our Sept. 17 Barrington 220 Board of Education meeting, we heard an update on the district's strategic plan, Framework 220. As a Board, we approved the plan in June 2023 and it will guide the district's work over the next few years. The plan consists of six strategic priorities. Within each priority, there are measurable objectives. This school year, the district is focusing on the following seven objectives:

• Learner Agency and Pathways
• Grade-Level and Program Transitions
• Social Media Awareness
• Infrastructure/Facilities
• Support Strategic Priorities
• Professional Development
• Global Awareness

To keep stakeholders informed about the work being done, Barrington 220 has developed a dashboard to track the progress of each objective.

• Click here to view the dashboard that pertains to each strategic priority.
• Click here to listen to the Framework 220 presentation.

Framework 220 Spotlight: Health & Well-Being

In his Superintendent's Report at our Sept. 17 Board meeting, Dr. Winkelman highlighted one of the objectives the district is working on this year under the Health & Well-Being priority. The purpose of the Social Media Awareness objective is to identify and implement a district-wide process to address the use of social media in a healthy, safe manner; include opportunities for students and staff to gain a deep understanding of how social media sites and apps can affect multiple aspects of student and staff life both in and out of the school environment. In recent months this topic has been part of a national conversation regarding student use of cell phones in schools. This year, the district will be engaging our community in an in-depth discussion about the use and impacts of social media and electronic devices in the lives of our students. More details will be shared at our next Board meeting in October. Click here to view the Health & Well-Being dashboard.

In his Superintendent's Report at our Sept. 17 Board meeting, Dr. Winkelman shared that the district is hosting three more community information meetings this month (including two this week), regarding the $64M referendum question on the November 5 election ballot. If successful, the referendum will: 

• Increase Safety & Security throughout Barrington 220
• Build a New Community Auditorium at Barrington High School
• Enhance STEAM and Instructional Spaces for Students

Join the district at one of its upcoming community meetings to learn more about the referendum, tour current spaces, and see why these improvements are needed:

• 6pm Wednesday, Sept. 18 at Station Campus
• 6pm Thursday, Sept. 19 at Barbara B. Rose Elementary
• Noon Saturday, Sept. 28 at Barrington High School (immediately following the homecoming parade)

In his Superintendent's Report at our Sept. 17 Board meeting, Dr. Winkelman shared that BHS teamed up this week with the League of Women Voters to host a student voter registration drive. The event took place on Tuesday, which was Constitution Day and National Voter Registration Day. To register to vote in the Nov. 5 presidential election, click here.

At our Sept. 17 Board meeting, we approved contracts to install solar panels at Prairie Campus, Station Campus, and Barrington High School this summer. While installing solar panels requires an initial financial investment from the district's capital projects fund, it will help to greatly reduce energy costs long term. This effort in energy sustainability aligns with the district's commitment to Stewardship, which is one of six strategic priorities identified in Barrington 220's strategic plan, Framework 220. 

At our Sept. 17 Board meeting, we approved the FY25 budget. Approximately 88% of Barrington 220's revenue comes from local property taxes. The balance comes from state and federal funding and other local revenues such as registration fees and donations. This marks the 28th year Barrington 220 has passed a balanced budget. In addition, Barrington 220 continues to maintain fiscal responsibility and earn a AAA bond rating from Standard & Poor's, making it one of only 88 school districts nationwide to earn the recognition. Click here to view the final budget packet.

At our Sept. 17 Board meeting, we heard an update on the district's launch of free full-day kindergarten at the start of the school year. There are currently 482 kindergarten students enrolled in the district, which is 40 more students compared to last school year. Students are either enrolled in regular full-day kindergarten, the full-day Spanish Dual Language Program, the full-day Chinese Immersion Program, or the district's full-day Kindergarten Lab Program at BHS. Full-day kindergarten extends core instruction (math, science, literacy, etc.) throughout the school day and eliminates the district's fee-based Kindergarten Enrichment Program. Click here to listen to the presentation.

At our Sept. 17 Board meeting, the Board heard an update on the school improvement process in Barrington 220. Each year, Barrington 220 schools focus on one primary goal, which staff develop through a school improvement process called a Vision Cycle. A Vision Cycle is a framework for school improvement that strives to provide schools with clarity, focus, and actionable steps toward school improvement. Each school goes through a six-step process to identify its primary goal. A theme across every school's vision cycle this year is one goal tied to improvement in a core academic content area and one goal tied to improvement of social-emotional learning (SEL) instruction. Click here to listen to the presentation.

At our Sept. 17 Board meeting, we approved the district's new Assistant Director of Student Information Integration. Tim Woomert joins Barrington 220 from Community Consolidated School District 15, where he has worked as the Manager of Data Services since 2016. He holds a bachelor's degree in English from the University of Iowa. He will begin in Barrington 220 at the end of this month.

At our Sept. 17 Board meeting, we shared that Young Hearts for Life® (YH4L) will offer all BHS students a free, potentially life-saving ECG screening on Tuesday, October 1 at BHS. Parent/Guardian pre-authorization is required for a student to be screened. Student ID # is needed for registration. Click here to register your student.

The next consolidated school board election in Illinois is set for April 1, 2025. School board members are elected by their local communities during a non-partisan, consolidated election and serve four-year terms. Click here for more information.

This school year, students from each Barrington 220 school will make a special appearance at our Board of Education meetings to share an update about the great things happening at their school. At our Sept. 17 Board meeting, we welcomed Stephen Smith, a 4th-grade student in the Spanish Dual Language Program at Arnett C. Lines Elementary. He loves the Lines Field Day in the spring, the annual Lines Halloween Parade, and how Principal Hyllberg plays music each morning. Stephen says Lines is #ThePlaceToB because it is a National Blue Ribbon Award Winner (1994, 2008, 2023), and that makes him proud! Click here to listen to Stephen's update.