Liberty’s EDUCATE creating more equity and opportunities with House system

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Liberty 8th grade social studies teacher and EDUCATE sponsor Rachel Harris wanted to find a way to make House games more accessible and equitable for all students. The House System consists of eight houses at Liberty and there are often competitive games and activities to earn House points leading up to the overall House champion at the end of the year. Liberty also has an FLS (functional life skills) program and sometimes these games and activities on House days are not always easy for those students.

So, Harris went to her EDUCATE students and suggested a life size board game. Thus, Liberty Land was born.

Harris and her students worked with the FLS teachers on what would be a good board game. Together they came up with the idea of Candyland but using the House system. It was even made large enough to accommodate a wheelchair, while the colors and shapes also provide an additional educational tool.

EDUCATE students, as well as several other students, have spent 50-60 hours painting and working on the life-size board game, which will be used for House days beginning next year. The board game needs a few final touches, such as a spinner, but Harris and the students are excited about having this accessible and equitable tool that will help more students find success during House day games. They are even planning for other human size games, such as a Connect Four.

EDUCATE began with an idea and four members to create a diversity club at Liberty Middle School. Over the years it grew, and it was during the pandemic that the members decided that it was important to spread its impact to both Lincoln Middle School and the high school. They worked during the spring and summer of 2020 to develop a proposal for, then superintendent Dr. Jason Henderson, to approve the club at the other two schools.

Since 2016, the focus of the club has been to celebrate diversity and promote inclusion. This year the club began to include in its focus the idea of equity which is the heart of District 7’s mission – empowering each student to achieve personal success.

This focus on equity has led to discussions of what equity is and working toward more equitable situations in the school community.

The game board is a result of those conversations.

Four Crowned State Champion at IESA Meet

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The Liberty and Lincoln Middle School track and field teams combined to win four state championships at the IESA state meet, held May 19-20. Additionally, the Liberty girls 8th grade team finished 3rd overall.

State titles include:

Liberty 8th grade girls 1,600-meter relay team in a time of 4:14.21. Relay members include Maggie Cadagin, Kennel Evers, Morgan Gestes and Sophie Shapiro.

Liberty 7th grader Joanna Anoke, winner in the 100-meter hurdles in 15.9.

Liberty 7th grader Madison Kline, winner in the 400-meter run in 59.1

Lincoln 8th grader Aidan Bennett, winner in the discus with a throw of 155-06.

 

 

Liberty 1,600-meter relay

 

Madison Kline (left) and Joanna Anoke (right)

 

 

Aidan Bennett

 

Liberty 8th grade girls team

Lincoln Middle School and Bond Referendum Groundbreaking Ceremony Scheduled

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A groundbreaking ceremony to kick-off construction at Lincoln Middle School as part of the 2023 bond referendum will be held at 3:30 p.m., on Monday, May 22, on the north side of Lincoln, just behind the Hadley House.  

The construction is made possible by the bond referendum passed at the April 4, 2023, Consolidated General Election by the District #7 community. The bond proposal is a $100 million zero-tax-rate-increase bond issue, which will fund projects at every school in District #7, including addressing identified facility needs, essential safety and security upgrades and other identified critical maintenance needs, and provide an improved learning environment for District #7 students. 

One of the identified projects of the bond referendum is a partial renovation and rebuild at Lincoln Middle School, which includes:  

  • Renovated gymnasiums relocated to the north side of the building 
  • A renovated theater 
  • New performing arts classrooms 
  • A new commons area 
  • New academic classrooms 
  • Added handicap accessibility 

The construction will keep the original 1925 portion of the school building intact. Over the decades, Lincoln Middle School has undergone various additions, which has led to different floor levels that require steep stairs to get from one area of the building to another. The renovations and rebuilding will help improve the navigability of the school.  

Other top priority projects with the bond referendum include:  

  • Secure double entries at all District #7 schools 
  • Remediation of asbestos and construction of new classrooms and gymnasium at Hamel Elementary School 
  • Repairs related to moisture infiltration and possible settlement at Midway Elementary School 
  • An addition of 7,000 square feet to the Commons at Edwardsville High School 

 

 

District #7 Honors Employees at Awards Banquet

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Edwardsville Community Unit School District #7 honored several of its outstanding employees, recognized the contributions of those employees with 25 years of service, and bid farewell with a salute to its retirees on Thursday night during its District Awards Banquet.  

The event was held at the SIUE Meridian Ballroom and included comments from Superintendent Dr. Patrick Shelton and Board of Education President Jill Bertels. Dr. Shelton and Dr. Adam Garrett, Assistant Superintendent of Personnel presented awards.  

19 employees were recognized for 25 years, while 24 employees were honored for their upcoming retirement.  

