For Immediate Release
July 24, 2006
Illinois State Board of Education and Northern Illinois
University announce Illinois Honor Roll
List includes 683 schools, up from 288
Springfield, Ill. – The Illinois State Board of
Education (ISBE) and Northern Illinois University (NIU)
have announced the Illinois Honor Roll Schools for the
2004-2005 school year. These outstanding schools are recognized
for their accomplishments in making progress toward or
maintaining academic excellence.
The 2004-2005 Illinois Honor Roll roster includes elementary,
middle, and high schools. More than 90% of Illinois Honor
Roll schools made Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP), as defined
by the No Child Left Behind legislation, each in unique
circumstances, ensuring that all students increased their
academic knowledge and skills. Further, all schools have
sustained qualifying test scores for at least three years.
There are 683 Illinois schools making the roster, compared
to 288 for 2003-2004. Of those schools, 40 made the roster
two times.
A number of districts have multiple schools
named to the Honor Roll, including: Chicago Public Schools
District
299, 123 schools; Cicero District 99, 10 schools; Joliet
Public School District 86, nine schools; Rockford School
District 205, eight schools; Collinsville District 10,
six schools; Cook County School District 130, eight schools;
and Elgin U-46, eight schools.
“Making the Illinois Honor Roll is a symbol of academic
achievement that requires teachers, parents and communities
to work together to create an excellent learning experience
for all Illinois students,” said State Superintendent
Randy Dunn. “We salute their achievements and encourage
them and all Illinois schools to build on these successes
for the future. And with more than twice the number of
schools on this year’s list, this shows the progress
we’re making in improving Illinois education.”
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.
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.
A complete listing of the 2004-2005 Illinois
Honor Roll Schools can be found at http://www.ilhonorroll.niu.edu/ilhonorroll/index.asp.
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