New designations released by the Illinois State Board of Education this week show that Waukegan High School, along with all 15 District 60 elementary schools are rated in one of the State’s two highest designation tiers, with one school – Clark Elementary School – maintaining an Exemplary designation.
The designations are based upon 2021-2022 school year data, and were released as part of the Illinois Report Card, which provides a detailed look at each school’s progress on academics, student success, school culture and climate, and financial investments. This year’s report card shows Waukegan Public Schools students showed progress in standardized Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR) and SAT math and English assessments, though overall scores are behind pre-pandemic levels, as the District works to close gaps related to unfinished learning that students experienced during the pandemic.
As part of the Report Card, and for the first time since the onset of the pandemic, ISBE released updated school designations, which is a descriptor of how well each school in Illinois is meeting the needs of all students.
Exemplary
In 2019 Clark became the District's first-ever Exemplary-rated school, a destination that was repeated this year. The Exemplary designation, earned by Clark Elementary is the highest of four designations an Illinois school can earn. Just 10 percent of all schools in Illinois earn this designation, which recognizes a school whose overall performance is in the top 10 percent of schools statewide, has no underperforming subgroups, and a graduation rate of greater than 67 percent.
Commendable
This year’s designations also saw the highest ever Commendable-rated schools for District 60. Fifteen schools earned the commendable designation, including 14 elementary schools, as well as Waukegan High School. This is the first year that Carman-Buckner Elementary, and Waukegan High School have earned Commendable designation, which is the second highest designation a school in Illinois can earn. This is a significant accomplishment for Carman-Buckner, and an improvement from previous years, when the school was considered to be underperforming by ISBE for two decades.
Commendable designation recognizes a school that has no underperforming student sub-groups at or below the “all students” group of the lowest 5 percent of all schools, a graduation rate greater than 67 percent, and those whose student performance is not in the top 10 percent of schools statewide.
Targeted and Comprehensive
Four schools earned a “Targeted” designation, classified as ones which one or more subgroups are performing at or below the “all students” group of the lowest 5 percent of all schools. Additionally, one school fell in the Comprehensive category, which is characterized as the lowest-performing 5 percent of Title I schools in Illinois. Schools that receive Targeted and Comprehensive designations will receive additional support per ESSA guidelines. These targeted supports for students and staff may come in various forms, dependent upon a needs assessment and school improvement plans.
The District continues to invest in supplemental interventions to improve student performance as well as resources that are being used to support social emotional learning and mental health of students. Additionally, we are reimagining what the school day looks like in our middle schools and how we can provide more seat time for students in their core classes.
The 2022 Illinois Report Card also includes a new element this year called the Equity Journey Continuum. This tool helps each school district visualize the size of the equity gaps in the areas of student learning, learning conditions, and elevating educators. Waukegan Schools is rated as having “small” to “moderate” gaps.
A breakdown of designations, as well as District and individual school Report Card data, can be found at www.illinoisreportcard.com. A full list of the newest designations for Waukegan Schools is below:
Andrew Cooke Magnet Elementary School - Commendable
Carman-Buckner Elementary School - Commendable
Clearview Elementary School - Commendable
Glen Flora Elementary School - Commendable
Glenwood Elementary School - Commendable
Greenwood Elementary School - Commendable
H R McCall Elementary School - Commendable
Hyde Park Elementary School - Commendable
John S. Clark Elementary School - Exemplary
Little Fort Elementary School - Commendable
Lyon Magnet Elementary School -Commendable
North Elementary School - Commendable
Oakdale Elementary School - Commendable
Washington Elementary School - Commendable
Whittier Elementary School - Commendable
Edith Smith Middle School - Targeted
Jack Benny Middle School - Targeted
John Lewis Middle School - Targeted
Miguel Juarez Middle School - Comprehensive
Robert E. Abbott Middle School - Targeted
Waukegan High School - Commendable