August 2026 Board Meeting Recap
Fremont School District 79
Regular Board Meeting
Board President Gabriela Whipple remarked on the recent Opening Day ceremonies for District staff that members of the Board were able to participate in, thanking everyone for their commitment to the District's students. She also welcomed newly appointed Board member Courtney Wilhelm Billittier to her first regular monthly meeting.
Superintendent of Schools Dr. Trisha Kocanda highlighted a successful start to the new school year, including welcoming the families and staff who are new to the District. She remarked on various construction projects that took place over the summer, including a new traffic exit onto Fremont Center Road, new secure entry vestibules at the three campus schools, an expanded middle school cafeteria, and new artificial turf for the elementary school playground. She also highlighted this week's PTO Back-to-School Bash as a great opportunity for the school community to come together to celebrate the start of the new school year.
Pledge of Allegiance
The meeting's Pledge of Allegiance was led by members of the Fremont Intermediate School student council.
Recognition
The meeting's recognition was in honor of a generous donation to the District from Meadow's Family Dentistry, which will benefit the forthcoming CTE/STEM lab at Fremont Middle School. The Board appreciates the generosity of Mr. Balaji Singamsetti and Ms. Sharon Bogetz for giving back to our community.
Presentation
2026-2027 Annual Goals Overview
In concert with the District's four-year Strategic Plan, the annual goals represent the areas of focus that consist of Safe, Healthy & Connected Culture, Growth & Achievement for All, Talent Recruitment & Development, and Financial & Facility Stewardship. Plans are developed annually throughout the four-year Strategic Plan cycle with data, metrics, products, and deliverables being utilized to determine progress of the targeted objectives. The Board unanimously voted to approve the plan later in the meeting.
Ivy Fleming, Assistant Superintendent of Finance and Operations, provided the Tentative Fiscal Year 2027 budget. The revenues for FY27 are budgeted at $43,242,442, and the expenditures are budgeted at $55,989,015 (including over $13.9 million from reserves and Health Life Safety funds for planned capital projects and Health Life Safety projects). The FY27 ending fund balance is projected to be $54,894,271. The board approved a fund balance plan in October 2024. The intentional spend-down of reserves can be attributed to the following:
$600,000 transfer out of Ed Fund to help offset the ES playground resurfacing and the IS traffic exit for a total cost of $724,904
$5.5 million in planned Educational Long-Range Facility Plan work
$7.4 million in Health Life Safety Projects
Informational Items
Dr. Kocanda shared that following preliminary discussions initiated by municipal leadership in mid-July regarding the proposed multi-building data center project in Grayslake, District administration has engaged in proactive coordination with neighboring high school districts (Mundelein High School District 120 and Grayslake Community High School District 127), financial advisory consultants, legal counsel, legislators, developers, municipal leaders, and others.
A commercial proposal of this magnitude raises significant questions among our residents regarding environmental footprint, local infrastructure, power and water demands, and overall land use. The project falls entirely within our District boundaries, and we hear and share many of the same foundational questions currently emerging across our community. District 79 is actively evaluating how potential infrastructure adjustments could indirectly impact our school operations and physical campus.
D79, D120, and D127 are working closely to ensure an accurate, consistent approach to modeling potential expansion of the commercial tax base. The three school districts are partnering with a joint attorney and a specialized financial consultant to research national data center taxation models and best practices in commercial assessment. The districts submitted a formal query to the local tax assessor to obtain guidance and procedural clarity regarding preliminary development valuations. The assessor confirmed that any tax revenue estimates are premature.
At the appropriate stage, once revenue structures are verified, the District will develop mechanisms for community feedback on long-term fiscal priorities and taxpayer relief models.
Regarding litigation against the Village of Mundelein concerning impact fees for Walnut Ridge and the adjacent "Agricultural Property" developments, D79 and D120 are working with the attorney to gather expert testimony and reports as preparations for a trial are underway. The Village of Mundelein has not reached out to engage in any collaborative efforts to work towards another solution out of court.
Lake County school districts have petitioned the Regional Superintendent to place up to a 1% countywide sales tax measure on the general election ballot. This will allow voters to decide whether to introduce this non-property tax revenue stream. The referendum will appear on the November 3, 2026, ballot. By law, revenue generated from the proposed sales tax could be used for capital projects, facility maintenance, mental health services, safety and security, and tax abatements. If approved by voters, this “penny tax” is estimated to generate $121.2 million annually for Lake County public school districts, including an estimated $2.16 million for Fremont School District 79.
2026-27 School Year Staffing & Enrollment Update
Throughout the summer, District staff monitored enrollment and class sizes weekly, making adjustments to our staffing plan as numbers shifted. As of August 20, enrollment is close to our March 2026 projections. Staffing adjustments have been made to help maintain more equitable class sizes across grade levels. Active recruitment remains underway to fill a variety of open Educational Support Personnel positions.
Summer Professional Learning & Collaboration
FSD79 staff were highly active and engaged over the summer, participating in approximately 2,190 total hours of professional learning and collaboration opportunities through various optional District-coordinated opportunities. Wildcat Academy summer professional development offered 12 courses, provided almost exclusively by our own staff. Additional collaborative team sessions took place related to a wide range of topics. These opportunities were funded through multiple sources, including approximately $63,278 from grants (Title I, II, IV), as well as approximately $23,581 from applicable District accounts.
First Reading of Updated Board Policies
The updated Board Policies are primarily five-year reviews with little policy change. It was recommended that the board adopt the policies as presented at the September board meeting.
The Following Action Items Were Approved:
- 2026-27 School Board Development Plan
- 2026-2027 Annual Strategic Goal Plan
- Intergovernmental Agreement Between Exceptional Learners Collaborative and Fremont School District 79 for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services
- Intergovernmental Agreement Between TrueNorth and Fremont School District 79 for Non-member District Student Placement
- Intergovernmental Agreement Between Mundelein High School District 120, Bath Concepts, LLC, and Fremont School District 79 for Property Tax Abatement Relative to the Ziva Project
- Agreement with the Special Education District of Lake County (SEDOL) for Food Service
- Resolution 27-05 Authorizing Disposal of School District Personal Property
- Resolution 27-06 Authorizing Restatement of 403(b) Retirement Plan
- Proposal from Wold Architects and Engineers for 2027 Health Life Safety Projects
- Proposal from Team Reil Inc. for Fremont Elementary School Playground Resurfacing
- Service Agreement with Trane
- Summer 2026 Construction Project Change Order #1
- Meadows Family Dentistry Donation
To view the Board Packet materials from the August 24, 2026, meeting, click here.
Fremont School District 79
Address: 28855 North Fremont Center Road, Mundelein, IL
Phone: (847) 566-0169
Website: fsd79.org
Instagram: @FSD79
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/fremont-school-district-79
YouTube: youtube.com/FSD79