Assistance plan for Roosevelt Elementary is step toward more federal aid

Belleville District 118’s school board approved a plan to make use of federal grant money that specifically targets Roosevelt Elementary School students from low-income families.

The board approved the plan by a unanimous 6-0 vote. Board member Judi Keplar was absent.

After Roosevelt executes the plan approved Monday, it will be eligible in following school years to receive more federal Title I funds to be spread more flexibly over all students, not just those who meet poverty qualifications. Assistant Superintendent Tracy Gray said the school’s share of the federal funds had not yet been determined.

Roosevelt Elementary is the last of the district’s elementary schools to qualify to receive these grant funds, which the district uses to hire and equip teachers who work most closely with low-income students. Not counting what Roosevelt may receive, the district this school year has received almost $1.6 million through these grants.

“The more and more that we’ve been impacted by children who come from families negatively impacted by economics, the more important it is for us to have dollars allocated to support that,” Superintendent Matt Klosterman said. He said once the school is eligible to use the funds schoolwide, and not just for certain students, “you’ve got a lot more flexibility about how you put things in place to impact a broader scope of kids.”

In other business

▪ The board approved the property tax levy for the 2016-2017 school year. A St. Clair County estimate presented to the school board stated property values in the district may hold level or decrease slightly, which could hold property tax rates level or drive them slightly upward. The exact property values in the district won’t be available until spring.

▪ Central Junior High School Principal Rocky Horrighs presented a school service project that’s in its fourth year. The Pennies for Patients campaign raised $4,885 for The Society for Leukemia and Lymphoma this year. Since the program began, it’s raised more than $7,400. Central has been honored as a statewide top fundraising school thanks to that project.

This story was originally published December 15, 2015 at 3:13 PM with the headline "Assistance plan for Roosevelt Elementary is step toward more federal aid."