Governance

The unique style of education expands beyond the classrooms at PCCS. Although comprised of 9 individuals, our board represents one school with one voice. The Board committees include; Governance, Finance, Academic Excellence, Outreach and Development. We are always looking for passionate, professional and committed individuals to provide leadership, set policy, and advocate for innovation and excelling our academic rigor without compromise to our environmental commitment.

Board of Directors

The PCCS Board of Directors is comprised of nine individuals, each holding a 3-year elected or appointed position on the board. Every year, three Board positions become eligible for replacement this school year. Two of these positions are appointed by the School Board, and one is elected by the PCCS parent community.

Typically, we run our Parent Elected positions in the Spring and our Board Appointed positions in the Fall. Please check back to learn more once the elections cycles are active.

Click here to view our Board of Directors.

Board and Committee Meetings

A Regular School Board meeting will usually be held on the fourth Tuesday of each month at 7:00 P.M. It is anticipated that Board committees will be scheduled throughout the month prior to the Board meeting. All regular meetings of the Board and their Committees are open to the public. Closed sessions portions of the meeting which may relate to personnel matters, negotiations, legal issues and buildings and sites) are closed to the public in accordance with Illinois Statutes. All regular Board meetings are typically held in Muir Hall of the Comstock Building. Committee Meetings are typically held in the Kennicott Building. Advance notice of Board meetings is sent to the Community and posted to the website at least 2 days before the meetings convene. Meeting minutes are posted, once approved by the Board and/or their Committees, to the website via the link below.

Board and Committee Meetings, Agenda and Minutes Page

2024-2025 Board and Committee Meeting Calendar at a Glance

Chartering Documents

Original Charter Contract

The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) granted our authorization to open in 1999 making PCCS the first State Chartered School in Illinois.

1999 Charter Document

Charter Contract Renewals

Unlike traditional public schools, public Charter Schools in Illinois are required by state law to renew their charter contract with their Charter Authority every 5 years.

2024

Bylaws

The Board of Directors, pursuant to Article XIV of the Bylaws of Prairie Crossing Charter School, has adopted the following Amended and Restated Bylaws of Prairie Crossing Charter School effective May 24, 2022 until otherwise amended, altered, revised or repealed.

PCCS Bylaws

Board of Director's Policies

This section codifies the official policies of the Board of Education for Prairie Crossing Charter School. School Board policies state positions adopted by the Board in order to provide direction, control and/or management of its legal functions. The goals of all policy are to present clear, concise, and distinct directives to the Board’s staff and to serve as a primary communication tool with the public with specific attention to students, staff, parents and/or guardians. Adoption of new policies or revision of existing policies is solely the responsibility of the Board. Proposals for new policies or revisions to current policies may be submitted in writing by any interested citizen, District employee, or member of the Board. Proposals shall be submitted to the Executive Director for referral to the Board.

It is the obligation of employees to familiarize themselves with and follow Board policies. Employees are responsible for familiarizing themselves with and following all administrative regulations.

Board Policies Page

Board Candidate Process

The PCCS Board of Directors is comprised of at least nine individuals, each holding a 3-year elected or appointed position on the board. Every year, three Board positions become eligible for replacement. Two of these positions are appointed by the School Board, and one is elected by the PCCS parent community. Becoming a member of the Board of Directors is a great way to get involved and proactively assist in guiding the direction of the school’s mission and vision.

How to Apply:

In order to be considered for the Board-appointed or Parent Elected Board position, applicants are required to submit the following documents:

Three (3) Letters of Recommendation
Resume
Letter of intent (these should include statements that reflect your vision for the school, your strengths related to board work and why you feel you would be an asset to the board)

The above documents should be turned into the school office by the deadline specified in the Election Timeline. Applications received after this time will be considered invalid. Applications for the Board-Appointed should be sent Attn: Nominating Committee Chairperson. Applications for the Parent Elected should be sent Attn: Parent Elected Election Committee.

PCCS Board member duties include:

- Commit to a 3-year term.
- Attend monthly Board meetings and occasional special Board meetings.Each Board meeting lasts an average of 3 hours.
- Serve on at least one board committee. Board Committees typical meet once a month. The current standing Board committees are: Governance, Finance, Academic Excellence, Development and Nominating.

Each Board member must sign a confidentiality agreement, an oath and a yearly statement of economic interest.

Board Positions

As a result of the completion of terms of three current Prairie Crossing Charter School Directors, PCCS is seeking two Candidates to serve as members of its Board of Directors. As required by the School’s by-laws, one Board position will be filled via the School’s parent elected process and two Board positions will be filled via the School’s Board-Appointed process; timelines for the election of Directors via both processes are described below. If you have any questions regarding this process, you are encouraged to contact the Board President.

Election of Directors via Board-Appointed Process

The Board of Directors shall interview all candidates in accord with established practices and hold a vote to elect the Board-Appointed Candidates. The date of the vote is the “Election Date.” Within two days of the Election Date, public announcement of the election results are made. As allowed by Policy 200.21 some dates have been modified from the preferred dates to account for weekends and/or other unique circumstances.

Financial Documents

Budget

Board Approved FY25 Budget

Financial Statements

Audited Financial Statements FY24

Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund
Public Act 101-504, beginning January 1, 2021, requires Illinois school districts and other local taxing bodies are required to post this link, IMRF, on their website.

This Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (“IMRF”) website contains information about all IMRF employers’ participation in the fund.

ESSER III Grant Plan
On March 11, 2021, the American Rescue Plans (ARP) Act was signed into law. In it, the U.S. Department of Education is providing an additional $121.9 billion for the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund (ESSER III Fund). This plan complies with all reporting requirements of the ARP Act (Public Law 117-2), the ESSER III grant terms, conditions, and assurances (CFDA Number 84.425U), and the interim final rule established by the U.S. Department of Education, 86 FR 21195.

ESSER III Grant Plan

Salary & Benefits Report
Public Act 096-0434 requires every school district in Illinois to itemize a salary compensation report for every employee holding an administrative certificate. The Administrative Salary Compensation Report as well as all Collective Bargaining Agreements are required to be posted on the district website.

Administrative and Teacher Salary FY24

Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA)

CBA 2019-2023 FINAL

Open Meetings Act (OMA)

The intent of the Illinois Open Meetings Act is to ensure that public business is conducted in public view by prohibiting secret deliberations and actions on matters that should be discussed in a public forum.

The Act reflects the balance between the rights of the public against the needs of government officials to be able to discuss sensitive matters candidly by excepting particular narrowly-construed circumstances under which a meeting may be held in closed session. The Office of the Attorney General understands that access to meetings helps to ensure the accountability of government to its citizens.

Illinois Attorney General’s Office Open Meeting Act

Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)

Illinois Attorney General’s Office Freedom of Information Act

“Illinois Freedom of Information Act is intended to open the government to all citizens by guaranteeing access to governmental records in whatever form they are maintained. The Act maintains a clear preference for access to public documents while still protecting legitimate governmental interests and the privacy rights of individual citizens. The Office of the Attorney General is committed to the free exchange of information and to that end publishes a Guide to the Freedom of Information Act intended to help Illinoisans navigate their way through the Act.

The principal mandate of the Act is found in subsection 3(a), which provides that “each public body shall make available to any person for inspection or copying all public records.” The remainder of the Act implements this requirement.”