ESSA Status Letter

October 31, 2018

Topic: Unassigned

Each year on October 31, the Illinois State Board of Education issues report cards for every school in the state. School and district demographic data, achievement data, financial data, and more, are reported publicly through the report cards.  This year’s report card is the first using the new Illinois school quality framework as required under the Federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The report card captures a point in time for our school and shows how well we are progressing on a wide range of educational goals and student growth. For example, as we examine our school’s data (“All Students”) we see that our students met proficiency levels in both English Language Arts (ELA) and Math. Digging deeper, our data also shows that the majority of students are demonstrating strong growth in ELA. Additionally, what’s very impressive is that students who are former English language learners are meeting targets identified by the state in ELA. Indeed, items to celebrate

New this year are four designations defined by the state: Exemplary, Commendable, Under Performing, and Lowest Performing. Each school in Illinois received a designation based on the performance of the whole school, and smaller groups within the student population, on a variety of metrics, like English/Language Arts proficiency, Math proficiency, academic growth, and chronic absenteeism.

Our school’s designation is under performing, which means we have specific groups of students who require additional support to maximize their growth and achievement. As part of the new accountability system that launched this year, we will receive targeted aid to support these learners in accelerating their academic growth. We welcome this opportunity to access funding, tools, and learning partners to build on the talent of our incredible teachers and staff. We look forward to including parents, families, and community partners in the work ahead.

 

The Illinois State Board of Education has been very clear that our designation is not meant to be a judgment, and represents one moment in time. Successfully supporting all students in academic and social emotional growth and achievement begins with taking a comprehensive look at where we are, so we can chart the path to where we want to go.  

The strength of a school community does not lay in a test score nor is it defined by a designation on an annual report card.  The strength of a school community is in the enthusiasm for learning we see in our students, it is in building upon the daily successes our students experience in our classrooms.  It is in the support of parents, it is in the hard work and dedication of faculty and staff.

In the coming weeks our school community will analyze and understand all of the data used to arrive at our school’s designation working to implement the strongest plan for the ongoing improvement, growth, and achievement of all students.

Our school community is dedicated to serving all learners and preparing them for a bright future. We strive to continually strengthen our programming and services to provide the best education possible to our students.

To complement our school’s Illinois Report Card, CCSD21 has launched a new District Data Dashboard, where you can view more information about our schools and their successes.  To access the Data Dashboard, please visit www.ccsd21.org/datadashboard.  To access the Illinois Report Card, please visit www.illinoisreportcard.com.

 

We value our partnership in educating your children and look forward to the journey ahead.