Schools

OPRFHS Supt. Addresses Adequate Yearly Progress in Letter to Parents

Oak Park and River Forest High School fails to make Adequate Yearly Progress, looks to further assist students not meeting state standards.

In a recent letter to Oak Park and River Forest High School parents, District 200 Superintendent Dr. Steven Isoye wrote the district is "aggressively" pursuing" its options to assist students who are not meeting state standards. (See letter above)

For nine years, OPRFHS has failed to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) under No Child Left Behind, and, according to Federal Status, is considered Restructuring Implementation school as a means for corrective action, according to the letter.

In addition to offering public school choice and supplemental education services, restructuring options for OPRFHS could include reopening as a charter school, replacing all or most of the staff, entering into a contract with an entity, state takeover, or implementing any other major restructuring of the school's governance, Isoye wrote.

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To achieve AYP, the class as a whole and numerous subgroups identified by ethnicity, income level, disability, and English language proficiency must meet certain targets in Reading and in Math. The AYP target for 2012-2013 was set at 92.5 percent, a target OPRFHS did not meet.

"On the state testing that was administered this past April, Oak Park and River Forest High School students did not meet the proficiency target in reading and math," Isoye wrote. "In reading, this was the case for the Black student subgroup. In math, this was the case for the overall group, the Black student subgroup, and the economically disadvantaged subgroups."

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He added that in addition to the summer programs for students transitioning from grades 8-9 and 9-10 to help them meet the standards, OPRFHS offers a range tutoring and skill-building courses throughout the regular school year. 

"We are also working diligently to improve the curriculum for our students," he wrote.

Isoye encouraged parents to contact their child's guidance counselor for information about tutoring and other opportunities.

Schools that do not make AYP must offer students and parents the choice of attending a school that has made AYP, and provide the related transportation.

Because District 200 only has one school, Isoye wrote the district is working to determine whether any neighboring school districts qualify and are willing to accept OPRFHS students for Choice purposes, but that no arrangements have been made.

He wrote the school will contact parents if a school is willing to accept OPRFHS students, and that the priority for transfers will be given to the lowest achieving children from low-income families.

The OPRFHS report card and AYP report are available here.

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