Each December we take a moment to remember our former board member and friend Todd Hildebrand. Todd passed away suddenly five years ago today, while in his second term as a BESD#53 School Board member. He also served the township and his parish.
Below is his obituary from 2013. Todd's service to our district and love for our kids will always be remembered.
Todd...
WINTER WEATHER/SCHOOL CANCELING PROCEDURES AND INFORMATION:
As we approach winter and inclement weather, we want to notify you on how school closings work.
When do we close? In my six years as superintendent, we have avoided closing in the middle of the day, and we have avoided late starts. With so many working parents, we believe that either we have a full day of sc...
This year we will be hosting our open houses during the first week of school, taking place on August 20th and 21st. We have staggered the start times to accommodate those with students in multiple buildings.
The schedule will be as follows:
Monday, August 20thTuesday, August 21stShabbona Elementary will begin at 5:30pm - 7:00pm.Noel LeVasseur Elementary will begin ...
Bourbonnais Upper Grade Center 8th grade promotion will take place on Wednesday, May 30, 2018 at 7 p.m. This event will once again be held on the campus of Olivet Nazarene University in Centennial Chapel. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Seating is general admission, no tickets required. Flowers and balloons are not allowed inside the Chapel. A photography area will be...
After eleven years as principal of Liberty Intermediate School, Ms. Bicknell is excited about taking on a new challenge. On July 1st she will become principal of Noel LeVasseur School in Bourbonnais. Ms. Bicknell started her educational career as a first grade teacher. This experience combined with her leadership experience at Liberty make her the perfect fit for th...
Parents of 7th Graders,
Please see the attached file for information on when your 7th grader is turning in their Chromebook. Thank you!
Parents of 8th Graders,Please see the attached file for information on how to purchase or turn in your 8th grade student's Chromebook. Thank you!
Parents of 6th Graders,Please see the attached file for information on when your 6th grader is turning in their Chromebook. Thank you!
Jon Hodge will be retiring as Shabbona Principal at the end of June. He has spent 33 years in education, teaching in Herscher before joining BESD#53. His career here includes 2 years as Assistant Principal of Bourbonnais Upper Grade Center followed by 11 years as Upper Grade Center Principal. The last 6 years he has been the leader of Shabbona School. Jon and his fa...
BESD#53 would like to welcome Taiyuan Banks-Tillmon and Bret Pignatiello to the district!!
Ms. Tillmon has worked in Matteson and Joliet Schools and comes to us from West Harvey Dixmoor School District 147 where she has been a principal for seven years. She is a resident of Matteson, Illinois and is currently finishing her doctorate from NorthCentral University. Sh...
BESD53 student Abbie Owenby was the most recent winner of the IKAN Regional Office of Education Billboard Contest. Abbie’s billboard is creatively done and ties in perfectly with IKAN's April Alcohol Awareness Month Life Education Center activities. Her drawing will be displayed in five locations around the county.
All three district teams advanced from the regional to the state finals in Destination Imagination (www.illinoisdi.org). The LeVasseur 3rd/4th grade team won second place in the state and qualified for the world finals of Destination Imagination! Watch this video of the team:
Collecting the Trophy!
http://www.daily-journal.com/n...Our thoughts and prayers go to Marissa's family, and all the lives she touched in her 18 years. Marissa attended BUGC from 2012-2014 and left a positive legacy with the staff, teachers, and fellow students.
BUGC/BC Wrestling: Here is the fifth best wrestling team in the State of Illinois in 2018! BUGC and Bradley Central share one team. Congratulations to the following wrestlers Lymon Jackson BC (2nd Place), Ethan Spacht BUGC (1st place), Aidan Yonke BUGC (5th place), Logan Conroy BUGC, and Anthony Lawryn BC. Thank you to our coaches Mr. Wolford, Mr. Richardson and Mr. La...
BUGC and Liberty will be offering after-school activities on Tuesdays and Thursdays which include painting, cooking classes, photography classes, video editing classes, code breaking (mathematics meets forensics) and Fitness. Limit is 10 students per class (Painting is 20). Students can be picked up at 4pm or we will provide an activity bus home. Students are expect...
Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and victims and educators at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School where 17 lost their lives yesterday.
Unfortunately tragedy can strike anywhere in this country, but school shootings tend to be in suburban areas similar to Bourbonnais. We want to inform our community of the proactive layers of protection we have in plac...
Dr. Duggan, Ms. Bicknell, Mr. Elroy, and Mrs. Harder present to educators from across the state on Standards Based Reporting.
Daily Journal interview with Dr. Hollowell.http://www.daily-journal.com/n...
