PeoriaStory

Morton, IL School Board 709 suppresses public comments and more

MORTON,IL -- The Peoria suburban town of Morton is said to be dominated by right wing Christian groups, which apparently have control  of the Morton District 709 public school board.  

On January 16 after the board meeting had opened, the board allowed a lengthy prayer by a Christian minister ("Father" and blah, blah, blah).  Some courts have ruled prayers at school functions unconstitutional.

Then a board member clashed with activist Heather McMeekan who had signed up to present a comment to the board.

The Open Meetings Act in Illinois requires governmental bodies to allow public comments.

McMeekan, president of the Peoria  chapter of the National Organization for Women,  complained about the prayer. Then she accused a board member of lying about her in public and demanded an apology. It didn't arrive.

Instead he interrupted her several times, and claimed she was out of order because the comment period was limited to remarks on the agenda. However that pending new policy of limiting the comments at the first of the meetings to agenda items  had not yet been approved by the board.

The board then heard from a parent who accused school officials of failing to protect his son from harassment and bullying because he is gay and liberal.  He was not interrupted, even though he called for resignations of these officials by name.

That little bit of white male privilege, to speak without interruption, did not go unnoticed.

I presented the board with my comments, which explain what the board wanted and adopted:

'To the Morton District 709 School Board:

Hello. I am Elaine Hopkins. Although I live in Peoria, IL., as a taxpayer in the state and federal governments, I am concerned about the education of all students.

Therefore  when I heard about your plan to restrict public comments at public meetings I was concerned. This plan to accept public comments only on the agenda at the beginning of the meetings, and allow other comments only at the end of the meetings is actually a way to discourage and stifle the comments.  

This plan restricts comments for both sessions, as some people, likely parents, cannot stay until the end.  Others may be concerned but have no time or way to study the agenda.

The obvious reason for the adoption of this plan is to discourage comments. Why would you do that?  As elected officials you should want to know what the public thinks about the way the district is being run. You also should hear and welcome  criticism which may open your eyes to problems.  

You need to hear these comments to improve the district.  You should not be trying to discourage them.

I hope you will reject the policy change on tonight’s agenda and show that you welcome all comments conveniently at the beginning of the meetings, in the spirit of the Illinois Open Meetings Act.  Some may help you become a better board member and elected official.'

The board then approved the policy, effective immediately.

This policy, of restricting early comments to items on the agenda, brings up an  interesting issue -- how to enforce the policy.  What, exactly, would a comment on the agenda mean? 

For example on the Jan. 16 agenda a high school AP biology textbook was listed for discussion. So does that open the door to a comment on sexual harassment or LGBTQ+ issues and failure of school officials to stop bullying of students?

Could a comment like that cause the person to be kicked out of the meeting, perhaps permanently? That can likely be appealed to the courts.The board recently expelled a parent for comments, with this matter apparently still pending.

At the end of the meeting a Morton resident made a late comment, accusing the board of a questionable property issue with a $1.2 million loss for the district.

Here's a link to the link to the meeting: 

https://www.youtube.com/live/NX5dNMhMoxY?si=rBTiD6KKd0SzPEMK

And this is a board that ignored comments about a lack of adequate facilities for its female athletes, a Title 9 violation of the law.  They are now fixing this after enforcement of the law.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

Freedom from Religion speaks

MORTON, IL -- The Morton 709 School Board had a rare treat at its Feb. 20 meeting -- the reading of a letter aloud, by citizens, during comments, to place it in the public record.

It was not discussed by the board but it already may have had an impact -- no preacher showed up for a prayer.

Here's the letter:

