Illinois School Report Cards Are In: See How Plainfield D202 Did

PLAINFIELD, IL — "Relatively well" is how Plainfield Community School District 202 officials assessed the results of their Illinois Report Card, released Oct. 27.

The Illinois State Board of Education's report card analyzes public school districts across the state, providing information about academic performance, teachers, students, administrators and school environment.

"All in all, our students and staff did a remarkable job of advancing teaching and learning, pulling against the dual anchors of remote learning and blended learning," Paula Sereleas, District 202 assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, said in a statement.

She continued to say the COVID-19 era "truly was an amazing time, but that is now in the past. And like most school districts, District 202 is done with the past. We are focusing only on the future. We are proud of our results compared to state averages, but we recognize that there is so much more to do this year and going forward."

The Illinois Report Card rated five District 202 schools as "exemplary" and 24 as "commendable." No district schools received the lowest designation. The only schools not given a summative designation were Plainfield Academy and Bonnie McBeth Early Learning Center.

At a glance

The state report card offers a snapshot of District 202's performance including:

• Graduation rate: 94 percent. State average: 87.3 percent
• Student mobility (Percentage of students who experienced at least one transfer in or out of the school between the first school day of October and the last school day of the year, not including graduates): 6 percent. State average: 7.6 percent
• Chronic absenteeism: 27 percent. State average: 29.8 percent
• Funding: Spending per student: $11,993, up 2.97 percent from the previous year
• Teacher retention: 90 percent. State average: 87.6 percent
• Student-to-teacher ratio:
  • Elementary school: 18:1. State average: 17:1
  • High school: 21:1. State average: 18:1

"Again, there is always room for improvement," Sereleas said. "This new data really helps us set a new, meaningful baseline going forward. It is critical to remember that we are not comparing ourselves to other districts, most of which have more or less resources, different local priorities, etc. We are proud of our success and look forward to continued growth for our students and staff, both in and outside our classrooms."

The full report card for District 202 can be found on ISBE's website.