Minooka High reports mixed result on testing
By Kris Stadalsky For The Herald-News October 8, 2012 8:50AM
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Updated: November 12, 2012 10:52AM
MINOOKA — The good news coming from Minooka High School is that students have made huge gains in core courses of math, reading and science. The bad news is it isn’t enough for the district to make Adequate Yearly Progress as required by the federal No Child Left Behind Act.
With the Illinois State Report Card just out, Minooka High School Board members got their first look at how the school fared.
In reading, 64.1 percent of Minooka High students made AYP and in math, 67.9 met or exceeded the federal guidelines of 85 percent.
Each year the federal requirement increases, until it reaches 100 percent of all students meeting AYP, said Superintendent Jim Colyott. With 11.5 percent of Minooka’s student population in some level of special education, the district is not going to reach AYP, he said.
“We have had a significant increase from last year, but we still didn’t make AYP,” Colyott said.
All of the information related to the state report card isn’t in yet for comparisons. However, last year only eight Illinois schools made AYP.
It is expected that the requirements for AYP will soon be redefined, Colyott said.
In student to staff ratios, the district was pretty close to state averages, with a 20.5 pupil to teacher ratio at Minooka compared to 18.8 statewide.
On the salary side, Minooka High School’s average teacher salary is $71,379, with the state at $66,614.
Average administrator salaries at Minooka are $121,404 compared with the state average of $110,870.
At the same time, the district spends less on services than the state average, with 34.7 percent on instruction, compared with the state at 48.3 percent. In support services, Minooka spends 21.3 percent and the state 30.7 percent.
Director of Curriculum and Instruction Bob Williams said students made the large increases from 2011 to 2012 in core areas thanks in part to the district’s inclusion of double block math courses and additional reading courses.
“We made huge gains over the state,” Williams said. “The double block classes have paid off.”
In science, 70 percent of Minooka students made AYP, while only 52 percent of students statewide made the grade.
Williams also pointed out that by offering dual credit courses with Joliet Junior College, the district saved students and their families nearly $250,000 in the past year.
Students in dual credit courses do not pay college tuition on those classes, said Williams. A credit hour at JJC costs $103 and most students carry three credit hours.
