Plainfield District 202 praised for academic achievements by state superintendent

Plainfield — The Illinois State Board of Education held its monthly meeting at the district office of Plainfield School District 202 on Wednesday.

The ISBE hosts only two meetings at districts throughout the state per year, and in the process takes tours of the district’s schools and highlights them with special presentations in the meeting.

District 202 board President Rod Westfall, who gave the presentation to the board along with Superintendent Glenn Wood, said that the district approached the ISBE about featuring the district.

“Our district is so far ahead of so many others [that] we wanted them to see the great things we do,” Westfall said.

During their presentation, Wood and Westfall highlighted the size, diversity and academic achievement of District 202.

District 202 is the fifth largest in the state of Illinois, comprising almost 25,000 students in 30 schools spread over 64 square miles.

“For a large unit district that is so very diverse to exceed the state in all metrics is truly outstanding.”

—  Tony Sanders, Illinois state superintendent of schools

Wood noted that the district has changed significantly in the past 35 years, with its student population growing by 738% and seeing significant increases in its low- income and minority populations.

Currently, 36% of the district’s students are low income and 13.7% are English language learners, with students in the district speaking 90 different languages.

White students still make up the biggest percentage of the student population at 47%, down from 96% in 1990, with Hispanic students comprising the next largest group with 25.3%. Black students make up 13.6% of the population, 8.5% are Asian, and Native Americans make up 0.3% of the population.

“Our students are what the country looks like,” Wood said. “We think we are a good representative of America.”

Despite its size, the district maintains better than average academic performance, with proficiency rates higher than the state average in math, science and English language arts and a 94% graduation rate, something state Superintendent Tony Sanders praised.

“For a large unit district that is so very diverse to exceed the state in all metrics is truly outstanding,” he said.

After the presentation, Will County Regional Office of Education Superintendent Lisa Caparelli-Ruff called District 202 “shining exemplars of what public education should be.”

The meeting came two days after District 202 English teacher Jennifer Gruca was named Teacher of the Year for the Far South Suburbs Region by the ISBE.