December 2025 Board Meeting Recap

Regular Board Meeting

Members of the Fremont Middle School Color Guard opened the meeting by performing a routine to the school's fight song.

Board President Gabriela Whipple remarked on the Board's recent participation in the Illinois Association of School Boards Joint Annual Conference and affirmed the Board's commitment to continued professional development to best serve our schools. She also wished everyone a safe and happy holidays and winter break.

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Trisha Kocanda offered her thanks to the Fremont Middle School Color Guard for their performance to begin the meeting. She stated that steady progress is being made in unifying the Lincoln Early Learning Center community in collaboration with Districts 73 and 75 who also utilize the Lincoln School building. The School Safety Drill Act requires school districts and private schools to develop a Cardiac Emergency Response Plan, and the District recently participated in a Cardiac Response Drill with the assistance of the Countryside Fire Protection District. Finally, she remarked on last week's annual shopping trip to Target by the multi-age classrooms that benefits local individuals in need via the Fremont Township Food Pantry.

Pledge of Allegiance

This month's Pledge of Allegiance was led by students from Scout Troop 189.

Recognition

The meeting featured a recognition for four second-grade students from Fremont Elementary School who are members of the school's PAW Patrol, helping promote kindness, respect, safety, and perseverance.

Presentation

Executive Director of Human Resources Allison Stempien highlighted some of the District's recruitment and retention efforts in preparation for the 2026-2027 school year. The staffing approach is determined by examining 1) District enrollment, 2) Special Education, Intervention & ELL, 3) Programmatic Additions and/or Reallocation, and 4) Financial Commitment. The District is slated to increase staffing support in Special Education, Intervention & ELL for FY27, while also adding a school psychology intern. Known vacancies will be posted before winter break with the goal of having the Board approve a final staffing plan in March.

Informational Items

Development Update

Dr. Kocanda provided an update on new residential developments within the District's boundaries as well as the forthcoming Ivanhoe Village project.

• Superintendents and school boards from D73, D75, D76, D79, D120, and D125 co-authored a letter that was submitted to Village of Mundelein officials on November 24, protesting the Village's impact fee ordinance that is resulting in financial shortfalls for the school districts. The districts requested to be part of a coalition to revise the ordinance and form a joint committee to ensure that zoning and annexation decisions are being made collaboratively.
• D79 and D120 have requested to be proactive partners in developing "lookback" language for the Ivanhoe Village approval plan that would provide impact fee safeguards for the schools if the number of students emanating from the development exceeds initial projections. Following a review of the look-back considerations with the Village Administrator and a subsequent response from the Wirtz development team in October, no response has been received as of December 15.
• On December 8, the Village of Mundelein approved the First Amendment to the Annexation Agreement for Ivanhoe Village, extending the date from December 31, 2025, to September 30, 2026.
• On November 24, the Village of Mundelein approved the Walnut Ridge annexation agreement, the Planned Unit Development, and school impact fees, despite objections from D79 and D120. The addition of 117 Walnut Ridge students for FSD79 pushes total K-8 enrollment above total functional capacity. FSD79 must consider adding additional instruction space to accommodate the students. Village officials have sided with the developer's claims of financial constraints for limiting school impact fees, a claim the district argues is irrelevant to its right to recover costs for necessary facility needs attributable to Walnut Ridge.
• A new development, proposed by Redwood USA LLC, is a multi-family project intended to be a 138-unit apartment neighborhood on a vacant 20-acre parcel off Route 60 in Round Lake and within FSD79's boundaries. The property is zoned as a commercial out lot to the Lakewood Grove subdivision to the south, but a rezoning proposal is under municipal review.
• Next steps for the District include continuing to educate the community, advocating with the Village of Mundelein to determine specifics of the "10-year lookback" for the Ivanhoe Village project, determining legislative next steps to offset the enrollment growth impact, and evaluating all potential avenues, including litigation, to ensure taxpayer and educational interests are upheld.

Summer 2026 Capital Improvement Projects

Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations Ivy Fleming reviewed the District's initial plans for the upcoming Summer 2026 capital improvement projects. Funding for these capital projects will be strategically drawn from the existing surplus balance within the Education Fund and the Capital Project Fund, aligning with the District's fund balance plan. Additionally, the District has identified various mandatory Healthy Life Safety projects to be performed. The District is also planning for an additional traffic entrance and exit at Fremont Intermediate School to help with traffic flow.

Inclement Weather Late Start Option

The District has developed a two-hour late start schedule that can now be included in its available options during inclement weather or an unexpected situation. Under this plan, the start of the school day will shift forward by exactly two hours for K-8 students, while dismissal times will remain unchanged. If a two-hour late start is utilized, there would be no AM classes at Lincoln Early Learning Center, while PM classes would go on as scheduled.

First Reading of Updated Board Policies

The updated Board policies are primarily procedural in nature and reflect alignment with recent legislative changes and best practices across multiple operational areas. It was recommended that the Board adopt the policies as presented at the January Board meeting.

The Following Action Items Were Approved:

1. Resolutions 26-06, 26-07, 26-08 for 2025 Final Tax Levy
2. Resolution 26-10 Authorizing Disposal of School District Personal Property
3. Award of Bid #02-2026: School Buses

To view the Board Packet materials from the December 15, 2025, meeting, click here.

Address: 28855 North Fremont Center Road, Mundelein, IL

Phone: (847) 566-0169

Website: fsd79.org

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