Nov.8, 2024

Dear District 70 Families,

Last week, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) released the updated 2023-2024 Report Card. This is a tool we use, along with many others, to assess our students’ progress and academic achievement.

Data plays an important role in providing an exceptional educational experience for our students; we can learn about our strengths and weaknesses, identify gaps in knowledge, and adjust our teaching practices. Our ultimate goal is to measure our students' progress individually and throughout the year to provide real-time support. But we can still learn and celebrate our success and growth on the building and district levels captured by the ISBE report card.

Key highlights from the 2023-24 D70 State Report Card:

School Ratings: Four D70 schools—Adler, Copeland, Highland, and Rockland—received a "Commendable" rating, while Butterfield earned an "Exemplary" rating.

High Proficiency Scores: D70 students excelled on state assessments this spring. In comparison to all other schools in the state of Illinois, D70 scored in the

• 97th percentile in ELA on the IAR,

• 94th percentile in Math on the IAR, and

• 96th percentile in Science (5th and 8th grades) on the Illinois Science Assessment.

Subgroup Improvements: Proficiency scores rose in specific subcategories within the school report card, with slight increases in the proficiency percentiles for Black students and students with Individualized Education Plans (IEPs).

Improved Attendance: The district saw a boost in student attendance rates and a reduction in the number of students classified as chronically absent and truant.

High Local Comparisons: Compared to nearby districts, D70 students performed exceptionally well in English/Language Arts, Math, and Science.

Each of these accolades and accomplishments is the direct result of our students’ hard work and the expert and dedicated teaching staff in our buildings. We have so much to celebrate in D70, and we will continue to strive for excellence in all we do.

For those interested in digging deeper into the data, I encourage you to view the video below by Assistant Superintendent of Teaching, Learning, and Assessments Dr. Kerri Bongle.

Shine Bright!

Rebecca

Rebecca A. Jenkins

Superintendent of Schools

Libertyville School District 70

rjenkins@d70schools.org

Rebecca's Instagram

Please note: D70 will be emailing, calling, and texting (those who opted in) at 6 p.m. tonight, Friday, Nov. 8, to test our emergency system.

Libertyville District 70 may declare a snow or emergency day, resulting in no school. In this case, students must attend an additional day at the end of the school year. These days are listed in June as “Emergency Day.”

The district will likely designate one or two emergency days (i.e. snow days) before transitioning to eLearning to avoid extending the school calendar too far into June.

Alternatively, the district may initiate an “eLearning day.” During this time, students in grades 1-8 will participate virtually using their school-issued devices (iPads or Chromebooks). Students in Little Sprouts Preschool and kindergarten will not attend virtually but will receive developmentally appropriate activities to complete during the eLearning day.

For more information on what eLearning will look like for grades K-8 and Little Sprouts, please visit our website: https://www.d70schools.org/departments/curriculum/elearning

What: First Special Education Parent Network Event!
Date: Wednesday, Dec. 4th
Time: 6 - 8 p.m.
Location: The Boardroom, 137 Lake Street, Libertyville

Join us for the first gathering of the Special Education Parent Network, a new initiative designed to foster a supportive and collaborative community for families of students with special needs. This event will bring together parents and District 70 staff to promote open communication, share valuable resources, and provide guidance to support families throughout their child’s educational journey.

We hope you can attend and look forward to building this network together!

Please RSVP if you plan to attend.

The Community High School District 128 Board of Education is conducting a search for the next superintendent to lead the district. The next step in the search process is to engage the D128 community via a survey. Please complete the survey by clicking here. The survey will be open through Nov. 18, 2024.

Thank you in advance for your participation.

Families Learning Together is a District 70 initiative to provide learning opportunities for our parents, staff, caregivers and community.

This year District 70 has partnered with FAN. FAN is an organization that curates a high-quality speaker series for local school districts and other government groups. These events are free for our families and staff to attend.

FLT/FAN Topic: You are Not Alone for Parents and Caregivers: The NAMI Guide to Navigating Your Child's Mental Health

Presenters: Christine Crawford, MD, MPH

Interviewer: TBD

Date: November 18, 2024 at 7:00 pm

Program Information:

Crawford is the associate medical director for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), the country’s largest grassroots mental health organization. She is an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Vice Chair of Education at the Boston University School of Medicine and provides outpatient psychiatric care to children and adolescents at Boston Medical Center. Dr. Crawford has compiled an invaluable resource, and it includes many stories from patients and parents about their paths to recovery.

FLT/FAN Topic: Above the Noise: My Story of Chasing Calm

Presenters: DeMar DeRozan

Interviewer: Hanif Abdurraqib

Date: Nov. 19, 2024 at 7:00 pm

Location: Zoom Registration Link

Program Information:

DeRozan is a six-time NBA All-Star and two-time gold medalist for the United States Men’s Basketball Team. Recently traded to the Sacramento Kings after playing for the Chicago Bulls from 2021-2024. DeRozan's new memoir is a moving account of his life growing up in Compton, CA, and progressing through high school, college, and the NBA. In 2018, he went public about his struggle with depression and is an advocate for those who suffer from mental illness. As a result of his advocacy, the NBA created a new rule that each team must have a mental health professional on staff. We are beyond thrilled that Hanif Abdurraqib (FAN '21, '24) will join DeRozan for this event -- Hanif is a brilliant writer and a MacArthur grant recipient.

All FAN event videos are posted to FAN's YouTube channel, linked here.