State Report Card 2023: Find Out How Arlington Heights Schools Fared

ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, IL — Is your school district making the grade? Annually, the Illinois State Board of Education releases a report that summarizes how the state, districts and individual schools are doing in a variety of areas.

On Monday, ISBE updates the report for schools and districts across the state. Academic performance, school environment, along with information about educators and students are included in the report.

"The Report Card offers a complete picture of student and school performance in order to inform and empower families and communities as they support their local schools," ISBE said on its website regarding Monday's release.

In Arlington Heights, Arlington Heights School District 25 and Township High School District 214 were graded. Here's a glance of how each fared:

Arlington Heights School District 25

• No. of elementary schools — 9 (South Middle, Thomas Middle, Dryden Elementary, Greenbrier Elementary, Ivy Hill Elementary, Olive-Mary Stitt, Patton Elementary, Westgate Elementary, Windsor Elementary)
• 4 received an exemplary designation (highest rating) — Greenbrier, Ivy Hill, Patton, Windsor
• 5 received a commendable designation (second-highest rating) — South, Middle, Dryden, Olive-Mary Stitt, Westgate
• 55 percent of students demonstrated proficiency in English Language Arts, compared to 35 percent in the state
• 47 percent of students demonstrated proficiency in Math, compared to 27 percent in the state
• 74 percent of students demonstrated proficiency in Science, compared to 51 percent in the state
• 99 percent participation rate with testing
• 93 percent teacher retention rate in district
• $16,852 spending per student, up 8.70 percent compared to 2022

"Arlington Heights School District prioritizes serving all students to the best of our ability. These data show how we allocate resources for the sake of serving students," the district said in a statement on the ISBE website. "Overall, the amount of spending varies by school due to a lot of factors. For example, our smaller schools do not benefit from the same economies of scale as our larger schools and therefore have somewhat higher per-pupil expenditures. Also, different schools have different needs based on the students that they serve. The cost of staff in each building is dependent on their level of education and number of years in education, and the amount of staff in the building is dependent upon student service needs. The District also receives federal funding that is dedicated for specific programs such as special education or bilingual programs. Schools that host districtwide instructional special education programs or that have larger bilingual student populations receive the funding dedicated to support those programs."

Township High School District 214

• No. of schools — 6 (Buffalo Grove High, Elk Grove High, John Hersey High, Prospect High, Rolling Meadows, Wheeling)
• 2 received an exemplary designation (highest rating) — John Hersey, Prospect
• 4 received a commendable designation (second-highest rating) — Buffalo Grove, Elk Grove, Rolling Meadows, Wheeling
• 92 percent graduation rate compared to 88 percent in state
• 28 percent chronic absenteeism, compared to 28 percent in state
• 96 percent teacher retention rate in district, compared to 90 percent in state
• $22,479 spending per student, up 0.67 percent compared to 2022