A number of schools from Chicago Heights School District 170 have earned recognition as "Commendable Schools" from the Illinois State Board of Education.
Garfield, Grant, Greenbriar, Jefferson, Kennedy, and Washington-McKinley Schools garnered the commendations by meeting stringent accountability requirements as set forth by the state board.
While Lincoln-Gavin School did not receive a commendable designation due to the limited number of students tested, the school's assessment data disclosed that students achieving the "meets or exceeds" level on the PARCC test exceeded the state guideline for Commendable School recognition.
"We are extremely proud of the efforts put forth by the students, teachers, staff, and administration of the schools recognized as commendable by the state," said CHSD Superintendent Tom Amadio.
"The recognition is a reward for the indefatigable efforts put forth by all the members of the school dynamic that promote academic excellence and extends beyond the walls of the school buildings and filters down into our community."
The ISBE's Summative Designations has awarded the Commendable School status based on several criteria including having no student subgroup performing at or below the level of the "all students" group in the lowest five percent of Title I schools and whose performance falls below the top ten percent of schools statewide.
The Summative Designations are part of the ISBE's commitment to the U. S. Department of Education's Every Student Succeeds Act. Among the factors contributing to the designations were data from the 2017 standardized testing PARCC and English language proficiency protocols.
The ISBE accountability standards used to measure school quality are predicated upon both Academic Indicators (75%) and School Quality/Student Success Indicators (25%). The designations are based on many factors including student readiness based on grade level expectations.
Academic Indicators include PARCC and DLM-AA English/Language Arts and Math achievement, Growth: Linear Regression, and English Learner Proficiency on the ACCESS test. School Quality/Student Success Indicators include Chronic Absenteeism and the school's Climate Survey.
"We are thrilled by the commendable recognition that our schools have received, but we realize that any progress made must be both maintained and improved upon," said Mary Kay Entsminger, CHSD170's Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction.
"The hard work that our students, teachers, staff, and administrators have effected in earning the Commendable Schools recognition is a first step towards achieving our district's ultimate goal of providing our students with learning environments that afford a superb and well-rounded education that will prepare them for the educational, technical, and vocational world of tomorrow."