A board policy allowing the election of committee members and providing committee reports to the board presented by board member Tim Stoub was voted out at the February 19 Peotone School Board meeting. Board member Jodi Becker was absent.
Board member Tim Stoub had drafted the policy presented at the previous meeting, and legal had reviewed it. He spoke at the February 19 meeting adding that legal saw no repercussions against the policy, which would have mixed up committee appointments and stripped some authority from Board President Tara Robinson, as she would no longer appoint members to committees as she chose. Stoub also said Supt. Brandon Owens recommended against the policy, because it required greater accountability of committees and superintendent interactions with those committees to the public.
Stoub said, “The bigger issue is making sure decisions are made collectively and not by a single voice.” He also added, “If our commitment to unbiased decision making is so unquestionable, then adding it to policy should be welcomed, not controversial.” Stoub then said that current policy allows all decisions to be made by one person, while the new policy would allow decisions to be made collectively.
Stoub made a motion to approve, Robinson seconded, and on roll call, every board member but Stoub voted no.
Press school policies 114-117 were being revised by a policy committee with no report from the committee publicly at the board meeting.
Stoub inquired about one of the policies and the position of the policy committee allowing the district to expand discipline to actions taken off school grounds and in students’ homes. Stoub asked if the district was prepared to defend any first amendment challenges. Owens said he wasn’t aware it was a change from previous policy. The policy was implemented in October of 2024. With no answer, Robinson recommended all board members read the policies.
Stoub also mentioned a deviation from press school policy allowing the district to discipline students for false claims of bullying if deemed as retaliation. Stoub asked how the policy can be implemented so that it doesn’t scare kids from being bullied. Robinson again recommended board members read the policies and address their concerns with Supt. Owens.
Owens also reported there’s a pause in the development of the sports fields, and said there have been informal discussions with the Peotone Park District regarding use purchase of land. Stoub inquired how much has been spent to date on the sports fields project. The answer was $223,206.25 for architectural and engineering and that did not include the brokerage fees for the full $10.9M in bonds, which was an additional $132,001.22. The $10.9 million in bonds was for the fields, the HVAC projects, and Blue Devil Drive.
Board member Jennifer Moe asked what the plan was for spring sports, such as baseball and softball. Owens replied the plan was to use the park district fields. Stoub also asked about intergovernmental agreements as a possibility, and Owens replied there are local facilities that would provide options.
Board member Roger Bettenhausen shared that he was nominated at the Green Garden Township Republican caucus to be a trustee. He was also on the ballot for the school board. A contest resulted in the Will County State’s Attorney issuing a ruling that Bettenhausen’s name could not appear on the ballot.
Bettenhausen has served for 28 years and said he had never seen any interaction between school district and townships, but “the individuals who orchestrated this political attack felt I would be a roadblock in their personal agendas and doubted their ability to beat me at the ballot box.”
Bettenhausen shared he was disappointed he could not pick which office to run for.
He shared he was proud of the district’s financial standing, that test scores are on the rise after the pandemic, and staff is confident and qualified to keep the district moving in the right direction.
Bettenhausen shared his proudest moment was saving the FFA program. He said there were few students involved and little support, but he had a few board members behind him that allowed him to create an Ag Advisory Board committee, and it grew from there.
“I leave tonight knowing that Peotone’s FFA program is one of the best in the State of Illinois and confident the program will continue to grow their leadership skills and career success. Finally but not least, I want to thank the community for the support I’ve received during the past 28 years. It’s been an honor and a pleasure to serve the school district for that many years. People would always ask me, ‘How do you do it, why do you do it?’ Community is only as good as the schools in that community. I get satisfaction knowing I give back something to the community I grew up in.”
Bettenhausen will be absent at the next meeting.
Robinson thanked Bettenhausen and said his contributions were immeasurable. Moe agreed.