February 16, 2024
SENT VIA EMAIL & U.S. MAIL: [email protected];
[email protected]
Superintendent Craig Smock
Morton CUSD 709
1050 S Fourth Ave #200
Morton, IL 61550
Tim Braker
Board President
Morton CUSD 709 Board of Education
1050 S Fourth Ave #200
Morton, IL 61550
Re: Multiple constitutional violations
Dear Superintendent Smock and President Baker:
I am writing on behalf of the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) regarding multiple
constitutional violations in Morton CUSD 709 (the District) and at Morton CUSD 709 Board of
Education meetings. FFRF is a national nonprofit organization with more than 40,000 members
across the country, including over 1,200 members and a local chapter in Illinois. Our purposes
are to protect the constitutional principle of separation between state and church, and to educate
the public on matters relating to nontheism.
A concerned Morton CUSD community member has contacted FFRF to report a significant
number of constitutional violations occurring within the District.
We write to demand that the District and Board immediately cease violating the First
Amendment out of respect for the Constitution and the rights of students and community
members. Public schools may not show favoritism towards or coerce belief or participation in
religion. Santa Fe Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Doe, 530 U.S. 290 (2000); Lee v. Weisman, 505 U.S. 577
(1992); Wallace v. Jaffree, 472 U.S. 38 (1985); Epperson v. Arkansas, 393 U.S. 97 (1967); Sch.
Dist. of Abington Twp. v. Schempp, 374 U.S. 203 (1963); Engel v. Vitale, 370 U.S. 421 (1962);
McCollum v Bd. of Ed., 333 U.S. 203 (1948).
Bible Study Promotion
It is our understanding that a Wednesday Bible Study is prominently advertised within the
elementary school, including a sign up table at the annual open house, and promotion in the
elementary school’s newsletter. It is also our information that one of the leaders is a current
school board member.
Students and their families have the First Amendment right to be free from religious
indoctrination in their public schools, including when participating in school-sponsored activities
like open houses or accessing official school communications. It is highly inappropriate for the
school to advertise a religious organization in such a way, much less allow a school board
member to utilize her influence to engage in unconstitutional religious promotion.
Principal Saunders
It is also understanding that Grundy Elementary School Principal Michael Saunders has
repeatedly abused his position in order to engage in unconstitutional and inappropriate religious
promotion. Alleged violations include:
1) The display of the Ten Commandments in his office. It is our information that
Superintendent Smock is aware of this, and agrees that it is inappropriate to display in a
public school setting, though we do not know if the display has yet been removed. Please
see attached.
Courts have continually held that school districts may not display religious messages or
iconography in public schools. See, e.g., Stone v. Graham, 449 U.S. 39 (1980) (ruling that
the Ten Commandments may not be displayed on classroom walls); Lee v. York County,
484 F.3d 689 (4th Cir. 2007) (ruling that a teacher may be barred from displaying
religious messages on classroom bulletin boards); Washegesic v. Bloomingdale Pub.
Schs., 33 F.3d 679 (6th Cir. 1994) (ruling that a painting of Jesus may not be displayed in
a public school).
2) Telling multiple students and families whom he perceives to be a part of the LGBTQIA+
community that being gay is a sin and that gay people are going to hell.
“It is beyond dispute that, at a minimum, the Constitution guarantees that government
may not coerce anyone to support or participate in religion or its exercise.” Lee v.
Weissman, at 587. When a school administrator tells certain students that they are going
to hell, that administrator violates students’ First Amendment rights. Mr. Saunders’
actions have undeniably crossed the constitutional line.
The District has an obligation to ensure that its employees are not using their positions to
indoctrinate students. Certainly, “a school can direct a teacher to ‘refrain from
expressions of religious viewpoints in the classroom and like settings.’” Helland v. S.
Bend Comm. Sch. Corp., 93 F.3d 327 (7th Cir. 1993) (quoting Bishop v. Arnov, 926 F.2d
1066, 1077 (11th Cir. 1991)). The Supreme Court has recognized that “[f]amilies entrust
public schools with the education of their children, but condition their trust on the
understanding that the classroom will not purposely be used to advance religious views
that may conflict with the private beliefs of the student and his or her family.” Edwards v.
Aguillard, 482 U.S. 578, 584 (1987). Parents have the Constitutional right to determine
their children’s religious or non religious upbringing. Here, Mr. Saunders has violated the
trust that our complainant and all other parents place in Morton CUSD 709’s teachers to
follow the Constitution and refrain from imposing their own religious beliefs on the
children they are responsible for.
3) Allowing Bible quotes to be used to bully kids perceived as non-christian or LGBTQ+
allies, and restricting students from wearing clothing that expresses pro-LGBTQIA+
messaging. This actively creates a hostile, anti-LGBTQIA+ environment for students, in
violation of their civil rights, and Morton CUSD 709’s own anti-bullying policy.1
Students may not be restricted from wearing clothing on the basis of an administrator’s
religious beliefs. It is also no defense to claim that the community is uncomfortable with
LGBTQIA+ identities. Community feelings do not give the government the right to
“prescribe what shall be orthodox in . . . religion, or other matters of opinion . . . .” W. V.
State Bd. of Educ. v. Barnette, 319 U.S. 624, 633–34 (1943) (Murphy, J., concurring).
“The very purpose of a Bill of Rights was to withdraw certain subjects from the
vicissitudes of political controversy, to place them beyond the reach of majorities and
officials and to establish them as legal principles to be applied by the courts.” Barnette,
319 U.S. at 638. Put another way, “fundamental rights may not be submitted to vote; they
depend on the outcome of no elections.” Id. The First Amendment does not permit public
schools to censor student expression just because that expression relates to a disfavored
minority group.
4) Giving a slide presentation at a school assembly entitled "Pillars of Character" in which
Saunders exclusively used images of Christian churches with physical pillars supporting
part of the structures. The presentation did not include photographs of mosques,
synagogues, or temples.
This clearly communicated to students that “character” and “Christianity” were the same
thing. It is unconstitutional to take away instructional time from students to engage in
religious indoctrination that teaches that only Christians are capable of being good and
moral people.
It is also our understanding that a recent FOIA request uncovered tens of thousands of Christian
nationalist and other extremist group emails in Principal Saunders’ official school email account,
in direct violation of Illinois law, the Illinois Educator Code of Ethics, and District Policy.2
Religious Testing For Academic Credit
We also have received reports that students at Grundy Elementary School are being tested on
their knowledge of a conservative interpretation of the Christian Bible, and being given academic
credit for their performance. It is also our understanding that the scores from this testing are
2 Bonnie Kurowski, Thousands of anti-LGBTQ emails found in Morton school principal’s work email account,
Illinois Eagle (Aug. 2023)
https://illinoiseagle.com/2023/08/25/thousands-of-anti-lgbtq-emails-found-in-morton-school-principals-work-emailaccount/.
1https://www.morton709.org/file/1106/Morton%20School%20District%20Bullying%20Policy.pdf#:~:text=No%20st
udent%20shall%20be%20retaliated,be%20subject%20to%20appropriate%20discipline.
shared with the classes, so that students can publicly see who is or is not a “good Christian,”
creating a divisive atmosphere that shames students who are from non-Christian families.
Please note that it is not a violation of the free speech rights of teachers when a school district
regulates what they teach to students while acting in their official capacities. Teachers have
access to a captive audience of students due to their position as public educators. Therefore, the
District has a duty to regulate religious proselytizing in its schools. “Because the speech at issue
owes its existence to [his] position as a teacher, [the School District] acted well within
constitutional limits in ordering [the teacher] not to speak in a manner it did not desire.” Johnson
v. Poway Unified Sch. Dist., 658 F.3d 954, 970 (9th Cir. 2011), cert. denied, 132 S. Ct. 1807
(2012) (upholding decision of school board to require a math teacher to remove two banners with
historical quotes referencing “God”); see also Garcetti v. Ceballos, 547 U.S. 410, 421 (2006)
(“We hold that when public employees make statements pursuant to their official duties, the
employees are not speaking as citizens for First Amendment purposes, and the Constitution does
not insulate their communications from employer discipline.”). Courts have upheld the
termination of teachers who violate the principle of separation between church and state. See,
e.g., Grossman v. S. Shore Pub. Sch. Dist., 507 F.3d 1097 (7th Cir. 2007) (upholding termination
of guidance counselor who prayed with students).
Prayer At School Board Meetings
It is our further understanding that school board meetings have been consistently opened with
exclusively Christian prayer, led by pastors invited to give the prayer after the opening gavel.