Honorees included teachers, principals, custodians, cooks, paraprofessionals, and so many others who help make District #7 an outstanding place for adults to work and students to learn.  

Individual award winners included:  

  • Shelby Summer, EHS math teacher, selected as Rookie of the Year | VIDEO
  • Ana Gill, Cassens secretary, selected as Educator of the Year (classified staff) | VIDEO
  • Gretchen Hertz, Woodland 3rd grade teacher, selected as Educator of the Year (certified staff) | VIDEO
  • Melissa Edwards, Nelson principal, selected as Administrator of the Year | VIDEO

 

25-Year Honorees 

  • Tracey Armon, Head Cook (Lincoln Middle School) 
  • Robert Canada, 5th Grade Teacher (Columbus Elementary) 
  • Stephen Chapman, Social Studies Teacher (Liberty Middle School) 
  • Alex Fox, Athletic Director (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Tara Fox, Director of Curriculum (Central Office) 
  • Tim Funkhouser, Health/PE Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Michelle Herman, Elementary Technology Specialist (Cassens Elementary) 
  • Jane Hicks, Social Science Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Emily Kobler, Special Education Teacher and Instructional Technology Coach (Liberty Middle School) 
  • Laura Laswell, Paraprofessional (Lincoln Middle School) 
  • Jennifer Mulvihill, Social Worker (Woodland Elementary) 
  • Colleen Ogden, Elementary Technology Specialist (Columbus Elementary) 
  • George Patrylak, Special Education Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Michael Rockwell, 4th Grade Teacher (Woodland Elementary) 
  • Marcy Savoie, Reading Specialist (Columbus Elementary) 
  • Sherri Schafer, Social Studies Teacher (Liberty Middle School) 
  • Dr. Cornelia Smith, Director of DEI and Elementary Education (Central Office) 
  • Traci Thompson, Language Arts Teacher (Lincoln Middle School) 
  • Dr. Andrew Williams, Assistant Principal (Woodland Elementary)

Retiree Honorees 

  • Sally Atwood, School Counselor (Edwardsville High School) 
  • David Boedeker, Science Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Nancy Gebhart, Media Secretary (Liberty Middle School) 
  • Donna Gray, Secretary (Cassens Elementary) 
  • Rebecca Green, Secretary (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Sue Grubaugh, Attendance Secretary (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Yvonne Hallemann, Elementary Physical Education Teacher 
  • Lynley Harrison, 2nd Grade Teacher (Leclaire Elementary) 
  • Rebecca Holle, Family and Consumer Science Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Annie Jones, Head Cook (Liberty Middle School) 
  • Theresea Laako, Business Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • David Lewis, Social Worker (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Stacey Lipe, Math Intervention Specialist 
  • Diana Lockwood, Language Arts Teacher (Liberty Middle School) 
  • Mike McGarr, Math Teacher (Liberty Middle School) 
  • Donald Mendoza, Spanish Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Toni Peitzmeyer, Secretary (Leclaire Elementary) 
  • Melissa Potvin, Special Education Teacher (Nelson Elementary) 
  • Dr. Beth Renth, Principal (Worden Elementary) 
  • Mandie Schulte, Secretary (Success Academy) 
  • Ruth Shipley, Preschool Teacher (Goshen Elementary) 
  • Christopher Spencer, Custodian (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Patricia Steinbech, Paraprofessional (Cassens Elementary School) 
  • Darlene Wessel, Bookkeeper (Liberty Middle School) 

 

Rookie of the Year Finalists (awarded to an individual in their first or second year in public education) 

  • Shelby Summer, Math Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Payton Carlton, Special Education Teacher (Woodland Elementary) 
  • Brendan Sulley, 4th Grade Teacher (Columbus Elementary) 

 2023 Rookie of the Year: Shelby Summer 

2022-2023 Rookie of the Year: Shelby Summer

 

Educator of the Year Building Winners (Classified) 

  • Ana Gill, Secretary (Cassens Elementary) 
  • Brittany Burke, Food Service Secretary (Central Office) 
  • Mary Jean Breeden, Secretary (Columbus Elementary) 
  • Karen Govreau, Receptionist (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Beth Pollock, Secretary (Glen Carbon Elementary) 
  • Kristin Griffin, Paraprofessional (Goshen Elementary) 
  • Arthur Byrd, School Safety Officer (Hamel Elementary) 
  • Bionca McCarter, Paraprofessional (Leclaire Elementary) 
  • Nancy Gebhardt, Media Secretary (Liberty Middle School)
  • Linda Davis, Evening Custodian (Lincoln Middle School/Central Office) 
  • Darren Brown, School Safety Officer (Midway Elementary) 
  • Scot Ambuel, School Safety Officer (Nelson elementary) 
  • Lisa Hale, Food Service (Woodland Elementary) 
  • Alana Henfling, Paraprofessional (Worden Elementary) 

