30-06-2025
Waukegan school board mulling district survey results; ‘We are right in the middle'
With issuance of the annual Illinois State School Board of Education (ISBE) report card more than four months away, the Waukegan Community Unit School District community is getting an idea of its performance from students, teachers and parents.
Parents, students and teachers all participated in the nationwide 5Essentials Survey of school wellness, judging five areas of school performance — ambitious instruction, collaborative teachers, effective leaders, involved families and a supportive environment.
Taken by school districts in 22 states evaluating more than 6,000 schools, the 5Essentials Survey is required of all Illinois schools by the ISBE. District 60 Board of Education member Carolina Fabian said the results are incorporated into the ISBE's annual school report card.
Members of the District 60 Board of Education learned the results of the 5Essentials Survey during a regularly scheduled meeting on June 24 at the Education Service Center in downtown Waukegan, learning how administrators will utilize the information.
Amanda Patti, the associate superintendent of strategy and accountability, said in an email after the meeting that the survey results are a guide on what needs to be done and what successes can be utilized to better educate city youths.
'Increasing our ratings on post-secondary preparation, safety outside of the school, and having more parents complete the survey are areas we will focus on as we work with school leaders this year,' Patti said.
Voting on the five areas of evaluation, the district's schools are judged on the improvement or decline in their past year. Eric Christenson, director of student support services, said schools are rated 'well organized,' 'organized,' 'moderately organized,' 'partially organized' or 'not yet organized.'
'Waukegan's overall district status is 'moderately organized,'' Christenson said. 'We are right in the middle, about what we were last year. The (middle) category is from 40 to 60, and you see they're all in there and they're all creeping up towards the strong?'
Voting is done by students — fourth graders through high school — teachers and parents. Christenson said nearly all students participated, while teacher voting ranged from 60% at McCall Elementary School to 98.3% at Carman-Buckner Elementary School.
Fabian said she is concerned with the overall level of teacher participation at 70%. She wants to see an effort made by the administration to make sure teachers vote. Unless they are absent, there are ample opportunities.
'What I really was noticing is why we don't have the teacher's participation at a higher rate when we have frequent staff meetings when all the teachers are together,' Fabian said. 'Why isn't there time being set aside. Teachers are there.'
Christenson said the goal of parent participation is 20%. All schools except Waukegan High School, with 6%, achieved the standard. Participation drops significantly in high school. Patti said it is a concern that will be addressed.
Learning perception exists that there is insufficient effort to prepare students for college was the lowest score on the entire survey. Board President Michael Rodriguez wanted to know the basis of the evaluation. Christenson said it is a composite score from students, teachers and parents.
'They ask teachers if your students will be successful in college,' Christenson said. 'They ask students if they are being prepared for post-secondary (education). They ask parents if you think your children are being prepared for post-secondary.'
Board member Christine Lensing said she is glad trust between parents and teachers, and between students and teachers has increased, but she is displeased with the results within some segments of the community. It remains a problem.
Lensing said that in the elementary schools, a large amount of time the first two weeks of school is devoted to relationship building as a 'community' is formed. Tough middle and high school students have multiple teachers and the same is true for instructors, relationship building must be emphasized.
'You really need to make sure you're building a community in your class even though you have six or seven of them throughout the day,' Lensing said. 'These kids need to come to you for a variety of reasons. You never know where these kids are going to find inspiration to propel them in life.'
When teachers create 'communities within our classrooms, within our buildings,' Lensing said areas like preparation for post-secondary education and trust will improve.