The Supreme Court has consistently struck down prayers offered at school-sponsored events.
See, e.g., Santa Fe (striking down school-sponsored prayers at football games); Lee v. Weisman
(finding prayers at public high school graduations an impermissible establishment of religion);
Wallace (overturning law requiring daily “period of silence not to exceed one minute . . . for
meditation or daily prayer”); Abington (declaring school-sponsored devotional Bible reading and
recitation of the Lord’s Prayer unconstitutional); Engel (holding formal recitation of prayers in
public schools unconstitutional). In each of these cases, the Supreme Court struck down
school-sponsored prayer because it constitutes government favoritism towards religion, which
violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. The Court’s recent decision in
Kennedy v. Bremerton School District did not alter the law regarding these kinds of coercive
prayer practices, nor did it overrule these previous decisions.
In the most recent case striking down a school board’s prayer practice, the Ninth Circuit Court of
Appeals reaffirmed that Establishment Clause concerns are heightened in the context of public
schools “because children and adolescents are just beginning to develop their own belief
systems, and because they absorb the lessons of adults as to what beliefs are appropriate or
right.” FFRF v. Chino Valley Unified Sch. Dist. Bd. of Educ., 896 F.3d 1132, 1137 (9th Cir.
2018). The court reasoned that prayer at school board meetings “implicates the concerns with
mimicry and coercive pressure that have led us to ‘be [ ] particularly vigilant in monitoring
compliance with the Establishment Clause.’” Id. at 1146 (quoting Edwards v. Aguillard, 482 U.S.
578, 583–84 (1987)). The Court reaffirmed in Kennedy that the schools cannot “‘make a
religious observance compulsory.’” Kennedy v. Bremerton Sch. Dist., 142 S. Ct. 2407, 2429
(2022) (quoting Zorach v. Clauson, 343 U. S. 306, 314 (1952)).
Students and parents have the right—and often reason—to participate in school board meetings.
It is coercive, insensitive, and intimidating to force nonreligious citizens to choose between
making a public showing of their nonbelief by refusing to participate in the prayer or else display
deference toward a religious sentiment in which they do not believe, but which their school
board members clearly do. Board members are free to pray privately or to worship on their own
time in their own way. However, the Board ought not to lend its power and prestige to religion or
coerce attendees into participating in religious exercise.
Adult Involvement in See You At the Pole Event
Our complainant also noted that the District holds a See You At the Pole Event, and that
Principal Saunders and other school board members actively participate in the event.
Any religious events must be entirely student-initiated and student-run. While the District cannot
prohibit students from organizing or participating in a prayer event, the Supreme Court has stated
that public school staff members and outside adults must refrain from participating in the
religious activities of students while acting within their governmental roles. See Bd. of Educ. of
the Westside Cmty. Sch. v. Mergens, 496 U.S. 226, 253 (1990) (“Under the [Equal Access] Act . .
. faculty monitors may not participate in any religious meetings, and nonschool persons may not
direct, control or regularly attend activities of student groups.” (citing 20 U.S.C. §§ 4071(c)(3)
and (5))).
See You at the Pole’s official website recognizes that adults should not be involved in their
events:
See You at the Pole™ is a student-led event. Strong student leadership is crucial.
Adult volunteers and parents should not lead the See You at the Pole™ gathering.
Many well-meaning adults take over and take away from the students by trying to
lead out in the prayers at the flagpole. This is not the intention for See You at the
Pole™, nor is it legal for adults to lead. Please step back or stay away and let the
students grow and learn in their faith by leading.
The best place for an adult to pray on the day of See You at the Pole™ is not on
campus with the students, but at alternate locations.3
Furthermore, it is inappropriate and needlessly divisive for the District to allow its staff or
outside adults to promote, participate in, and organize See You At The Pole events. Staff
involvement in SYATP, including congratulating students for attending, alienates and excludes
non-Christian students, teachers, and parents whose religious beliefs are inconsistent with the
message being promoted by the school staff.
3 Adults, See You at the Pole, https://syatp.com/pages/adults.
Baccalaureates
We have been further informed that the school district permits the annual Baccalaureate program
to be held on school grounds. Our complainant has stated that the event organizers do not rent
out the space, and that is a wholly Christian religious event for students in the school.
Baccalaureate ceremonies are religious services with prayer and worship. Schools may not
promote or facilitate baccalaureate ceremonies. See, e.g., Warnock v. Archer, 443 F.3d 954 (8th
Cir. 2006) (upholding injunction prohibiting school district from orchestrating or supervising
prayers at school graduation or baccalaureate ceremonies).
When courts have permitted privately-sponsored baccalaureate services in public schools, the
schools involved had taken significant steps to ensure there was no school affiliation with the
baccalaureate ceremony. See Randall v. Pagan, 765 F. Supp. 793 (W.D.N.Y. 1991) (noting that
“the school board has already formally and publicly dissociated itself from the baccalaureate
service, has canceled its prior order for programs and has refused to lend any financial support,
either direct or indirect, to assist the [religious group] in its sponsorship of the event.” In
addition, no “district personnel are involved in any aspect of the service, either in their capacities
as District employees or . . . in their personal, individual capacities.”); Verbena Methodist Church
v. Chilton Bd. of Educ., 765 F. Supp. 704 (M.D. Ala. 1991) (“The Board must also ensure that no
other school officials promote, lead, or participate in the service.”).
The District must respect the constitutional rights of all its students to be free from religious
coercion and indoctrination in their public schools. Thus, the District must refrain from
promoting and facilitating this baccalaureate ceremony and any other religious activities or
events in the future.
Religious Music Programming
Lastly, we have been informed that the District’s music education program frequently includes
Christian worship music and pageants as a part of its curriculum.
In the context of music classes, public schools may teach religious music alongside secular
music in order to achieve legitimate secular educational goals, such as giving students a better
understanding of historical choral music. While there may be such instances where teaching
religious songs in the public school context is permissible, schools should exercise caution when
teaching impressionable students songs that are clearly devotional in nature. There is no dearth
of secular, age-appropriate choral music for students to learn. Parents—not the school district or
a public school music teacher—have the authority and the right to decide whether and when to
expose their child to religious concepts and devotional music.
Conclusion
Each of the allegations outlined above demonstrate a clear pattern of the District privileging
religion over non-religion, and a very specific interpretation of Christianity above all other faiths.
Religion is a divisive force in public schools. The Supreme Court has repeatedly noted that
“[s]chool sponsorship of a religious message is impermissible because it sends the ancillary
message to members of the audience who are nonadherents ‘that they are outsiders, not full
members of the political community, and an accompanying message to adherents that they are
insiders, favored members of the political community.’” Santa Fe, at 309 (quoting Lynch v.
Donnelly, 465 U.S. 668, 688 (1984) (O’Connor, J., concurring)). This message is particularly
impermissible when it is presented to such young and impressionable students.
These actions and behaviors needlessly alienate those students, families, and teachers who are a
part of the nearly thirty-seven percent of Americans who are non-Christians, and the nearly one
in three Americans who now identify as religiously unaffiliated.4
FFRF takes these kinds of violations very seriously and we are willing to vigorously defend
students' rights. We recently settled a lawsuit against a school district in West Virginia after it
allowed a preacher to recruit students during the school day. See Mays v. Cabell Cnty Bd. of
Educ., No. 3:22-cv-00085 (S.D. W.Va., Filed Feb. 17, 2022). As part of that settlement, the
district agreed to pay nearly $175,000 in attorney fees.5
These constitutional violations must cease immediately, in order to protect the constitutional
rights of all Morton CUSD 709 students and their families. Please respond in writing with the
steps you are taking to remedy these issues, so that we may inform our complainant.
Sincerely,
Kat D. Grant
Equal Justice Works Fellow (sponsored by the Wm. Collins Kohler Foundation)
Freedom From Religion Foundation
Enclosure
5ffrf.org/news/news-releases/item/42958-ffrf-victory-w-va-families-secure-policy-changes-in-religious-revival-laws
uit
4 Gregory A. Smith, About Three-in-Ten U.S. Adults Are Now Religiously Unaffiliated, Pew Research Center (Dec.
14, 2021), available at
www.pewforum.org/2021/12/14/about-three-in-ten-u-s-adults-are-now-religiously-unaffiliated/.

