The Finance Committee of the Evanston/Skokie District 65 School Board approved Monday and sent to the full board some hikes in fees charged students and organizations, but modified the administration’s recommendations on child care hikes, pending further data from staff.
It approved a 7 percent increase, beginning with the next school year, in fees for parents who drop their kids off before school or pick them up after school, but they wanted to make sure that low-income families were not faced with significantly higher educational costs for their children.
For those students not on free or reduced lunch status, the new fees would be $40 per week for before-school care and $80 for after-school care.
Also, the committee approved a fee of $450 a year for parents who choose optional child care that covers two full days and seven half days when school is out for teacher training and for student conferences.
Optional care is provided from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. During this time, the children receive meals and snacks, as well as the opportunity to attend field trips, which are all included in the optional care fee.
Currently, those who choose either before-school or after-school child care pay $350 a year for the optional child care service.
Before the full board votes on these fee increases later this month, committee members asked the administration to provide usage data so that they know how many parents are using different aspects of the service.
The committee also approved fee increases for some bus transportation and for some community organizations that rent school buildings for special events.
The district provides bus transportation for about 463 students enrolled in magnet schools or special programs. This fee would be increased from $435 this year to $450 next year, while students qualifying for reduced lunch would pay a reduced fee of $134. The district estimates that it costs $671 per student to provide the service.
The committee also approved a 3 percent increase in various fees charged for community organizations and groups for use of school facilities during non-school hours in an effort to keep fees current with costs and to increase revenues to the district.
Earlier story:
D65 child care fee hike in the works