Joliet Township presents 5Essentials, Hanover survey results showing strengths in teacher–student trust and gaps in safety and communication

Principals Cara Parker, Chad Gallian and Diane McDonald presented the district’s results from the University of Chicago’s 5Essentials survey and a Hanover Research culture-and-climate review, saying the instruments are used to track school climate, safety and instructional conditions across Joliet Township High School District 204.

The presenters noted the 5Essentials is administered to teachers, students and parents and “is mandated by the state of Illinois” and contributes to the school report card. They said the survey counts toward the school’s summative designation (they cited a 6.67% contribution tied to participation rates), but that parent and student participation thresholds must be met for some measures to count. Presenters said parent response must meet a 20% participation threshold to be shared and student participation must reach 50% for certain report‑card calculations; district leaders said those thresholds have not been consistently met in recent years.

District staff highlighted areas of relative strength reported by students and staff: student–teacher trust, indicators of college-and-career readiness and “academic press” (students’ reports on course rigor). The presenters said roughly 90% or more of students reported classroom rigor and high rates of agreement that teachers plan for students’ futures.

At the same time, presenters identified several issues for improvement. Student peer relationships ranked lower in the survey, and teachers reported concerns about safety items such as physical conflict, disorder in halls and disrespect. Presenters said teacher responses reflect both certified teachers and instructional paraprofessionals who complete the survey. District officials described targeted responses already underway: campus culture-and-climate teams (named the Climate and Culture Team at Central and the Tiger Staff Leadership Council at West), expanded professional learning that preserves content-collaboration time, and planned renovations to bathrooms and common spaces with a QR-code system for real-time student facility feedback.

Board members pressed for clarity about structure and impact. The principals described each campus council as including teacher-elected academy representatives, clerical and security staff, athletic directors and administrators; they said those representatives bring concerns to the council and return actions to academy meetings. The presenters added the district intends to take survey data to these teams, drill down to building-level responses and use the results to guide staff professional development and facility work.

The presentation also described staffing and scheduling adjustments tied to improvement goals: structured professional development on an instructional playbook with time for department-level collaboration and a recommendation to provide two planning periods to allow additional teacher collaboration. Administrators said some earlier professional learning (cultural-responsiveness training) reduced content-collaboration time in prior years and that this year the district has reorganized SIP time to preserve content-group collaboration while continuing cultural-responsiveness training in separate cohorts.

Board members praised staff work and also expressed concern about “a clear and unacceptable crisis in leadership and communication” in some stakeholder responses; one board member urged an immediate review of administrative communication routines. District presenters acknowledged the need for continued work and described the changes above as their early responses.

What’s next: district leaders said they will bring the survey results to campus leadership teams this summer, use the teams to identify specific action items, and begin facility improvement planning tied to QR feedback. The presentation included an offer to provide building-level drilldowns and follow-up reports to the board.

Provenance: Presentation began when principals introduced the 5Essentials survey and ended after board Q&A and campus‑council descriptions.