June 13, 2024

The Barrington 220 Board of Education will deliberate at its regularly scheduled meetings this summer on a final plan for a potential referendum question on the November 2024 ballot.

At the June 4 Barrington 220 Board of Education meeting, the Board received the data from the second round of community engagement conducted last month regarding a potential referendum question. This included a second community-wide phone survey and a second online feedback form.

Since the end of February, the district has received feedback from more than 2,500 community members via three Referendum Advisory Committee meetings, four community meetings, two online feedback forms, and two phone surveys.

The latest round of feedback reveals that Option 3 is the most preferred by the community, taking the top spot in the scientific phone survey by a wide margin. Click here to view the full breakdown of results. To watch the full presentation on the Board's YouTube channel, please click here.

At the June 4 Board meeting, the Referendum Advisory Committee also shared its recommendation for a potential referendum question. Seventy-seven percent of committee members recommended that the Board move forward with Option 3 for a potential referendum question in November. Click here to view the committee's presentation.

The deadline for the Board to approve a question for November is August 19. Click here to view the timeline for this summer.

Final Build 220 projects underway at BHS

Final projects from the district's Build 220 initiative are anticipated to be completed this summer at Barrington High School. These include renovating the Hart Road Lot and Stadium Parking Lot, cafeteria, athletic department offices, athletic and student entrances, and mechanical upgrades. Due to construction, this summer the Main Street entrance is the only entrance and exit to the campus.

Pending any unforeseeable costs that may arise during construction this summer, the $147 million Build 220 initiative is projected to be completed on time and under budget. By law, surplus funds must be spent on projects consistent with the referendum question approved by voters in 2020. This summer the Board of Education will discuss possible projects to be completed using the anticipated surplus funds.

On May 22 Barrington High School and the Barrington 220 Educational Foundation hosted the 11th Annual Business INCubator Pitch Night at BHS. Two student teams received funding from investors in this shark-tank-like competition.

Blaze Board is a disposable wooden cutting board designed for campers, infused with a natural mosquito repellent, which can be safely tossed into a fire after use. The team received an investment of $8,000. The team recently qualified for the National INCubator Pitch Competition, which will be held in Chicago next month.

Paw-fect is a website that matches you with your perfect dog through a detailed questionnaire and simplifies the adoption process using a universal dog application. The team received an investment of $13,000.

Believed to be the first of its kind in the nation, the Business INCubator program was started at Barrington High School during the 2013-14 school year. Since the program’s inception, it has grown nationally and internationally.

Two Barrington 220 students recently earned medals at the Illinois Special Olympics Summer Games! Station student Liam Meehan won the Bronze for the Softball Throw. Barrington Transition Program student Cathy Conover won the Silver for the Softball Throw. The games took place at Illinois State University June 7-9. Congrats to Liam and Cathy!

The Barrington 220 Fine Arts Department invites you to its summer district-wide musical, Seussical Jr. playing June 26 and June 27 at Prairie Campus. Incoming 6th through 10th-grade students from across the district bring Horton the Elephant, the Cat in the Hat, and all your favorite Dr. Seuss characters to life in this fantastical musical extravaganza! Visit the Barrington 220 Box Office for tickets.

As a reminder, there will be no academic summer school on Wednesday, June 19. The district will be closed for Juneteenth, a state and federal holiday. Summer school will resume on Thursday, June 20, and run through Friday, June 21. 

The Barrington Area Library Summer Reading program is officially underway! Kids, teens, and adults can sign up, keep track of their reading and other activities all summer, and earn a lanyard, badges, a free ice cream cone, and many other great prizes! Click here to learn more.