Final approval of next year’s school calendar and continued discussion of space needs at its middle schools are on the agenda for tonight’s regular monthly meeting of the Evanston/Skokie District 65 School Board.
On the calendar issue, the draft that is scheduled for a vote tonight would call for school to begin on Tuesday, Sept. 4, and end on Wednesday, June 12, including days off for Presidents’ Day on Feb. 18 and Pulaski Day on March 4.
There had been discussion at earlier meetings about eliminating those two school holidays, as most businesses are open both days, which would necessitate working couples to make special child-care arrangements.
The other discussion item is related to space needs at the district’s middle schools. Voters turned down a referendum on March 20 that would have authorized the district to sell bonds that would have provided financing for middle school renovations to the tune of $28 million.
Because it was lumped into financing for a new elementary school in the city’s 5th Ward, some board members expressed the view that the message sent by voters was that they disapprove of paying for a new school, but that they might favor selling bonds for the middle school projects.
One member, Andrew Pigozzi, a school architect, argued in favor of scheduling another referendum to pay for construction work at the middle schools. That discussion is expected to continue tonight.
The public portion of the meeting is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. at the Joseph E. Hill Education Center Board Room at 1500 McDaniel Ave.