GMS
Gillespie Middle School announces February leaders of the month
Back Row (L-R): Alex Ottersburg, Decimus Parnell, Lakotah McDaniels
Front Row: (L-R): Luke Hatlee, Dylan Mason, Carl Krieger
Gillespie Middle School announced their leader of the month award winners on Wednesday for the month of February. Winners for last month include Dylan Mason, Lakotah McDaniels, Decimus Parnell, Luke Hatlee, Carl Krieger and Alex Ottersburg.
Faculty members nominated students based on their attitude, participation and performance in the classroom.
Dylan Mason is the son of Sean Mason and was chosen by the physical education department. “I am a student leader because I am always dressed on time and I’m quiet when I need to be in PE,” Mason said.
McDaniels is the daughter of Matthew and Amber McDaniels and was chosen by Ms. Garde. She said influences her classmates to help other people be great leaders.
Berkel is the son of Christina Parnell and was chosen by Ms. Berkel. He claims he is a student leader because he gets all of his work done and doesn’t disrupt class.
Hatlee is the son of Becky and Kelley Hatlee and was chosen by the sixth grade teachers. “I influence others to work toward their goals, no matter how big or small, and eventually earn the title ‘Student Leader’ themselves,” Hatlee added.
Seventh grade teachers chose Carl Krieger, the son of Amber Krieger, as last month’s student leader. He said he tries to do his best every day and his family pushes him to try hard and get good grades.
Ottersburg is the son of Wally and Brandy Ottersburg and was chosen by the eighth grade teachers. “I am a student leader because I got homework done, studied for tests and work hard,” Ottersburg closed.
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Members of the Community Unit School District 7 voted unanimously Monday night to place the district’s tentative 2024-25 budget on file for public inspection. The document will remain on file for a minimum of 30 days before the board officially adopts a budget during the board’s regular meeting on Monday, Sept. 23.
Board President Mark Hayes emphasized that the budget document on file is “tentative” and likely to change before the final budget is approved. The new budget will govern spending for the fiscal year that began July 1.
Supt. Shane Owsley confirmed the document “will change” over the coming month. Pending grant awards, for example, are likely to alter the tentative budget on the revenue side. During Monday night’s meeting, Owsley confirmed the district has been approved for a $10,000 Breakfast Expansion Grant which will be used to install a salad bar in the high/school middle school cafeteria. During breakfast hours, the bar will be stocked with fresh fruit. He also reported the district has been approved for a Stronger Connections grant that will be used to expand curriculum and teaching opportunities. The amount of the Stronger Connections grant is not yet known but could be as much as $174,985, which is the amount for which the district applied.
Last year’s budget totaled $20 million. At the time last year’s budget was adopted, Owsley indicated the 2025 budget would likely be “less rosy.” Last year’s budget included $2.6 million in Elementary and Secondary School Recovery (ESSR) funds. Those funds will not be available this year, reducing the amount of federal money the district receives by about one-third. Owsley noted last year that the district may have to dip into surplus funds that accumulated as a result of COVID-19 emergency funding in order to balance the 2025 budget.
Approval of the budget will be preceded by a public hearing on Sept., 23 during which Owsley typically provides a PowerPoint presentation illustrating budget details.
PERSONNEL
Following a one-hour executive session, the board hired Tim Wargo as the head middle school baseball coach, and accepted Wargo’s resignation as an assistant middle school baseball coach. Additionally, the board hired Trae Wargo as an assistant middle school baseball coach, filling the vacancy created by Tim Wargo’s resignation.
J.O. Kelly was hired as an assistant football coach, pending verification of certification and a background check.
Board members voted unanimously hire Brandy Ernst as a district paraprofessional, pending verification of certification and a background check.
On a motion by Weye Schmidt, the board hired Terri Rhodes as a special education bus aide, pending a background check. In a separate action, the board voted unanimously to post a vacancy for a special education bus aid.
In other personnel action, the board accepted the resignation of Mike Smith as a full-route bus driver, and reassigned him to a half-route position. In separate actions, the board hired Quinten Heine as a substitute bus driver, pending a background check, and posted a vacancy for a full-route bus driver.
ONGOING PROJECTS
Owsley reported to the board on the status of several life safety projects. He told the board that shatterproof film has been applied to windows and a new intercom system has been installed at the middle school. The intercom system makes it possible for all three schools to communicate with each other in the event of an emergency.
A key card entry system has been installed at the middle school/high school, and workers are in the process of installing secondary locks on classroom doors. The secondary locks provide a means by which teachers can block entry buy an intruder from inside the classroom.
OTHER ACTION
In other action, the board:
- Voted to enter into an intergovernmental transportation with the Jerseyville School District to provide bus transport for a CUSD 7 student who attends the Illinois School for the Deaf in Jacksonville.
- Approved a salary and benefits report for teachers and administrators to be filed with the Illinois State Board of Education. The document also will be available for public review on the CUSD 7 website.
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The top 59 boys’ and girls’ basketball seniors from South Central Illinois played in the 19th Annual Carlinville Rotary Club All-Star Basketball Classic on Sunday, March 26 in Carlinville which was presented by Prairie Farms Diary and CNB Bank & Trust.
Representing Gillespie High School among the athletes on the West teams included Emily Schoen, Jenna Clark, Kam Link, and Bryan Jubelt. Clark posted 2 points in the girls’ contest while Link posted 15 and Jubelt helped with 5 points in the boys’ game. Link also put on a show in the dunk contest scoring 48 out of the possible 50 points to win first place.
The Girls East beat the West 68-51 behind 14 points from MVP Layne Rupert of Hillsboro. The 3-point shootout was won by Paige Henson of Carrollton in a corner shootoff with Natalie Engelman of Nokomis. Staunton coach Corrie Allan was selected as the Rotary Club’s Girls’ Coach of the Year.
Devon Peebles of Pana took MVP honors in the boys’ Carlinville Rotary Club All-Star Basketball Classic. Peebles scored 25 points to lead the East to a 108-97 win over the West. Elijah Aumann of Nokomis won the 3-point contest hitting 10 treys and edging out Ryan Eisenbarth of Nokomis, Peebles and Jubelt of Gillespie who all had 9. In the Slam Dunk contest, Link scored 48 out of the possible 50 points for his routine with Peebles finishing second with a score of 41. Nokomis coach Dan DeWerff was named the Rotary Club’s Boys’ Coach of the Year.
With the East winning both the girls and boys match-ups this year, the all-time series record for boys moves to 12-7 with the West holding the lead and the girls record extends to 13-5 with the East holding strong.
The All-Star Classic serves as a fundraiser for the Carlinville Rotary Club who help with community projects throughout the year.
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The Kaskaskia Region of the Illinois Principals Association hosted its 27th annual Student Recognition Breakfast on Friday, March 17 at Greenville University.
Honored at the event included Olivia Kelly of Gillespie Middle School. Kelly is an eighth-grade student of GMS and is the daughter of J.O. and Jill Kelly of Gillespie. She attended the event with GMS Principal Patrick McGinthy.
The annual Student Recognition Breakfast event recognizes a student from each school in the Kaskaskia region for outstanding achievements in and out of the classroom. Over 50 students were honored at the event.
Students were individually recognized in front of the audience and enjoyed a buffet-style breakfast followed by a motivational speech by Dr. Lori Franke-Hopkins.
The Kaskaskia Region includes schools in the Bond, Clinton, Fayette, Macoupin, Marion and Montgomery Counties. The Illinois Principals Association is a professional organization of building and district level school administrators.
