By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — Rockford Public Schools students made progress in literacy and math scores last year, and graduation rates ticked upward. However, students in the district continue to perform below the state average in each of those categories.
That’s according to the latest Illinois State Report Card, which was released Monday and offers a snapshot the progress of public schools on a range of educational goals.
The district’s graduation rate stood at nearly 70% last year, compared to the statewide average of about 88%. The report card showed about 36% of students failed to meet state standards on literacy, an improvement from nearly 41% a year earlier. Statewide, about 19% of students fail to meet the state standard on the Illinois Assessment of Readiness.
“All of us at the Rockford School District are excited about the progress we’re making, but as educators and community leaders, we know we have work to do,” Rockford Public Schools Superintendent Ehren Jarrett said. “As a community, as a district, we’ve come together to help our children succeed. That’s what this report card shows.”
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The graduation rate grew from 65% a year ago. It was slightly below that in 2021. The district’s goal is to hit 75% graduation rate by the end of the next school year.
“The target is always going to be 100%, and getting closer and closer to that target,” Jarrett said. “I don’t think we can be satisfied until we as a community and a school system found ways to do that, but in the meantime we’re going to celebrate year-over-year improvement.”
The district continues to struggle with chronic absenteeism, which is defined as missing 10% or more of the school year with or without a valid excuse. Last year, nearly 48% of students were chronically absent, down from nearly 61% in 2022. The statewide average was 28% last year.
“We cannot attack literacy issues with a 48% chronic absenteeism rate,” Jarrett said. “We have to find ways to ensure that we are getting our students to school on time and ready to learn.”
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Illinois Report Card data from 2022 shows an average of 32% of third graders in Winnebago County’s 10 school districts meet or exceed state literacy standards. The rate went from roughly 16% last year to roughly 18% this year in Rockford.
“If there’s one thing that’s a gateway to all of our metrics improving it’s that reading level, so were are going to continue to be really focused on that as a district,” Jarrett said. “Let’s make sure our literacy levels really skyrocket. Let’s invest big time in early literacy. Let’s invest in early childhood to make sure students are in a position to be successful.”
Improving childhood literacy has been the focus outside of schools, too. Earlier this year the United Way of Rock River Valley launched a new initiative in partnership with 30 local organizations to try to improve childhood reading proficiency. The goal is to improve the rate to 75% in Winnebago County by 2034.
“Once we get that reading issue dealt with, and we see readings scores increase to where we need them to be as a community, great things will happen,” Jarrett said.
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas