The Examiner U-46 News Feed

Expenditure items poised for Dist. U-46 board vote

By Seth Hancock
  The Board of Education in School District U-46 is set to vote on $812,708 in expenditure items at its upcoming meeting on Monday, Aug. 8. The items were presented on July 18.
  The largest item is $195,000, from the education fund if approved, with Hudl for a three-year package that allows all five high schools to livestream and provide online storage of athletic games and practices.
  Hudl has been used by Bartlett and South Elgin high schools in the past through funds raised by athletic boosters, but the district wants it taxpayer-funded so “all athletic programs have access to the program,” the proposal states.
  The district is asking for $161,528 (education fund) with School Health Corp. of Rolling Meadows for an automatic external defibrillator (AED) maintenance program. The district has 107 AEDs.
  There were five bids, including two lower than School Health Corp. The lowest bid was $151,124.
  “School Health Corp. was not the lowest bidder, but they scored highest on the Scoring Summary, and they are the only local company,” the proposal states. “Being local, they can provide on-site yearly inspections and replacement units within [three] hours. The online program is the best we found to track and document compliance and safety with additional features to help the district track our legally required emergency medications. No one else could provide that service.”
  The district is seeking $100,255, to be paid by the nation’s taxpayers by federal funds, with Alphaprime Communications to replace 200 handheld two-way radios.
  A contract renewal with Learning Genia has a price tag of $95,680 (education fund) for a software program “to empower early learning communities to achieve continuous quality improvement with data-driven child assessment and family engagement,” the proposal states.
  A pair of two-year contract renewals with Don Johnston have the same cost of $78,624 (education fund) each for Co:Writer and Snap & Read software licensing. The software is for students “who have more significant difficulty” with grammar, reading and spelling.
  Two more contract renewals from the education fund include $68,396 for Encyclopedia Britannica resources and $34,600 for a participation fee with Project Lead the Way.