2023 Educator of the Year: Ana Gill 

2022-2023 Educator of the Year – classified: Ana Gill

 

Educator of the Year Building Winners (Certified) 

  • Patty Odom, 4th Grade Teacher (Worden Elementary) 
  • Gretchen Hertz, 3rd Grade Teacher (Woodland Elementary) 
  • Cari Wencewicz, Reading Specialist (Nelson Elementary) 
  • Staci Kyro, 2nd Grade Teacher (Midway Elementary) 
  • Denise Downes, Social Worker (Lincoln Middle School) 
  • Jenny Guetterman, 6th Grade Teacher (Liberty Middle School) 
  • Lynley Harrison, 2nd Grade Teacher (Leclaire Elementary) 
  • Kelly Ackerman, Kindergarten Teacher (Hamel Elementary) 
  • Lynne Kusnerick, Nurse (Goshen Elementary) 
  • Tonya Holmes, 2nd Grade Teacher (Glen Carbon Elementary) 
  • Sairee Knabe, Social Science Teacher (Edwardsville High School) 
  • Rob Canada, 5th Grade Teacher (Columbus Elementary) 
  • Bethany Riechmann, Special Education (Cassens Elementary) 

2023 Educator of the Year: Gretchen Hertz 

2022-2023 Educator of the Year – certified: Gretchen Hertz

 

Administrator of the Year: Melissa Edwards, Principal, Nelson Elementary 

2022-2023 Administrator of the Year: Melissa Edwards

 

 

 

 

2023 Summer Camps Through EHS

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Summer is right around the corner, which means many of our athletic teams and extracurricular groups have announced their summer camps.  

Please see the list below of camps offered at EHS and click on the respective link for more information. 

Additionally, several other summer camps and events locally are being added to our Virtual Backpack daily. The Virtual Backpack assists our families in obtaining information pertaining to community resources, services and information as District #7 continues to work in a paperless format.  

 

CAMP  GRADE (entering 23-24 year) 
Lady Tiger Basketball Camp – LINK  2nd-9th 
Edwardsville Volleyball Camp – LINK  1st-9th 
Edwardsville Boys Basketball Camp – LINK  3rd-9th 
Tiger Baseball Camp – LINK  2nd-9th 
Tiger Speed Camp – LINK  Ages 6-18 
Edwardsville Girls Field Hockey Camp – LINK  4th-12th 
EHS Boys Volleyball Summer Camp – LINK  5th-9th 
Edwardsville Middle School Boys Soccer Camp – LINK  6th-8th 
Edwardsville High School Boys Soccer Camp – LINK  9th-12th 
Tigers Tennis Camps – LINK  K-12th 
EHS Softball Camp – LINK  2nd-9th 
Tiger Football Futures Camp – LINK  7th-9th 
EHS Summer Dance Clinic – LINK K-6th
Choir Camp – LINK  3rd-8th 
Orchestra Camp – LINK   

 

Student Recognition Breakfast

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One of District #7’s favorite things to do is honor its students! On Thursday morning, 16 students from all our schools were honored for not only being outstanding students in the classroom, but for being outstanding school citizens.

Each spring, District #7 students are honored alongside other students from the Southwest Region at the Illinois Principal’s Association (IPA) Student Recognition Breakfast. However, this year, due to a scheduling conflict, District #7 was unable to attend that event and instead, decided to honor its students at its own breakfast event.

Each of the students recognized stood out among their peers due to their tremendous character, work ethic and leadership. They are always striving to do the right thing and inspire others around them to be the best they can be.

Students honored included:

Tyler Novotney, Glen Carbon Elementary

Alexandra Snook, Goshen Elementary

Quinn Themas, Hamel Elementary

Arabella Donner, Leclaire Elementary

Wesley Sterett, Midway Elementary

Dontay Wells, Nelson Elementary

 Giana Rigoni, Albert Cassens Elementary

Theo Armstrong, Columbus Elementary

Adam Hertz, Woodland Elementary

Caleb Kupinski, Worden Elementary

Logan Garman, Liberty Middle School

Claire Johnson, Liberty Middle School

Grace Capron, Lincoln Middle School

Blake Chrenka, Lincoln Middle School

Axton Anom, Edwardsville High School

Caroline Marcus, Edwardsville High School

Registration Information for 2023-2024

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The following communication was sent to all district families on Tuesday, May 2, 2023.

May 2, 2023  

Dear District #7 Families: 

Online registration for the 2023-2024 school year will open tomorrow, Wednesday, May 3, 2023, at 9:00 a.m., for all new and returning District #7 students.  

