Board of Directors Meeting Minutes

IESA Board of Directors Fall 2012 Meeting Synopsis

Boys Wrestling State Finals Contract At Northern Illinois University Extended; Paula Sereleas and Steve Stuart Seated as New IESA Board Members; Implementation of Boys Volleyball State Series and Soccer State Series Delayed

The Illinois Elementary School Association (IESA) Board of Directors approved a recommendation to extend the IESA Boys Wrestling State Final hosting contract at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb at their regularly scheduled meeting at the IESA Office in Bloomington on Friday, September 7, 2012. The contract extension will keep the state finals at the NIU Convocation Center for an additional five years through 2018. The current contract expires at the end of the 2013 wrestling season.

"We sincerely appreciate the working relationship we have with NIU and the Convocation Center," said Steve Endsley, Executive Director of the IESA. The Convocation Center is a beautiful facility that allows the wrestlers, coaches, parents, and fans to have a great experience when attending our state wrestling finals. I want to personally thank Norm Jenkins, Acting Director of the Convocation Center; Debbie Armstrong, Executive Director of the DeKalb County Convention & Visitors Bureau Director; and Arch Richoz, State Final Tournament Manager for their support of the IESA wrestling program."

In addition to the wrestling site contract extension, the Board of Directors approved the FY2013 budget, heard a report on the boys volleyball state series and the soccer state series, approved a change to the length of time that a current physical is needed prior to participation in IESA activities, and tied up other loose ends at its regular quarterly meeting Friday (Sept. 7) held at the IESA headquarters building.

Board Appointments

Board President Jerry R. Birkey, Principal at Mt. Zion JHS, appointed two members to the Board of Directors to replace two members who recently resigned. Mrs. Paula Sereleas, Principal at Joliet Laraway, was appointed to fill the remaining term of Division D. Her appointment was the result of a resignation letter that was received from Mrs. Beth Lind when she accepted a different position outside of Division D. Mrs. Sereleas' term will expire in January, 2013. Dr. Steve Stuart, Principal at Edwardsville Lincoln Middle School was appointed by President Birkey to fill the remaining term for Division O. His appointment was the result of a resignation letter that was received from Ron Graham when he retired as the Assistant Superintendent for Girard North Mac. Dr. Stuart's term will expire in January, 2014.

Boys Volleyball & Co-Ed Soccer State Series: The Board had previously approved that in order for the IESA to conduct a boys volleyball state series and a co-ed soccer state series in the 2013-14 school year that at least 40 schools had to register for the activity as of September 1, 2012. Neither sport had 40 schools registered this year. As a result, the Association will not offer a state series in either sport in 2013-14. The earliest that either sport might have a state series conducted is now in the 2014-15 school year. As a result of not attaining the minimum number of schools needed to start a state series, the IESA will develop guidelines for adding a state series program. Also discussed by the Board of Directors was whether a co-ed soccer state series should be offered or a separate state series for boys and girls should be held. "We certainly would like to offer a boys volleyball state series, and a soccer state series of some sort," said Endsley. "However, we need to have the commitment from 40 schools to move forward. Once we establish the guidelines for adding an activity, we will post these on our website and then it will be up to the member schools to approach the Association about adding a given activity within the guidelines established."

Physical Examination

Following the lead of the Illinois High School Association, the Board approved that effective September 7, 2012, a school shall have on file for each student who participates (including practice) a certificate of physical fitness not more than 395 days preceding any participation in any such practice, contest, or activity.

Other Business:

Board of Directors Meeting Dates: The Board set the dates for the other quarterly meetings for the 2012-13 school year. They will be January 18, 2013; April 5, 2013; and June 14, 2013.

Scholar Attitude Luncheon: The Board heard a report that the date for the 15th annual IESA Scholar Attitude Award will be Tuesday, April 30, 2013. The luncheon will be held at the Doubletree Hotel and Conference Center in Bloomington. There could be changes to the administration of the program if funding is not secured.

Treasurer's Report: The Board accepted the July, 2013 treasurer's report and received a five year comparison of income and expenditures through FY 12.

Budget: The Board approved the budget for the 2012-13 school year. Anticipated receipts are budgeted at $1,410,875. Anticipated expenses are budgeted at $1,523,846. Executive Director Steve Endsley noted that traditionally income is budgeted below what is normally received and expenses are budgeted a bit higher than actual expenses. He cited figures from the FY 12 budget which reflected an anticipated $63,050 deficit but final figures showed that income exceeded expenses by $24,817. He pointed out two line items that were different than the previous year's budget. An additional $16,000 has been budgeted for the purchase and installation of a new computer system and an additional $30,000 has been budgeted to pay toward the loan that was secured when the IESA Office was remodeled during the 2009-10 school year. The principal of a member school may request that a copy of the budget be mailed to the school.

Audit: The Board approved the annual audit of the Association by Striegel Knobloch & Company, LLC of Bloomington. The principal of a member school may request that a copy of the audit be mailed to the school. In addition to approving the audit, the Board also approved a three year contract extension with Striegel Knobloch & Company, LLC to continue to conduct the annual audit.

Sponsorships: The Board received an update regarding the status of different sponsorships with Sports Authority, State Farm, Rawlings, and Commerce Bank.

IASB Session: Members of the IESA staff will staff the exhibit booth at the Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) Annual Conference November 16-17 in Chicago.

Enrollment Numbers from the ISBE: The Association continues to have difficulty receiving enrollment numbers from the Illinois State Board of Education in a timely manner as reported on the September 30 Fall Housing Report. Numbers are often not received until mid-June. As a result, the Association will implement a procedure for schools to go to the IESA website and report the same number that is reported on the September 30 Fall Housing Report. Once the Association receives the numbers from the ISBE an audit will be conducted and if there is any difference between what is recorded on the IESA website and what was reported to the ISBE, the ISBE number shall prevail.

Kentucky Task Force Studying Middle School Activities: The state of Kentucky has established a task force to study issues related to middle school interscholastic activities in public schools. A meeting of the task force is set for Monday, September 17. Steve Endsley has been asked to attend the meeting to inform the members of the task force about the policies and procedures of the IESA.

Speech/A.D. Workshop: The Board received a report that the annual speech workshop will be held on Friday, September 14. This is the 34th consecutive year for the workshop for speech coaches. In addition, a workshop for athletic directors will be held on the same date. Both workshops will be held at the Doubletree Hotel and Conference Center in Bloomington.

Division Reports

At each meeting of the Board of Directors time is devoted for each board member to report on communication with and requests from the member schools in the member's division. In addition, Board members also may make observations regarding the operation of the Association. Following is a report of those from the September 7 meeting:

Division A: Dr. Herrmann reported to the Board he had been contacted by a member school with concerns about the change to the By-Law 3.042 and the length of the physical because of the change made by the IHSA.

Division H: Mr. Ingold informed the Board that a school contacted him about the status of the soccer state series.

Division J: Ms. Isackson was also contacted about the status of the soccer state series.

Division K: Mr. Graham was also contacted about the expiration date of the physical.