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Round Lake CUSD 116 reports mostly commendable ISBE designations; district focuses on absenteeism and subgroup gaps
Summary
District leaders told the board most schools remained in the commendable range on ISBE index scores for 2023–2025, highlighted large ELA gains at the high school, and presented Schoollytics dashboards and targeted actions to address chronic absenteeism and subgroup performance.
Round Lake CUSD 116 administrators presented the district’s 2023–2025 summative designations and supporting data to the Board of Education, saying most schools fell into the commendable category while some subgroups require targeted support.
Dr. Stefan (instructional leadership) explained ISBE’s five designation categories and how an overall index score is calculated. “There are 5 different ratings the state can provide: exemplary, commendable, targeted support, comprehensive support, and intensive support,” she said, describing cutoffs and the role of subgroup thresholds in triggering targeted status.
Casey Kurtz, the district’s data lead, reviewed index score thresholds and said 87% of the district’s index scores between 2023 and 2025 remained within the commendable range. Kurtz also described recent cut-score changes that altered year-to-year proficiency comparisons and noted that Round Lake High School shifted from SAT to ACT data for 2025.
Kurtz highlighted gains at the high school, reporting a 23.5% increase in ELA proficiency and an 11.5% increase in math proficiency despite the cut-score changes. “Even with the cut score changes, Round Lake High School saw a remarkable 23.5% increase in ELA proficiency and 11.5% increase in math proficiency,” Kurtz said.
Officials identified chronic absenteeism as a high-priority indicator. The district described Schoollytics, a real-time attendance dashboard currently in pilot, which administrators can use to drill down to individual students and intervene before absences become chronic. Dr. Mendoza said the district is monitoring attendance closely and has been in contact with state education leaders about a statewide task force on chronic absenteeism.
Board members asked whether the chronic absenteeism measure includes absences for any reason; district leaders confirmed it does and noted that certain excused codes (for example, emergency or medical codes) still count toward the 10% threshold used by ISBE. Dr. Mendoza described nuanced attendance supports such as allowing late work submissions, Canvas resources for missed instruction, and attendance incentives and conferences.
Next steps outlined by district leaders include piloting Schoollytics at all building levels after feedback, adding specific action steps in school improvement plans to address subgroup deficiencies (notably special education and some middle-school cohorts), and providing district resources and targeted professional development for co-teaching and multilingual settings.
The board did not take a vote on these items; it asked for a Schoollytics demo in a future meeting and for periodic follow-up on attendance and subgroup interventions.
