Two of District 65’s K-5 schools, Willard and Orrington, were ranked seventh and 95th, out of more than 2,100 elementary schools in the State by the Chicago Sun Times. Bessie Rhodes, Haven and Nichols middle schools were ranked 49th, 54th, and 65th by the Sun Times respectively, out of more than 1,300 middle schools in the State.
The Sun Time ranked schools using student’s scale scores on the 2009 Illinois Standard Achievement Test, rather than the percentage of students meeting/exceeding standards.
This is the fourth consecutive year that Willard made the Sun Times’ list of the top 100 schools. This year it was the top elementary school in the state which did not have a selective admissions policy.
Dr. Bessie Rhodes Magnet School returns to the list as one of the top middle schools in the state. In 2007, Rhodes was ranked among the top 50 suburban middle schools. Rhodes attracts students from across the entire District.
Superintendent Hardy Murphy said, “Our district has a lot to celebrate. Our district and our schools continue to be at the very top of the school rankings in the State of Illinois and our student achievement compares favorably at the national level,” Superintendent Hardy Murphy said in a prepared statement. “High percentages of District 65 students are exceeding state standards, most students achieve at or above grade level, and our District has shown an accelerated trend in reducing the achievement gap between students who traditionally excel and those who historically have struggled.”