Macomb District 185 Board of Education members would like to hear from the public before deciding whether to continue publishing Flight Path.
The board hired St. Louis-based Journey12 in June 2024 to produce the quarterly magazine. The two-year contract paid the firm $90,000 per year. It was funded with title grants and local advertising.
The goal was to share stories of students, teachers, staff, and alumni with the community. Superintendent Patrick Twomey believes the community loves the magazine and said the target audience is retirees, who he said pay a significant amount of taxes to the school district.
“Now, they’ve got something in their hands where they’re reading the inspiring stories that are going on around the district. I believe that the retirees of the community really enjoy the magazine,” Twomey said.
But during the school board’s July 20 meeting, several members raised concerns about the project. They want to hear from residents before their Aug. 17 meeting as they decide whether to renew the contract.
The magazine is supposed to be mailed to all 8,900 households in the school district. But the board’s Justice Keene said some people are not receiving it. He also said the magazine contains “constant misspellings,” and he doesn’t like the idea of spending money on an out-of-state company.
Board member Kristin Terry said she’s talked to people who throw out the magazine without looking at it. She’s also heard from others, especially in rural areas, who have not received it.
But Vice President Emily Sutton said the copies she puts in her law office are well-received. She asked fellow board members what alternative they would support if the goal is to reach out to the community.
Board President Kishor Kapale said the company has not delivered on everything promised, such as a mentorship program. He wondered if the district could turn to a local option for producing a magazine.
The board’s Nate McGraw also wondered if the district could find a local business to create a magazine. In addition, he wondered if students were interested in helping with it.
The board will be asked to make a decision next month. Twomey said the district has several renewal options:
- Pay $92,000 for a magazine and podcast
- Pay $85,000 for a magazine only
- Pay $68,000 for fall, winter, and spring issues (no summer issue)
- Pay $48,000 for one issue each semester during the school year
The board also has the option of not renewing the contract.
“Are there better ones out there? There may be. I’m certainly not married to Journey12,” Twomey said. “At the end of the day, it’s really a board decision on how they want to deliver messages or not deliver messages to the community,”
After the meeting, reporters asked Twomey if the district considered streaming or recording board meetings, something already done with Macomb city council and park board meetings.
“We’re not that big of a town. I think if people were really interested, they’d come here and sit and hear what’s happening,” he said. “Personally, I don’t think there’s a huge interest of what gets talked about at the school board meetings.”
Twomey said the district tried recording meetings in-house in the past but found it too labor intensive.
Tri States Public Radio produced this story. TSPR relies on financial support from our readers and listeners in order to provide coverage of the issues that matter to west central Illinois, southeast Iowa, and northeast Missouri. As someone who values the content created by TSPR's news department, please consider making a financial contribution.
