Mascoutah High School is one of St. Clair County’s top rated high schools.
(Photo courtesy of Mascoutah CUD 19)

Report for half of St. Clair County’s schools were published in last week’s edition of the Metro East Chronicle, with the rest provided this week.

Mascoutah Community Unit District 19 has more exemplary schools than any other district in Metro East, according to 2019 School Report Cards released by The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) on Oct. 30.

The Mascoutah district has four schools rated exemplary and one rated commendable, according to the ISBE.

“The Report Card shows how well our school is progressing on a wide range of educational goals. We are proud of our students’ growth in reading, math, SAT, and our high school’s graduation rate,” said Superintendent Craig Fiegel, in a statement on the district website. “This progress reflects the investments we have made in focusing on student individual needs, recruiting and retaining high quality staff, and collaborating with district stakeholders.”

Mascoutah High School, Mascoutah Elementary School, Scott Elementary School, and Wingate Elementary School are all rated as exemplary by the ISBE; with Mascoutah Middle School rated commendable.

The overwhelming majority of public schools in St. Clair County are again this year rated as “commendable”by ISBE.

Six of the county’s schools are classified as “exemplary,” by the ISBE.

Five are classified as “underperforming” — with another 13 found to be among the lowest performing in the state. However, those schools will be eligible for additional state funding as well as new state school improvement programs.

Cahokia CUSD 187 and East St. Louis SD 189 have most schools in the lowest Report Card rating category.

The Cahokia School district has one school rated commendable, one rated underperforming, and eight rated among the lowest performing in the state.

The East St. Louis district has four schools rated commendable, one rated as underperforming and four rated among the lowest performing in the state.

As noted in last week’s edition of Metro East Chronicle, the annual ISBE school report cards are designed to provide insight into each school’s progress toward a goal of preparing all students for success in college and career, according to the ISBE.

The following are ISBE “district snapshots” for St. Clair County school districts; listing the number of schools in each district (in parentheses), the number of schools in each designation category, high school graduation rates, student mobility rates, chronic absenteeism rates, teacher retention rates, and funding information.

Chronically absent students are defined as those who miss 10 percent or more of the school year without permission.  The student mobility data shows the percentage of students who experienced at least one transfer in or out of the school between the first school day of October and the last school day of the year, not including graduates.

Graduation rates are not compiled for districts with only elementary schools. The ISBE assigns ratings only to schools meeting minimum enrollment and grade-range requirements; therefore, designations may not be indicated for every school in a district.

O’ Fallon Township High School is rated commendable.  The district has a 90 percent graduation rate, a seven percent student mobility rate, a 14 percent chronic absenteeism rate. (Photo courtesy of O’Fallon Twp. H.S.)

Lebanon CUSD 9 (2) — Both of the unit district’s schools are rated commendable. The district has an 85 percent graduation rate, 9 percent student mobility rate, 12 percent chronic absenteeism rate, and 94 percent teacher retention rate. With $5.1 million in local financial resources, the district has 73 percent of the financial resources necessary to meet its state-set $7 million adequacy target.

Marissa CUSD 40 (2) — All district schools are rated commendable. The district has a 96 percent graduation rate, a 12 percent student mobility rate, a 17 percent chronic absenteeism rate and an 86 percent teacher retention rate. With $4.3 million in local financial resources, the district has 61 percent of the financial resources necessary to meet its state-set $7 million adequacy target.

Mascoutah CUD 19 (5) — The unit district has four schools rated exemplary and one rated commendable. It has a 96 percent graduation rate, an 11 percent student mobility rate, and 10 percent chronic absenteeism rate, and a 91 percent student retention rate. With $29 million in local financial resources, the district has 55 percent of the financial resources necessary to meet its state-set $42 million adequacy target.

Millstadt CCSD 160 (2) —One of the elementary district’s schools is considered exemplary, with the other rated commendable. The district has a 4 percent mobility rate, 5 percent chronic absenteeism rate, and a 90 percent teacher retention rate. With $6.9 million in local financial resources, the district has 84 percent of the financial resources necessary to meet its state-set $8.3 million adequacy target.

New Athens CUSD 60 (3) — All three of the unit district’s schools are rated commendable. The district has an 81 percent graduation rate, a seven percent student mobility rate, a 13 percent chronic absenteeism rate, and an 89 percent teacher retention rate. With $3.9 million in local financial resources, the district has 67 percent of the financial resources necessary to meet its state-set $5.9 million adequacy target.

O’ Fallon CCSD 90 (7) — The elementary district has one exemplary and six commendable schools. The district has a six percent student mobility rate, an eight percent chronic absenteeism rate, and an 89 percent teacher retention rate. With $26 million in local funding resources, the district has 66 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $40 million financial adequacy target.

O’ Fallon Township HSD 203 (1) —The district high school is rated commendable.  The district has a 90 percent graduation rate, a seven percent student mobility rate, a 14 percent chronic absenteeism rate, and a 94 percent teacher retention rate. With $19 million in local funding resources, the district has 64 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $29 million financial adequacy target.

Pontiac-Wm. Holliday SD 105 (2) — Both the elementary district’s schools are rated commendable. The district has a 12 percent student mobility rate, a nine percent chronic absenteeism rate, and an 88 percent teacher retention rate. With $7.8 million in local funding resources, the district has 102 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $8 million financial adequacy target.

Shiloh Village SD 85 (2) — Both district schools are rated commendable. The district has an 8 percent student mobility rate, a 13 percent chronic absenteeism rate and an 82 percent teacher retention rate. With $4.2 million in local funding resources, the district has 66 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $6.3 million financial adequacy target.

Signal Hill SD 181 (1) — The elementary district’s school is rated commendable. The district has a 13 percent student mobility rate, a 12 percent chronic absenteeism rate and a 79 percent teacher retention rate. With $2.6 million in local funding resources, the district has 63 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $4 million financial adequacy target.

Smithton CCSD 130 (1) — The district’s elementary school is rated commendable. The district has a two percent student mobility rates, four percent chronic absenteeism rate, and 96 percent teacher retention rate. With $3.9 million in local funding resources, the district has 68 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $5.8 million financial adequacy target.

St. Libory Consolidated SD 30 (1) — The elementary district’s school is rated commendable. The district has an 8 percent student mobility rate, a 3 percent chronic absenteeism rate, and a 76 percent teacher retention rate. With $630,000 in local funding resources, the district has 71 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $890,000 million financial adequacy target.

Whiteside SD 115 (2) — Both the elementary district’s schools are rated commendable. The district has a 12 percent student mobility rate, 18 percent chronic absenteeism rate, and a 92 percent teacher retention rate. With $9.9 million in local funding resources, the district has 69 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $14 million financial adequacy target.

Wolf Branch SD 113 (2) — One of the elementary district’s schools is rated exemplary, with the other rated commendable. The district has a 5 percent student mobility rate, a 5 percent chronic absenteeism rate and an 88 percent teacher retention rate. With $7 million in local funding resources, the district has 83 percent of the financial capacity needed to meet its state-set $8.4 million financial adequacy target.

Complete ISBE Report Card data for all school districts can be accessed at www.isbe.net/reportcard.