 ***

-- Elaine Hopkins

 

Comment policy at Morton 709 School Board

MORTON, IL-- Question: when is a discussion  not a discussion?

Answer: When it takes place at a meeting of Morton District 709 School Board.

In its apparent effort to suppress public comments, the board last month changed its public comment policy to allow comments at the beginning of the meeting  on agenda items only. All other comments must wait until the end of the meeting.

At the Feb.6, 2024 meeting an administrator clarified the policy to say those early comments can be on action items or discussion items only.  Then he said neither types were on that night's agenda. 

That turned out to be false.

After an hour of "reports" which generated discussion, the board moved to its consent agenda, which also generated discussion as well as a vote by the board, making it an "action item," even though it was not listed that way.

But what else can we expect from a board that allows a 5 minute prayer to "Jesus" at the beginning of its meetings, but doesn't turn on the meeting video until it's over. They apparently  know that separation of Church and State in the Constitution bans schools from forcing a religion on those who may not share it.  So they do it in secret from viewers.

The prayer and the reports (droned on and on, and would be better in a one page summary) turned the meeting into a 2 and 1/2 hour slog, which parents with young children likely could not stay for to make comments. Sad.

-- Elaine Hopkins

 

 

WIU Trustees meeting part 2

MACOMB, IL -- The second part of the Western Illinois University Trustees meeting on June 14 was fascinating, as the new trustees debated program closes, following the rules, and heard that WIU is on "shaky ground," with the Higher Learning Commission.

WIU has a news release recounting some, but not all, of what took place.

