>For Immediate Release
March 3, 2005
Illinois State Board of Education and
Northern Illinois University announce Illinois Honor Roll
List includes 288 schools in Illinois
Springfield, Ill. The Illinois State Board of Education
(ISBE) and Northern Illinois University (NIU) have announced
the Illinois Honor Roll Schools for the 2003-2004 school
year. These outstanding schools are recognized for their
accomplishments in making progress toward or maintaining
academic excellence. ISBE and NIU made the announcement
at Salazar Elementary Bilingual Center in Chicago, one
of the schools being recognized on the Illinois Honor
Roll.
The 2003-2004 Illinois Honor Roll roster includes elementary,
middle, and high schools, each of which made Adequate
Yearly Progress (AYP) as defined by federal No Child
Left Behind legislation. Further, all schools have
sustained both Adequate Yearly Progress and qualifying
test scores over at least three years. A number of districts
have multiple schools named to the Honor Roll, including:
Chicago Public Schools District 299, 52 schools; Kankakee
District 111, six schools; Springfield District 186, six
schools; Indian Prairie District in Naperville, four schools;
Kankakee District #111, six schools; Decatur District
#61, six schools; District #181 in Hinsdale and Clarendon
Hills, seven schools; and Moline District #40, six schools.
"We salute these schools and their teachers, parents
and communities for working together to create excellent
learning experiences with great outcomes," said State
Superintendent Randy Dunn. "They have worked hard
and made great things happen for students. We salute their
achievements and encourage them and all Illinois schools
to build on these successes for the future."
Helping the state identify and publicize examples of
exemplary school achievement is a hallmark of NIU’s
P-20 (pre-school through graduate school) initiatives.
NIU Outreach worked with the State Board to establish
criteria, identify winners of the awards, and administer
the Illinois Honor Roll.
“We believe that these schools deserve applause
for their accomplishments,” said John Peters, President
of Northern Illinois University. “Given the urgent
need for successful examples, we should also be studying
these schools and disseminating examples of what works,”
added Peters.
ISBE and NIU partnered to develop the program to honor
schools in three categories:
Academic Excellence Awards - schools where nearly all
students consistently meet or exceed standards for at
least three years. Criteria require that 90 percent of
elementary students and 80 percent of high school students
meet or exceed standards.
Spotlight Schools - high poverty-high performing schools
that achieve despite the odds. Criteria include at least
50 percent low income students, 60 percent of students
meet or exceed standards on state tests.
Academic Improvement Awards - schools that make significant
gains in performance over three years and those that manage
to change direction from failure to success. Criteria
include an upward trend in test results, 7.5 points gain
in scores above last year or 15 percent over two years
OR release from the Academic Early Warning List.
A complete listing of the 2003-2004 Illinois Honor Roll
Schools can be found at http://www.isbe.net/news/pdf/academic_excellence_schools.pdf.
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