Indian Prairie School District 204 administrators reviewed the district's student behavior data and recommended steps to deepen restorative practices and earlier, tiered interventions during a Sept. 8 board presentation.

Presenters said most students report feeling safe in class (92 percent) and that districtwide suspension rates remain low: at all grade spans a very large majority of students had no state-reportable in-school or out-of-school suspension during the 2024-25 school year. Staff reported a small decline in some indicators that measure shared expectations and academic press and recommended pairing belonging-building efforts with consistent academic challenge.

Why it matters: the district tied behavior objectives directly to Board Policy 7-190 (Student Behavior) and 7-200 (suspension review). Staff said the district's approach focuses largely on prevention and supports, with restorative practices positioned as an 80 percent proactive cultural investment (relationship building, SEL and teacher supports) and a 20 percent set of processes for repairing harm when it occurs.

Measurement and trends: the district aligned four restorative-practices (RP) goals to the state-validated 5 Essentials survey indicators: belonging/relationships, voice/agency, accountability/repair and shared expectations/culture. Staff reported two years of 5 Essentials data showing gains in voice/agency and accountability/repair, small dips in belonging, and a larger dip in shared expectations and academic press. Classroom safety remains high per the survey, but only 68 percent of students reported feeling safe in bathrooms, which staff described as an area for targeted work.

Interventions and pilot tools: staff described steps already enacted—including digital hall pass pilots to track student movement—and said buildings are expanding Tier 2 interventions and integrating restorative practices into MTSS. The district also plans to use Securely Aware (a continuous-monitoring tool for online activity) more broadly to identify safety concerns, including potential threats and self-harm indicators.

Equity and recidivism: staff said recidivism among suspended students is under one-third at each level, slightly lower than the prior year. Administrators acknowledged disparities in outcomes remain a focus and said better integration of MTSS, improved tracking of proactive interventions and more consistent restorative practices will help reduce disparities over time.

Board and student input: a student advisory board member asked about inconsistent implementation of rules at teacher vs. administrative levels and suggested adding questions to the 5 Essentials about academic integrity and artificial intelligence. Staff confirmed the 5 Essentials contains some questions about authenticity of student work but not specific AI questions; they said the district can submit suggested survey edits to the state.

Recommendations and next steps: staff proposed continuing RP professional learning, tracking proactive interventions across schools, integrating early-warning indicators into MTSS so supports start earlier in a student's trajectory, expanding Tier 2 interventions tailored to need and improving tracking of cohorts over time to measure long-term impact.

Quotes: Dr. Nader Najjar (presenter): "Restorative practices are a way of doing school that emphasizes relationships, accountability, and high expectations." Dr. Najjar also described the approach as "80% proactive" and said the district wants to pair belonging with consistent challenge.

Ending note: staff asked the board for continued support as the district refines data collection and professional learning so that restorative practices become a sustainable, measurable component of school culture.