If WIU is placed on probation by the Higher Learning Commission, every letter and other public document will have to say WIU is on probation, administrator Joe Reeves told the board. WIU will have two years to improve.

The conflict between the outgoing president and the campus and community drew national attention, Reeves said, and the attention of the Commission,.

The board held a lengthy discussion over which programs to cut, and finally tabled the motion to cut several, for further study. WIU faculty union president Bill Thompson told the board that "management by algorithm," by cutting small programs with few students has been taking place. It's convenient, he said, adding, "where is the algorithm office in Sherman Hall?"

A trustee said "Southern Illinois University justifies philosophy even though it has low enrollment," as important to a university education.  WIU has already cut its department, and may be the only university in Illinois without a philosophy department.

The board awarded tenure, including tenure to the new provost, Martin Abraham.  Then it debated at length whether to vote him in as provost.  "I want the board to follow the board regulations," BOT Chair Greg Aguilar said. "The old board didn't follow the rules and got in trouble." He read the board rules to the audience, which says the BOT will vote to hire the provost and other university officers.

But administrators said the president hires the provost reports the hiring to the board, and that's the way it's always been done, despite the board rules.

Finally the board "approved" the hire, then after another lengthy discussion named him acting president.

The BOT also voted new officers to begin July 1, in an apparent secret ballot.  The recording is silent for a long time.  This appears to be another violation of the Open Meetings Act. It then voted openly to approve the slate of officers.

Here are recordings of the meeting. 

The discussion over cutting programs:

Download WIU 5

 The discussion continues, and this recording should end with the start of the election of BOT officers.Stop listening there.

Download WIU 6

Tenure recommendations including new provost;re election of BOT officers, with long silence for apparent secret nominations; power struggle over whether BOT hires provost or just approves the hiring; appointment of new provost as interim president; The shaky ground speech.

Download WIU 7

-- Elaine Hopkins

 

The WIU Trustees meeting, part 1

MACOMB, IL -- The June 14 meeting of the Western Illinois University trustees, which saw WIU's president step down, has been broadcast on WTND-FM in Macomb, and live streamed on its website wtnd.org. The first half of the day-long meeting, that is.

I recorded it off the broadcast, and it is posted below.

The second half of the meeting will be broadcast on Monday, June 17, at 5 pm. 

The NPR station on the campus has a terrific website with a great piece on WIU Pres. Jack Thomas' s resignation.

The meeting began with Thomas's comments to the trustees, followed by marketing efforts at WIU.  Then the public comments began, many with a familiar plea not to cut popular programs to save money. Though administrators claimed that the proposed cuts had been studied carefully, the comments seemed to show otherwise. They indicated that the bosses with with the red pencils are out of touch with the students and profs.

Then came the charges of racism because the campus and town had been begging for 'Thomas, an African American, to resign or be fired. That's unfair -- Thomas did a bad job of managing the downside at the campus, as the NPR story shows.   It would be racist to refrain from criticism because he's black.

The strongest claims  of racism came from Ron Williams, who is leaving for another job. He called the criticism of Thomas "a symbolic public lynching," referring to the 'fire Thomas' signs that sprouted around Macomb.

Here are the recordings and what's on them:

No. 1: Thomas's address to the Trustees and some comments.

Download WIU No 1

No. 2:  More public comments.

Download WIU No. 2

No. 3:  Comments, Thomas's remarks on finances, and he said "a great deal of analysis has gone into these" program cuts." Then at 47 minutes into the recording, Ron Williams and his statement on campus and town racism.

Download WIU No 3

No. 4. A trustee questions Williams on enrollment projections for next fall and wonders why WIU has been saying enrollment will be up when the figures don't indicate that.

Download WIU No 4

-- Elaine Hopkins

 

 

 

 

 

WIU's new trustees: hummmm

MACOMB, IL -- Newly appointed trustees for Western Illinois University got a good look at what's happening on campus, at the March 29 meeting.  It wasn't pretty.

Once again the room was too small for the crowd, which left people sitting in the hall, listening via loud speaker.  Those packed into the room were standing around the sides.  Agendas were not available for the audience.  All this means very poor planning, as larger rooms are likely available.

The plentiful supply of microphones didn't always work well, and some comments could not be understood.

The meeting began with a possible violation of the Illinois Open Meetings Act:  the officers were elected by secret ballot, then when the results were  announced the board voted to approve the results.

That wouldn't fly for a public school board, but perhaps the Illinois Attorney General's office will know the rules for higher ed.

Then came the first in a long series of presentations by the numerous administrators on campus.  The first one took 15 minutes, devoted to how students benefit from Greek life on campus. Hazing wasn't mentioned.

Next, the public comments. And it turns out that WIU allows those who want to speak to sign up days in advance, though nothing on the agenda states this.  There was a long list, and the comments were cut off after 20 minutes, despite what appeared to be a vote by the trustee to extend the time.  With the bad mic it was not clear what happened. My comments didn't make it, so they will be posted at the end of this story on the meeting.

I worried that administrators had signed up to speak, Stalin-style, to take up the time for comments, but apparently that didn't occur to them.  The comments mostly from faculty actually were honest and worth hearing, about WIU layoffs, program cuts etc. 

And the new board president, Greg Aguilar of East Moline, was apparently interested, as he thanked those who commented and said "we hear you."

He had stated more comments would be taken at the end of the meeting. I didn't wait around, as a long morning was likely before the meeting ended.