Returning families will receive an email from PowerSchool Enrollment the morning of May 3, 2023. Please note the e-mail will only be sent to the first parent/guardian listed in TigerView. The only way to access registration is by clicking on the link provided in the email. 

If you have a student that will be attending the district that is not currently enrolled, you must complete pre-registration first. If you have already completed the pre-registration process for a student not currently enrolled, you will receive an email with a registration link for that student on the morning of May 3, 2023. 

District #7 requires two proofs of residency that must be uploaded to complete and submit your registration. For more information on residency documents, click here. The district will review the submission and if more information is needed, you will receive an email saying your registration had been rejected. That email will include details of what is needed to accurately complete the registration.   

If you need assistance with technology access or have questions regarding registration, please email registration@ecusd7.org.  

We look forward to a positive end to the 2022-2023 school year and an exciting 2023-2024! 

With Tiger Pride,
Patrick Shelton, Ed.D.
Superintendent 

 

District #7 Substitute Teacher Pay Rate Increased

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Substitute teachers are an important part of maintaining continuity in education and ensuring that students receive instruction and proper care even when our regular staff may be absent. To show their value, District #7 has increased the pay rate for substitute teachers to $125/day.

Among the many benefits this position offers include:  

  • Working while your kids are in school 
  • Choosing the school(s) where you work 
  • Enjoying the same school breaks and holidays 
  • Flexibility to choose the days you work 
The school year may be winding down, but Distirct #7 is still looking for subs.

 

 

2023 Summer Enrichment

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Summer Enrichment opportunities are back!

See the attached flyers for exciting summer opportunities for students in grades K-8.

K-2 Art (K-2nd grade students only) 

3-5 Art (3rd-5th grade students only)

Middle School Art (6th-8th grade students only) 

STEMscopes (3rd-8th grade students only) 

Links to sign up for summer courses are in the PDFs.

Once completed, send or bring payment to:
District 7 Center for Learning
1210 North Main Street
Edwardsville, IL 62025

All enrollment is pending until payment has been received.

For questions on any of these, please contact Julie Dean at 618-655-6021.

District #7 March Update

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Hello District #7 and Happy Friday! As of 3:35 p.m. today our students and teachers will be on a well-deserved break. Spring break begins today and school will be back in session on Tuesday, April 11.   

I wanted to take a few moments to update you on our recent Board meeting. Mr. Michael Hubbard, the Director of Security in District #7, presented the current and ongoing work of maintaining safe schools throughout District #7. Safety and Security are never far from our mind, but that holds especially true as we witness the recent events in Nashville, TN. We continue to be in thought and prayer for those families impacted by this horrible event.  

As a school district, we must remain vigilant in identifying and responding to threats which occur. Over the past several months, Mr. Hubbard has increased the training and consistency of our School Safety Officers and their presence in schools, updated our district-wide crisis manual, and connected our district-wide safety and security team. We also continue to investigate any threats of violence which are brought to our attention. District #7 is also installing vape detectors over Spring Break in an effort to alleviate the vaping epidemic which continues to impact our students.  

I also provided the Board of Education and those present with an update on our no-tax-rate-increase bond proposal that is on the ballot next Tuesday. Earlier this year, safety and security was identified as the number one priority for our schools and the bond proposal includes installing double-entry door systems in each District #7 school. We are also excited about the potential upgrades to our facilities with a renovation and addition to Lincoln Middle School, repairs and renovations at Hamel Elementary, Midway Elementary, Columbus Elementary and Edwardsville High School, along with new accessible and safe playgrounds at all District #7 Elementary Schools.  With Election Day occurring over spring break, we have also been intentionally reminding those in the District #7 community who are travelling to vote early. Please visit ecusd7.org/bond for more information on the bond proposal. 

We continue to plan for a busy summer in District #7. Summer school for this year will be held at Goshen Elementary School and Liberty Middle School, as Edwardsville High School will be closed for the vast majority of the summer for construction and fire alarm work.  

Finally, Parents/guardians of students new to District #7 for the 2023-24 school year can now pre-register on our website at ecusd7.org. This includes incoming kindergarteners, students moving into the district or students transferring from a private school. Registration for students currently enrolled in District #7 is anticipated to open on or around May 1, 2023. We will be sure to communicate as we get closer to May.  

Spring in District #7 is always a busy one and following spring break, I hope you take advantage of the opportunity to take in one of our spring sports and activities such as our spring concerts, as all of our students continue to make District #7 proud.   

Have a wonderful Spring Break and we look forward to seeing you on Tuesday, April 11!  

Patrick Shelton, Ed.D.
Superintendent