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Wilmette SD 39 to pilot new behavioral screener, cites high SEL scores but pockets of school‑climate decline
Summary
District reported strong SEL competency scores but noted fall→spring declines on some school climate and adult‑support items. Leaders plan to pilot the Sabers screener via FastBridge and monitor an ISBE mental‑health screening when available to better identify students who need interventions.
Wilmette SD 39 leaders told the Committee of the Whole they will pursue more sensitive screening tools for social‑emotional and behavioral needs after reviewing the district's spring SEL measures on June 8.
Presenters described the current mix of tools: Insights (narrated tasks for K–4) and Panorama (grades 5–8). The district reported large majorities in average or above categories on early‑elementary measures and very high percentile performance on Panorama items at the middle‑grade levels, but noted declines on several school‑climate items in fall→spring comparisons (for example, students reporting how well adults support them and perceptions that teachers are excited to teach showed measurable drops in some groups).
"We value the information that Insights and Panorama give us, but they are big, high‑level tools and not always sensitive enough to screen for individual intervention needs," a district presenter said. Staff said they will pilot Sabers as a FastBridge screener (an efficient, minutes‑long tool to flag behavioral and SEB needs) and continue to explore an Illinois State Board of Education mental‑health screening tool that ISBE is developing for broader use in 2027–28.
The district also said it will roll Wayfinder formative checks (embedded in the new curriculum for grades 5–8) into the elementary‑and‑middle school reporting toolbox to give teachers more classroom‑aligned, curriculum‑based indicators of student SEL progress.
Presenters stressed that any mental‑health screening must be psychometrically sound and that the district will coordinate with families and MTSS teams when using screeners.
Next steps: staff will pilot Sabers in FastBridge as a short screener and report back to the board on pilot outcomes and recommendations for a districtwide approach.
