Proposal would keep U-46 fees flat next year

Members of the Elgin Area School District U-46 board of education heard a proposal Monday to keep instructional fees flat next year for students in elementary school and make superficial changes to the fee structure in the middle and high schools.

Jeff King, chief operations officer, presented the recommendations to the school board during its Monday night meeting.

At the middle and high school level, the fee looks higher but won’t cost families more.

“The fee did go up by $10, but we took the lock fee off,” King said. “We rolled the lock fee into one general fee, so they’re not having to write multiple checks.”

King said parents had complained in past years about giving money separately to pay to lock student lockers.

The regular instructional fee for seventh- and eighth-graders is set to rise to $162 next year with $10 off for early payment and $10 extra for late payment. Students of the same age in a school within a school or gifted program will have to pay $312, according to the fee list.

In high school, the costs will rise to $240 for the standard instructional fee and $390 for high school academy students.

Fees for athletic participation, driver’s education and parking permits are all set to stay the same for the 2013-14 academic year. The activity fee will also remain at $40 for high school students.

Families can pay the early registration fees before July 31 but must make payments during the month of August to avoid the $10 late fee.

School board members heard the student fee proposals during a work session Monday. They will give official approval at the next board meeting, scheduled for Feb. 4.