ABOVE: The full Danville District 118 School Board was present at the start of Monday’s (Jan 27th) Danville District 118 Special Meeting, with an empty chair where Superintendent Dr. Alicia Geddis would be.
The “public comment” section at the start of Monday night’s (Jan 27th) District 118 Board Special Meeting brought about three speakers addressing the board; before the board took care of disciplinary items on the special meeting agenda in closed session.
One of the speakers was area child and family advocate DeeAnn Ryan. She stated that Superintendent Dr. Alicia Geddis’ continued absence from her district office and board meetings due to her stated concerns about her safety is especially disturbing right now because of all the concern about how the Trump Administration’s immigration enforcement procedures could affect students in schools; especially with the Illinois State Board of Education offering advice on how schools should handle this. Ryan says the superintendent’s physical presence is more important that ever, and that the number one priority is the safety of the students.
Audio PlayerAUDIO: Absolutely….I just feel strongly that she’s been absent for quite a while, because she feels like she’s under threat of something or someone; where we have an obvious threat to children and families in the community of possibly harassment and deportation.
(1st Picture) DeeAnn Ryan (right) addresses the Danville District 118 School Board. (2nd Picture) Toni Kimberlin Towne addresses the Danville District 118 School Board.
Toni Kimberlin Towne, a District 118 Board candidate guaranteed election on April 1st because of a lack of a full slate of candidates for open spots, stated that the number one priority of the school board members needs to be the district, and not themselves.
Audio PlayerAUDIO: If you think the decisions you’re making are beneficial; are they beneficial to you, personally? Do you have some personal stake in this? Or are they beneficial to the district, which is who you were voted into your position to take care of. If there’s something personal going on, you need to let that go aside; and you need to be focusing on the district as whole, and the students as a whole.
Towne stated that she has been told often by district employees about the lack of very important personnel, such as counselors or hall monitors. But that if someone brings up the problem, they are often “pushed out or fired.”
Despite the board’s stated desire, read by President Dr. Randal Ashton at a November meeting, that Dr. Geddis return to working onsite at the Dr. David L Fields District 118 Administrative Service Center; Geddis has stated that she continues to work remotely at the blessing of a majority of the District 118 Board. Ashton had no comment on who that majority actually is, and stated he would not call the problem of Geddis’ absence a disciplinary manner.
Audio PlayerAUDIO: I wouldn’t call it a disciplinary matter. (What would you call it?) Not a disciplinary matter.
Ashton stated that the safety plan that Superintendent Geddis had requested for the district building is still being evaluated, with no definite time frame. Ashton also stated that Geddis was not in contact with the board during their closed session action Monday night. The next Danville District 118 School Board meeting is set for Wednesday, February 12th; with “open session” scheduled to begin at 6:30 PM. By the way, the final day to contact the County Clerk’s office about being a District 118 Board write-in candidate is this Thursday, January 30th.