Wallet Hub lists Bourbonnais 34th Best Place to Raise a Family
December 20, 2017
Dear BESD#53 Families:
BESD#53 is committed to protecting the health and well-being of our students, faculty and staff. Part of ensuring a healthy learning environment is making sure our water sources are clean and safe for our district. In January 2017, Public Act 099-0922 was passed, requiring that by December 2017, Illinois school districts co...
BBCHS seniors and former BUGC volleyball standouts Autumn Clarke and Madi Comer sign letters of intent to continue their academic and volleyball careers at Olivet Nazarene University!
Each December we take a moment to remember our former board member Todd Hildebrand. Todd passed away suddenly four years ago, while in his second term as a BESD#53 School Board member. He also served the township and his parish. Below is his obituary from 2013. Todd's service to our district will always be remembered. Todd A. Hildebrand, 46, of Bourbonnais, passed ...
Destiny students at LeVasseur participated in the annual Destiny Concert today.
Tuesday, November 28th from 6-8 p.m. the Bourbonnais Public Library will be hosting an Open Mic Night for 5th-8th grade students. Refreshments and prizes are included.
Dr. Hollowell, Dr.Duggan, Roger Hale, and Kari Moulton presented 1:1 Implementation Lessons Learned Saturday at the Illinois School Board Conference. The session was attended by 78 school board members and administrators from throughout the state.
Today is school board appreciation day in Illinois! A special thanks to President Rob Rodewald, Vice President John Hall, Secretary Jayne Raef, Rich McBarnes, Nicole McCarty, Mike Jurka, and Jamie Freedlund for their donation of time and service to the district, our students, and the community!
Nathan Bakke (ONU Track), Ryan Jemar (University of Illinois-Springfield Baseball) and Tyler Jasmin (KCC Baseball) all used the NCAA early signing period issue their letter of intent to continue their education and athletic careers in college! Congrats to them, their families, and all the BESD#53 teachers and coaches who helped them along the way!
Former BUGC Tiger Mikayla Brandon signs with University of Cincinnati Bearcats! 🏀🏀🏀🐯. Brandon played volleyball and basketball at BUGC in 2012-2014. Brandon is the daughter of James Brandon and BESD#53 school nurse Natalie Brandon.
BBCHS Boys' Soccer Team won the Super-Sectional on Halloween night in Normal! The game was tied after 2 overtimes and BBCHS prevailed in penalty kicks 4-1. The Boilers (made up of many former BUGC students) will compete in the State Semi-Finals Friday in Hoffman Estates, with either the State Championship or a Third Place Game looming on Saturday!
Tuesday, November 28th from 6-8 p.m. the Bourbonnais Public Library will be hosting an Open Mic Night for 5th-8th grade students. Refreshments and prizes are included.
Bourbonnais Elementary is looking to build our pool of substitute teachers. Subs serve a vital role in BESD#53, filling in for teachers who are ill, or subbing while teachers attend professional development classes. Qualifications: Bachelor's Degree (in any field).Pay: $85-100 per day.BONUS: $100 signing bonus after you complete first day subbing in BESD#53!PROCESS: S...
Click the link for safety tips for Halloween from safekids.orgHalloween Safety Tips
Clink on the link below for the NWEA Blog about MAP Growth:Parents and MAP Growth - 7 things to know!
Board President Rob Rodewald, Board Member Jamie Freedlund, Dr. Hollowell, Dr. Duggan, Mr. Crawford, Ms. Padera, and Mrs. Longtin participated in the first annual State of Kankakee County Breakfast this morning at the Knights of Columbus. Presentations were made by several county organizations and economic and planning teams.
The 8th grade students on team black did "How To" presentations, where they taught their peers a particular skill or talent. Some of the presentations included how to ride a dirt bike, fly a drone, spin a basketball on a pencil, jump 50 times on a pogo stick without using your hands, tie your shoes the quickest, play guitar, do special effects makeup, speed stack cups...
Student Support Services Director Bernadette Henriott, teachers Chad McDaniel and Sydney Couch, and BESD parent Becky Evans were four of a large group of local runners to compete and finish the Chicago Marathon today!
As we roll out our new website and new mobile app, I wanted to inform our families there is also a SKYWARD app that will allow you Family Access for your mobile device. Search for Skyward Mobile Access at the app store.
Over the weekend, BESD53 rolled out a new website design, mobile app, and calling system. The new system, created with Apptegy, replaces the old school website and mobile app from SchoolWires, and also the Robocall system from SchoolMessenger.The new Apptegy system allows the district to send updates via phone calls, SMS text messages, push notifications to the mobile ...