Valley View Board Of Education Refunds, Prorates Student Fees

ROMEOVILLE, IL — After the ongoing coronavirus pandemic again caused changes to the normal school year, the Valley View School District Board of Education unanimously approved to put money back into the pockets of families this week by adjusting the fees that are normally charged to students.

District 365U officials announced the refunds on Wednesday after the board approved the student fee changes at its Monday meeting. The refunds are the result of attendance changes that were made because of hybrid and/or remote learning schedules that have been adhered to by students throughout the year, the district announced.

Among the changes made were applied to transportation costs, which were waived by the board for the first semester of the school year. Fees for the second semester will be applied at a 40 percent discount, the district announced, due to students attending in-person classes only two days a week. The two-student maximum applicable to paying the fee was also applied to the refund, district officials said.

Early childhood tuition fees were also adjusted and were prorated to 50 percent for the time when the district was using a fully remote learning model due to students only attending half the time they normally would, the district said. Beginning Feb. 1, full tuition was charged since students were attending Early Childhood classes full-time by that point.

Registration fees have also been adjusted and prorated by 75 percent, according to the district. The following fees were applied by school level: Early Childhood ($10), Kindergarten ($50), Elementary School ($15), Middle School ($25), High School ($50).

Co-curricular activities and sports fees were also waived by the district for activities that normally require a fee. Any fees paid by families have been credited back to student accounts, the district said. The same applies to parking fees, which were waived for the entire school year. Any fees that were paid will be credited back to student accounts.

“The finance committee and senior administration feel that this is the right thing to do for the families in our community,” Board of Education Vice President Victor Zack said in a news release. “Many families are facing financial challenges due to the pandemic and even small savings can go a long way. Adjusting the fee schedule is also fair since some extra services could not be fully provided during times of remote learning.”