School Board Delegates Vote on Constitution, Resolutions 

The Illinois Association of School Boards held its 2022 Delegate Assembly on November 19 in conjunction with the Joint Annual Conference in Chicago.  

Representatives from 409 IASB member school boards reviewed three new resolutions and amendments to five existing positions in the Association’s Constitution, which establishes IASB’s positions on legislation and related matters of public policy. 

Delegates considered proposed amendments to the IASB Constitution regarding officer terms of office, belief statements and a set of Advocacy Core Values, and appeals of committee recommendations. Following the approval by the Delegate Assembly, future resolutions will take a 2/3 majority to pass, and the Resolutions Committee can at its discretion change the timeline for appeals. A proposal to change the terms of IASB officers, from one year to two, was rejected.  

The Delegate Assembly also serves as the Association’s Annual Business Meeting. IASB delegates elected Simon Kampwerth Jr., to a second one-year term as president of the Association. He is a member of the school board for Peru ESD 124. Mark Harms of Flanagan-Cornell USD 74 was elected for a second term as IASB vice president. Delegates also received the Association’s financial report and a written annual report from IASB Executive Director Thomas Bertrand.  

The Assembly approved a resolution on school district ratios of available funds to average annual expenditures. Amendments to existing positions were approved under topics of capital funding for school construction, school safety grant funding, periodic review of state and federal mandates, and financial contributions in school board elections. 

In the IASB Resolutions Process, a resolution is originally proposed by a local school board and reviewed by a 21-member Resolutions Committee before being sent to the Delegate Assembly. The adopted resolutions set IASB’s policies and establish the legislative direction of the Association and its member districts. Visit the IASB website for more information on the Resolutions Process, the Resolutions Committee Report, and the Delegate Assembly.