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Johns Hill Magnet School presents data showing reduced referrals, suspensions and narrowed achievement gaps
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Summary
Johns Hill Magnet School told the board it has cut referral rates and suspension days while maintaining a 92% attendance rate; school leaders attributed gains to arts-integrated instruction and targeted supports for English learners and students with IEPs. The principal said the school has been rated commendable multiple times in the last seven years.
Michelle Pryor, principal of Johns Hill Magnet School, and teacher Kim Miller told the Decatur Public School District 61 Board of Education on April 28 that arts-integrated instruction and targeted interventions are delivering measurable gains at the K–8 school.
Pryor presented data showing a 21% reduction in referral rates this year compared with the prior year and a drop in suspension days from 330 in 2019 to 168 in 2026. Pryor said the school's attendance rate is steady at about 92 percent and that teacher attendance is strong, with "99% of the teachers [having] fewer than 10 absences" this year.
Kim Miller, a social-studies teacher who described 26 years at the school, highlighted arts-integrated learning and student performance. "Through arts integration, history becomes vivid, meaningful, and a joyful experience for our students," Miller told trustees. She cited benchmark data showing Johns Hill eighth graders at or above grade level in language-arts and noted that the district benchmark is lower.
Pryor summarized state-report-card figures and achievement-gap improvements: she said the gap for low-income versus non–low-income students narrowed from 17 percent in 2019 to about 9 percent in 2024, and said racial gaps and gaps for students with IEPs have also declined markedly. Pryor cautioned that some report-card data are presented on a 2024 basis and the district report card may not yet include 2026 results.
The principal also noted that students have used the IXL platform extensively — she reported more than one million questions answered districtwide on IXL, more than 16,000 mastered skills and roughly 8,000–9,000 logged learning hours attributable to the platform for Johns Hill students — and described the school's growing community partnerships, garden and library programs.
Student Estrella Ponce described how the English-as-a-Second-Language program helped her learn English and find confidence. "The ESL program taught me to speak and to read," Ponce said. Trustees congratulated staff on test scores, retention rates and community engagement and thanked students for speaking to the board.
Pryor said Johns Hill has been designated commendable five times between 2018 and 2025 and highlighted the school’s D.A.R.E. program as the first in the region using a new standard; she also reminded the board that graduation and end-of-year events are upcoming.
