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District-wide 5Essentials: Waukegan rates ‘moderately organized’; safety and postsecondary expectations flagged
Summary
The district’s 5Essentials survey results show a district-level ‘moderately organized’ rating with gains in program coherence and parent influence, and weaknesses on postsecondary expectations and some safety perceptions; board members asked for targeted follow-up.
Waukegan Public Schools presented the 5Essentials survey results to the Board of Education, reporting a district‑level rating of “moderately organized” and highlighting areas for improvement in postsecondary expectations and student perceptions of safety outside school and in bathrooms.
Eric Christiansen, who presented the findings on behalf of the district, said the 5Essentials research is required by the Illinois State Board of Education and aggregates teacher, student and parent responses on five factors: ambitious instruction, collaborative teachers, effective leaders, involved families and supportive environment. “Waukegan's overall district status is moderately organized,” he said, and noted the district’s highest item scores included parent influence on decision-making (64) and English instruction (62).
The district reported improvements: program coherence increased by 11 points over the prior year, and peer support for academic work and parent involvement also improved. The lowest composite measure was expectations for postsecondary education, which the presenter identified as the single weakest area and suggested as a focus for next steps.
Board members pressed for follow-up specific steps. Miss Lindsey asked how the district plans to increase teacher participation and parent completion rates; the district said Clark Elementary’s 83% parent response rate showed targeted outreach can work. Miss Hannah and others stressed the link between classroom community, teacher–student trust and outcomes, and urged district leaders to pursue school-level goals for parent participation and to address safety concerns during arrival/dismissal and in bathrooms.
The district said next steps include targeted work with the district’s FACE (Family and Community Engagement) team and principals to raise parent response rates and to use the survey’s item‑level results to set school-specific goals.
No board votes were required; the report was received and board members requested staff follow up with school-level plans and communication strategies.
