Huntley 158 administration moves contracts forward, addresses questions about CareSolace referrals and program data

District administrators briefed the board on a package of learning‑innovation contracts and multiyear renewals and answered board questions about scope, cost and program evaluation.

The administration described a new districtwide art‑therapy proposal intended to support social‑emotional learning in structured special‑education classrooms and a recommended one‑year renewal with CareSolace, a referral partner the district would use to help families locate mental‑health services. Administrators said CareSolace can provide impact reports and utilization data — for example, the number of referrals that result in families entering care — and that the district plans a warm handoff process and an implementation plan to measure impact.

Dr. Gill (district administration) told the committee, “We do have the ability to get that data, and we do look at that. It’s an impact report they provide to us,” and said the district will seek benchmarks for referral impact as part of next year’s implementation.

Other highlighted contracts included $15,300 for Cognitive Connections to provide executive‑functioning professional learning funded through Title II, Hatching Results to support high‑school counseling and LETRS training for special‑education teachers through the SLD project. Administrators also described multiyear renewals for CommonLit, Delta Math, Gradecam, IXL, MusicPlayOnline and Renaissance Star, and said they are removing underused tools (for example, Lexia) to reduce costs.

Board members pressed for clarity on measurable outcomes, data sharing and whether county resources (for example, McHenry County health services) could replace outside contracts. Administrators said the district is exploring local resource inventories but is not yet ready to replace CareSolace, noting the partner reduces families’ navigation burden in time‑sensitive situations.

After discussion the committee agreed to move the highlighted annual and multiyear contracts to the May 21 consent agenda for board approval and asked administration to share cadence and metrics for impact reporting prior to final approval.