CHSD 218 board approves eliminating class rank for incoming students

Community High School District 218’s Board of Education voted unanimously March 20, 2025, to eliminate class rank for students entering high school next year, a change district officials said is intended to encourage students to take more rigorous courses and align the district with prevailing college-admissions practices.

Board members approved the policy during the regular meeting in Oak Lawn after a staff presentation and discussion about the effects of ranking on course selection and student behavior. The vote was recorded as Aye from Miss Roe, Mr. Raddis, Miss Hunt, Miss Contello, Miss Collier and Mr. Kozowski.

District staff told the board the change is meant to reduce incentives for students to select less-challenging courses to preserve a higher rank and to promote enrollment in Advanced Placement and dual-credit courses aligned with Moraine Valley Community College. The staff presenter said the proposal would still recognize high academic achievement with honor distinctions: students who “score above a 4 and above” would qualify for summa cum laude under the new scheme.

Supporters at the meeting said universities increasingly rely on unweighted GPAs and holistic review rather than class rank. The presenter also told the board that if parents request a student’s numeric class rank, the district can still supply it, and that the new policy will take effect for the incoming cohort (described in the meeting as “eighth graders coming in next year”), not current upperclassmen.

Board members asked whether eliminating rank would remove traditional recognitions. The presenter said top-percentile recognition (for example, top 10%) and other honors would continue in some form and that the policy is intended to reduce grade inflation and encourage students to attempt more rigorous coursework without concern for how rank alone might affect placement.

Board members discussed background factors that prompted the change, including student-driven tactics to preserve rank and disparities created by differing district weighting systems. The presenter noted examples from other districts and said the change follows those trends.

The board did not identify any specific statutory constraint tied to this policy change during the discussion. The policy applies to the freshman class entering next school year; details about how the district will display honors on diplomas or transcripts were not specified during the meeting.

The board approved the elimination of class rank by voice/roll-call vote; no amendments to the motion were recorded.

The board adjourned following several additional routine items on the agenda.