Conrady Junior High Named 'National Distinguished School'

—via North Palos District 117 Facebook page

The Illinois State Board of Education announced Tuesday that Conrady Junior High School will be recognized as a National Distinguished School during ceremonies in Chicago and Salt Lake City, Utah.

Conrady is one of two schools in the state with a high (56) percentage of children in poverty being honored for its academic gains. The junior high school will be honored Tuesday during the No Child Left Behind conference at the Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Thursday during the National Title I conference in Utah.

Highland Elementary School in Skokie is the other school earning recognition.

State Board of Education Chairman James Meeks praised the schools for their accomplishments. “These schools demonstrate that with teamwork, innovation, clear academic goals and a support system in place for all children’s unique needs, outstanding results are possible for our neediest students.”

The National Title I Association, established to help improve and implement programs under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Act (ESEA), recognizes up to two schools per state as National Title I Distinguished Schools.

Title I is the largest federally funded pre-college education program, providing funding to school districts that serve students from low-income families. Conrady received the award based on “High Achievement” for exceeding its Adequate Yearly Progress for two or more years.

Results were based on scores of the state previous test - the Illinois Standards Achievement Test - which measured the achievement of third- through eighth-graders in reading and math, and measured achievement in science among fourth- through seventh-graders.

ISAT scores rose from 71.4 percent of students meeting or exceeding standards in 2011 to 74.9 percent meeting and exceeding in 2013. Results for 2014 were not used as Illinois participated in piloting the PARCC assessments.

Illinois is replacing the ISAT with the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) exams this school year.

Conrady Principal Andy Anderson credits the hard work and dedication of the staff, many of whom put in extra hours before and after school to work with students and revise curriculum.

“I’m grateful for this moment of recognition for our teachers because they certainly are a major factor behind this award,” he said. “I’m equally proud of the students and their parents who have partnered with our staff in ensuring student success.”

Anderson said that school’s success isn’t by coincidence.

“We operate under the District’s ’10 Core Values and the Quality Review Process,;’ which establishes annual academic goals and includes the regular review of student performance data to identify appropriate interventions for students who are not meeting standards as well as what to do for students who have mastered standards.

“We have found that ‘focus’ on student academic goals is essential when making daily decisions,” Anderson said. “We strive each day to protect instruction time, build in-house department-wide professional development around identified needs, and strategically use limited financial resources to support intervention programs and professional development that keeps staff up to date with effective best practices.”