According to the agenda, which I somehow acquired when I tried to get my name on the comments list, six vice presidents and several other administrators were scheduled to give reports to the trustees. Their pay likely totals a million dollars, or more.    Getting rid of half of them would fund the campus NPR station, so endless beg-a-thons could be eliminated.

Here's the WIU press release on the meeting.

Will the new trustees do something about administrative bloat?  We'll see. Here are the comments I was not able to deliver:

Congratulations to the new trustees. If you do the right thing, you will be part of rebuilding this fine university, after its recent slide downward. Here’s what you must do:

First, send the budget and the cuts within it back to the drawing board. Many were chosen without any analysis or study. They were on a list someone compiled years ago, also drawn up without any analysis or study. It was just a list and it makes no sense.

For example cutting the funding to WIU’s award winning NPR radio station is crazy. It’s the best outreach WIU has to the public – way beyond pricey TV ads or internet videos which likely are deleted quickly before they are viewed.         If the station must spend all its broadcast time begging the public for money, that sends a message of instability, even crisis.

Then look at other campus services.  The gardener for the beautiful WIU library reportedly has been targeted for layoff. So who is going to take care of the fabulous collection of plants in the library? Will they be left to die?

These are 2 examples but there are many more, cuts without thought but with major implications for WIU, sending the message that the university is circling the drain. The faculty members know what’s happening. Those that can leave are bailing out – and losing the best and brightest will hasten WIU’s decline.

So – good luck in turning things around here. Don’t just rubber stamp what the administration wants or buy their talking point that cuts must be made. They have made stupid cuts. Smart cuts can be made  -– start with the large number of administrators -- but not stupid cuts.  

 -- Elaine Hopkins

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A tale of two universities

MACOMB, IL -- The nearly five hour meeting of Western Illinois University's Board of Trustees on Dec. 14 revealed a tale of two campuses -- the good and the bad.

First the bad:  lack of transparency.  The 8 am meeting is too early for the public to easily attend. The room, in the student center, was too small leaving a standing room only audience squeezed along the walls. And when I asked for an agenda, it didn't exist!  It's on-line, someone said.  

That wasn't good enough, and I complained that surely there were copy machines in the building.  There were, and after a while agendas for the audience appeared, and were eagerly studied by those in attendance.

The trustees recently were found guilty by the Illinois Attorney General's office of violating the Illinois Open Meetings Act for a closed meeting in June that discussed laying off tenured teachers, shutting down WIU's NPR station and many other items that should have been discussed in an open meeting. 

A violation is a Class C misdemeanor that carries a fine and possibly jail.  It's still under investigation by the Attorney General, since the local State's Attorney recused  himself. The board chairwoman soon resigned.

Something needed to be said about this, so WIU's new lawyer offered an apology of sorts. But the issue was live, as an agenda item, misnamed, proposed to destroy tapes of closed meetings while the the Attorney General's office is investigating closed meetings to see whether they, too, violated the law.

This item was the last on a long agenda, and eventually was tabled as people spoke against destroying the tapes. That was a rare concession from the icy board of trustees.The faculty union also threatened to sue if the tapes were to be destroyed.

After a 45 minute presentation of "points of pride," about good programs at WIU, the public comments began. Here is a recording of the public comments:

Download WIU Dec 14 18

Several people spoke, including me, asking that the NPR station, WIUM-FM, be funded so it doesn't collapse. The board ignored the pleas, as usual.  Here is a story on the public comments.

The only hope for saving the station will be new trustees.  Governor-elect JB Pritzker will be able to appoint five new trustees in January, a board majority, so perhaps they will listen to the many pleas for the award-winning station, WIU's best outreach to the region.  

A group of retirees presented a statement supporting the university but urging, among other things, that the liberal arts be preserved as WIU restructures itself due to a $21 million budget deficit.  Their spokesperson, Paula Wise, expressed concern about low staff morale on the campus due to impending layoffs.

The new chairwoman of the trustees, Carolyn Ehlert Fuller, then announced "President Thomas, the board stands behind you and your team."  Thomas was also in the illegal closed session and has been criticized for rejecting faculty input into staff cuts. Fuller's term is up in January, and she is retiring.

An online petition caused WIU president Jack Thomas to meet with the faculty union and back off immediate proposed staff cuts.  He said they can wait until the new governor's budget message on Feb. 21, but layoffs will be announced on March 1, he said.

A long series of presentations then followed, some of them interesting, but many were way too long. WIU has some terrific programs, but its enrollment has dropped to about 8,500 students, down 28 percent since 2013.

The trustees quizzed the administrators about why this is happening and were told local area students are not attending WIU, and some scholarships for local students are not being used. 

 WIU is proud of its diversity. It "reflects the world around us," an administrator said.

Other facts from the presentations:  WIU's foundation assets dropped 3.5 percent in the recent stock market decline, and now is $56.2 million. Campus revenue is down 13.1 percent, and WIU's reserves have been depleted due to lack of state funding. "We're doing the best we can with the resources we have, vice president Joe Rives said.

The good: The campus staff has acquired $3.5 million in grants this year, and several new programs are designed to attract more students including many scholarships to make the campus affordable. 

Despite the problems, the administrators and trustees talked of hope from the new governor.  The president of the faculty senate summed it up: "Illinois is a large, rich state that can afford a good public university system," he said.

And here's the story from WIUM, a terrific story.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

 

Criminal Investigation of WIU Board of Trustees, President, and other University Officers

MACOMB, IL -- From a news release: Will the State's Attorney Do It?

