Dr. Campbell, Elmhurst School District 205's superintendent, told the Board of Education on Oct. 21 that district staff will share official school designations after the Illinois State Board of Education posts final results Oct. 31, and presented an internal preview of 2024–25 assessment and accountability measures.

The presentation summarized districtwide trends. Staff reported that grades 3–8 English language arts (ELA) and math proficiency rose over four years: elementary ELA proficiency climbed to about 77 percent and middle grades sustained gains that moved some grades into the high‑50s and 70s on growth percentiles. Math proficiency for grades 3–5 increased to roughly 75 percent in 2025, and grade 6 math growth percentiles reached the district's “excellent” threshold. Science proficiency on the Illinois Science Assessment (ISA) rose to about 67 percent (grade 5) and 70 percent (grade 8).

“Growth is not linear,” Dr. Campbell said, adding that the district treats the committee briefing as part of a multiyear data review cycle that guides school improvement and alignment with district priorities.

The district spotlighted reductions in chronic absenteeism, with elementary schools below pre‑pandemic levels and York High School reporting nearly a 50 percent reduction in chronic absenteeism since 2022–23. Staff credited leadership, teacher practices and family partnerships for the declines and said additional reductions are anticipated as ongoing interventions expand.

York High School staff presented ACT‑era results for 9th–11th graders. Carrie Leischl and other high‑school presenters reported that, under ISBE benchmarks for the ACT, about 79 percent of the York class of 2026 met the ISBE ELA benchmark and about 67 percent met the ISBE math benchmark; growth percentiles for high‑school grades ranged from the low‑50s to upper‑50s. The York presentation also noted increases in AP participation (1,909 exams administered last spring, with 89 percent scoring 3 or higher) and a modest increase in the composite graduation metric used for summative designation.

Panelists and board members repeatedly highlighted subgroup differences. Katie Lyons, who led earlier slides on grades 3–8, said emergent bilingual students, low‑income students and some students with IEPs continue to trail overall district averages. Lyons reported emergent bilingual ELA proficiency declining slightly (30 to 26 percent) while students with IEPs showed small gains (40 to 42 percent). Staff emphasized the need to strengthen tier‑1 instruction, integrate language supports, and accelerate targeted interventions.

Board members and table groups during the committee of the whole discussed curricular changes, scheduling impacts, and targeted supports. One recurring question from board members and table groups was whether instructional minute reallocations (for example, more science minutes in middle school) affected ELA and math, and how to maintain gains while expanding science instruction.

Dr. Campbell said the district would finalize public communications at the State of the District event scheduled Oct. 30 when ISBE posts the official report card. The presenters noted that internal calculations presented to the board include all D205 students (including EL newcomers) for internal year‑to‑year analyses, which differs slightly from the ISBE public report card methodology.

Speakers who described data or took part in the presentation included Dr. Campbell, Kevin Rubenstein, Katie Lyons and Carrie Leischl. Public comment later in the regular meeting raised concerns about math grades at York High School; the board indicated staff follow‑up would occur after the meeting.

District staff said more detailed school‑level reports and the official ISBE designations will be shared publicly once the state posts the report card.