University Professionals of Illinois Call for a Criminal Investigation of WIU Board of Trustees, President, and other University Officers

CHICAGO - Referring to the recently released closed-meeting audio of the Western Illinois University’s (WIU) Board of Trustees meeting on June 28, 2018, the University Professionals of Illinois, Local 4100 (UPI) announced that they have contacted the McDonough County State’s Attorney’s Office and requested a criminal investigation of possible violations of the Illinois Open Meetings Act.

UPI contends that several violations of the Illinois Open Meetings Act are evident in the audio transcripts and that the WIU Board of Trustees, President, and University Officers present at the meeting should be investigated for flagrant violations of the Act. Under the Illinois Open Meetings Act, violations can result in a Class C misdemeanor conviction which is punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.

John Miller, state-wide President of UPI said, “After listening to the audio recording, there appears to be a conscious practice of conducting University business in closed session, which is in clear violation of the law. What we heard in the recording is very troubling and contrary to the actions of a public board. The public and University community deserves better.”

Specifically, the UPI requests that the investigation consider, but not be limited to:
• Scripting public meetings;
• Conducting business/discussions in closed sessions;
• Planning additional closed meeting sessions to conduct public business/discussions;
• Conducting small group meetings (“2 plus 2” meetings); and
• Potentially, the failure to release closed session meeting minutes.

UPI further requests investigations into past closed sessions that have not been released.

“The WIU Board of Trustees has not released closed meeting minutes for almost three years. When we listened to the discussion on just this one closed door recording, we are understandably concerned that the Board may have a practice of conducting public deliberations behind closed doors. The public and community have a right to know the basis for the decisions the University has made over the last several years,” Miller said.

In addition to investigating closed sessions of the WIU Board of Trustees, UPI is asking the State’s Attorney to investigate what the Board appears to call “2 plus 2” meetings. According to Miller, the recordings suggest that two members of the Board are meeting together at one time to discuss University issues and sometimes with an administrator in what appears to be an attempt to circumvent the intent of the Open Meetings Act.

“The language of the recording indicates a desire to purposefully circumvent the Open Meetings Act.,” said Miller. “The Open Meetings Act was passed to hold state officials accountable. When violated, there is no accountability.” - 30 -

 

WIU Trustees violate the Open Meetings Act

UPDATE --  Here's a great report from reporter Rich Egger of WIUM-FM on the Tri-States Public Radio website. It shows the board fawning over Gov Rauner hoping to please him with layoffs, among other things.

MACOMB, IL -- Western Illinois University's Trustees violated the Open Meetings Act at a June meeting, according to the Illinois Attorney General's office.

Here's what WIU posted on its Website:

The Western Illinois University Board of Trustees acknowledges that it did not comply with the Illinois Open Meetings Act

.

It is with regret that I accept the resignation of trustee and former chair Cathy Early. The University has always been central to Cathy’s life, and her service and commitment to Western over the years are greatly appreciated. Cathy will remain an important part of the Western Illinois University community.

 

The Board will, in tandem with University General Counsel Liz Duvall, ensure compliance with the Act, and the Board will participate in additional Open Meetings Act training in cooperation with the Illinois Attorney General Public Access Counselor (PAC).

 

As directed by the Illinois Attorney General PAC, the June 28, 2018 closed session audio recording and minutes can be found here.

 

Sincerely,

 Carolyn Ehlert Fuller

Chair WIU Board of Trustees

Violating the Open Meetings Act is a Class C Misdemeanor, but apparently nobody is being charged with that. 

The written minutes of the meeting reveal little of what took place. I listened to the entire recording, some of which could not be easily understood.  The trustees discussed how to cut the budget by eliminating programs and the award winning NPR station, without any real discussion on the worth of the programs or the station, and the people they were firing.

They discussed the 'script' they would use for the open meeting and if they were approached by the media. That conversation reveals what is already apparent: the open meeting is a performance, with real issues already decided in the closed meeting, a huge violation of the Open Meetings Act. 

The recording tells the tale. "Don't say we're in trouble," someone says of WIU's financial situation. "We will  have to beg for a special appropriation," someone says. "We need more international students and out of state students,"  says someone sounding a lot like WIU's president. (They pay higher tuition.)

The trustees discuss looking for more income, but their ideas, including recruiting retired faculty and alumni to recruit students, seem to fall flat.   Will that work?  I'm not optimistic.

In fact, gutting the NPR station, WIUM -FM, is really stupid, since it announces WIU's presence hourly.  This was done without consulting station managers, and its general manager has now resigned.

The public is enraged over the threat to WIUM, WIU's best public relations tool.  Nobody mentions this aspect of the station and its audience in the meeting.

In fact no one mentions the contradiction of how more students can be attracted to a university which is gutting its programs.

As for the cutting of programs and the faculty and stuff who run them, someone says "we just do it and see what happens."  Disgusting.

The trustees are apparently as incompetent as WIU administrators. All should be replaced.  Let's hope the newly elected governor, JB Pritzker, will do something to save the public universities in Illinois.  He can start by finding sharper people to run them.

 -- Elaine Hopkins

About that Chicago teacher's strike...don't be duped!

PEORIA -- Trying to decide how to interpret the Chicago teacher's strike?  Read this:

It's a stunning indictment of the Democratic party and its anti-teacher, anti-union stances.

It makes me wonder if some of my friends, who have abandoned the traditional political parties, are right.

It somewhat explains what Gov. Pat Quinn is thinking, as he attacks teacher pensions and retiree benefits. (Though he may be a dupe of House majority leader Madigan, who wants his daughter, Lisa Madigan, to be governor.)  

I believe the national Democratic party has fallen into a Republican trap -- a clever way to alienate the party from its union base of voters and workers.

It's the old divide and conquer routine, spiced with liberal helpings of money, a/k/a bribes. (Rep. Jehan Gordon, D-Peoria, got $100,000 in contributions from one of these anti-teacher groups, and voted to gut teacher benefits.)

Smart local Democrats won't fall for this tactic -- mindful of the old axiom that 'all politics is local.' 

I'll continue to support Obama as the lesser of evils, but if Quinn and the rest continue alienating their natural constituencies, they will learn a hard lesson come election time! 

 -- Elaine Hopkins

Education panel: riveting!

PEORIA -- Put four experienced educators at a table to discuss educational policy and expect a boring evening, right?  Wrong!

The Peoria Area League of Women Voters Oct. 5 educational policy panel was fascinating -- and one that every politician should hear.  These people spoke the truth, as they saw it from the trenches. An audio recording will be posted below.

First the participants and the goals for the evening:

• Jerry Brookhart, Regional Superintendent of Education, an elected official with years of teaching and educational administration experience.
• John Wetterhauer, Principal of Charter Oak School in Peoria, an experienced teacher and administrator. 
• Tim Sponsler,  a retired school psychologist who has had administrative experience in both public and private schools, and former principal at East Peoria High School.
• Hedy Elliott Gardner, who teaches history at Calvin Coolidge School, GED courses at the Peoria County jail and at Procter Center and Harrison Homes, and is a former vice president of the Peoria Federation of Teachers.

The panel was to discuss the role of the federal government in public education in determining quality education, accountability including measuring teacher effectiveness through test data,  and common core standards for all students K – 12, as well as the criteria for federal funding for schools.

This panel discussion was part of the Peoria League’s study of educational issues for the national League. In general the educators were critical of most of the federal government's interventions in public education, and felt education  should mostly be a local and state matter.

Here are some of the key ideas and opinions from the discussion:

Brookhart: "Education is the largest political thing in the city, county and state" because "politics is the distribution of resources and the distribution of these dollars is the largest issue."

On common core standards: "we're a world economy and need standards to be competitive with the rest of the world."  Standards are different from curriculum.  Standards and accountability "are here to stay."

(Brookhart had to leave before the discussion ended because of another commitment.)

Wetterhauer: Children from different states entering Peoria District 150 schools vary widely. Some from the southern states are way behind, but from New England they're likely ahead.

"At Charter Oak we see the disconnect: have we made parents feel welcome? A school is only as strong as its community, its parents, teachers and administrators. I have single moms doing the best they can, some have three jobs.  What do we do to help them? This is a huge issue."

"A core curriculum is important."

"We don't need monthly assessments," twice a year is enough. The ISAT only measures how well the student did that day.  The goals of No Child Left Behind are unrealistic, and schools that score low are not "failing" if they're making progress.

Neighborhood schools are important and District 150 should go back to the K-8 model.

 

Sponsler: "I don't think the federal government should be involved" in standards and accountability. The US is very large and there's no common culture.  States and local governments should be deciding most issues in education.  The federal government has done a good job in ensuring civil rights for minorities, the poor and disabled students, but as for "the rest of it, they mired us in paperwork, politicized the process and came up with dumb ideas."

Schools face enormous challenges today, including financial challenges. "We don't have control of all the faactors. We should pay teachers enough to attract the best and the brightest."

But in Wisconsin they're cutting pay and benefits and collective bargaining rights. That's no way to attract people to the profession where half leave after five years. Instead "pay teachers like electricians" so they earn top dollar after five years."  Politicians "say education is a top priority but where do we put our resources?"

"Can we cut military spending and still blow up the world 14 times" and give (teachers) adequate pay? 

Minimum standards should be determined by local teachers with state input, not the federal government.  "Everybody needs something to shoot for - goals. We need to meet standards for each grade level."

 

Gardner: The US seems headed toward third world status in education, and common standards are needed "to bring us back."  But "we're testing too much, buried in bureaucracy," teaching to the tests.

"We're under pressure to teach to (the test)" but there are too many variables to judge teaching by a student test. "Teachers cut out subjects to get them (pupils) to pass the test," and they lose a well rounded education.

Multiple choice tests, done on a computer, don't tell a teacher much about a child.  Creativity is not measured, and testing each month is a waste of time and money.

The federal government" has done a poor job." Much time and money was wasted on seeking Race to the Top grants, and looking for other competitive grants.

"It seems like a scam. Stop the madness and get back to teaching kids. We could have paid for larger class sizes instead but we blew it all on nothing (grant seeking that involved luncheons, travel and paying substitute teachers.)."

Neighborhood schools are very important where children can walk to school or there's an easy drive to school intead of busing across town. Some parents lack cars and phones and can't attend events far from home.

"A lot of my kids are 2,3,4 grade levels behind. They don't need iPads.  In adult literacy, I use a 45-year-old book, Of Mice and Men. I teach in Harrison Homes in someone's kitchen.  They still learn.  In Havana, Cuba, they have quality education (without elaborate schools.)  They do have discipline and value education. This is what we're missing. Money is important but we're fooling ourselves if we think this is the only answer."

"We need minimal conmpetency (standards) made by teachers at the local level.  Too much of this assessment is money making business and it's gotten way out of hand."

Here's an audio of the discussion:

LWV Oct 5-1

Here's the question and answer session:

LWV Oct 5-2

 -- Elaine Hopkins