Facilities Updates 2012

Every year MCHS develops a capital improvement plan in an effort to improve our facility. We utilize TIF dollars received annually through our inter-governmental agreement with the City of Morris. Check out this podcast to see some before and after photos from the work completed this past summer!! We continue to work hard at creating a positive learning environment for our students and community.

National Student Clearinghouse

National Student Clearinghouse Data tracks MCHS students once they leave our facility and venture off for further education. 68% of our graduates enroll in college within their first year out. 87% go back for a second year. 38% earn a degree within 6 years. U of I has accepted the most MCHS grads since 2004 aside from those that enroll at Joliet Junior College. We will continue to track this data and find ways to graduate students that are college/career ready!!!

"Working to meet the Benchmarks"

The Morris Community High School graduating class of 2012 posted the second highest composite ACT score of the last 5 years!! The 21.4 composite score is above both the National and State averages. We continue to develop our curriculum and implement the common core standards in an effort to produce graduates that are college/career ready. Read the Morris Daily Herald article for more details!!

While the ACT scores are only one indicator, we are beginning to see a positive trend in student performance. We use the Explore and PLAN tests to prepare our students for the college entrance ACT exam that is administered to all Juniors each spring. Illinois is only one of nine states that tests more than 90% of their students- and Illinois has the highest composite score of those nine at 20.9 So while most states only test their "college bound" students, Illinois challenges all students to perform.

We have a long way to go and a lot we can improve on. We will continue to provide the best instruction possible to prepare our students.

The following article appears in the April 24th Morris Daily Herald and is the second of four columns I will write highlighting various aspects of Morris Community High School. Check it out and thanks for reading!!

“Weathering the Storm”

In last year’s finance article, I described some of the events taking place that were impacting school systems throughout Illinois. The instability of the economy, declining property tax revenues, and the increase in unfunded State mandates created the “perfect storm.” This column will highlight our efforts to “weather” this storm, discuss the funding woes at the State level, and comment on prospects for the future.

“Holding Our Own”

Morris Community High School has been able to avoid the massive reductions-in-force that have occurred in some school districts due to a number of factors. Our enrollment has remained stable, which has helped us maintain very reasonable average class sizes. We have built a modest education fund balance through a variety of cost reduction and containment strategies. We reduced our teaching staff by three and saved more than $190,000 when we moved from a block to a traditional daily schedule. As veteran staff members retire we generally replace them with less expensive teachers and absorb positions when practical. Between 2009-2013 twelve staff members will have retired or are retiring. District #101 will save over $137,000 next fiscal year through retirements and attrition. With nearly 70% of district expenditures coming from personnel costs, the savings from these retirements helps offset the negative impact of declining revenue from local property taxes. It is often difficult to replace the contributions of veteran staff members, but from a financial point of view the positive impact cannot be overlooked.

We are working hard at improving efficiency and cutting costs through sharing services with other school districts. MCHS saves more than $30,000 annually by sharing technology services with the Grundy Area Vocational Center. By sharing special education transportation with District 54 and District 60C, MCHS has saved over $100,000. In our first two years sharing regular education transportation with District 54, District 101 has saved over $25,000 each year.. The shared services committee continues to explore ways to reduce expenditures in the areas of purchasing, technology, transportation, and personnel.

MCHS refunded the 2003 debt certificates issued to fund our much-needed building renovation project and will realize a savings of $214,000 over the remaining life of the certificates. The recent adoption of the amended TIF agreement with the City of Morris provides the district with a steady stream of capital improvement dollars that are critical to building upkeep, bond payments, classroom equipment, technology, and other capital needs. The district continues to maintain one of the lowest overall tax rates of any high school district in Illinois and our $.92 education fund rate is among the lowest 10% in the State. Student fees have not increased in the last six years.

The board, administration, and staff remain committed to working together to “hold our own” through these very difficult economic times.

“State of the State”

The funding and economic woes of Illinois are well documented and publicized. I have always taken the approach that it is counter-productive to complain about matters that are out of my control. Currently, MCHS is owed $237,000 by the State and I expect we will only receive approximately half of those dollars by the end of this fiscal year. General State Aid has been reduced and payments prorated to a point where the instability of those revenue sources makes it very difficult to budget accurately. Through personal contacts and various professional associations, we have worked with our local legislators to make sure they understand the financial pressures unfunded mandates place on schools. The requirements of SB7 and adoption of the Common Core standards add additional resource pressures to an already dwindling revenue pool.

There is a great deal of momentum in Springfield to shift the responsibility of pension payments from the State to local taxpayers. If this shift becomes a reality, it would cost MCHS an additional $357,000 annually. Without a way to generate additional revenue, it may become difficult to offer our current level of programming. This is a development we are following closely.

“Guarded Optimism”

As a young social studies teacher I had the privilege for seven years to teach all sophomores a class in positive attitude, goal setting, and relationship building called ‘I Can.” It was based on the work of motivational speaker and writer Zig Ziglar. A by-product of this assignment is my generally optimistic outlook on difficult situations. I hold a sense of “guarded optimism” as it relates to school finance because I believe some positive changes are on the way for our area.

The Grundy Economic Development Council, County Board, and City of Morris are all working hard to attract business and industry to our area. With the opening of the Brisbin Road interchange east of Morris industrial growth is likely to follow. The County, GEDC, and taxing bodies recently worked together to designate the second EDPA designed to generate industrial development on the Midwest Generation site. Our local taxing bodies are working to settle pending tax litigation with Midwest Generation in an effort to promote the redevelopment of that valuable site. Clean Line Energy is looking to take advantage of EDPA #1 which should generate future revenue for the district.

With continued cost containment and reduction efforts, sharing of services with other districts, and working together with local agencies MCHS can continue to move forward and provide the best services possible for our students, parents, and community.

“Weathering the Storm” will take he combined efforts of many!

For more information about Morris Community High School visit www.morrishs.org or Like us on Facebook @mchsdistrict#101 or follow us on Twitter @mchsdistrict#101

Curriculum Improvement

The mission of Morris Community High School is to “provide each student the opportunity to achieve academically, personally, and socially to his/her fullest potential.” An important part of improving students college and career readiness is exposing them to a viable and varied curriculum. The board of education, administration, faculty and staff are committed to providing a well-rounded and challenging high school experience.

“Rising Star”

The Rising Star leadership team is made up of administrators, teachers, board members and community representatives. It serves as the main school improvement structure at MCHS. The group prioritizes improvement targets, develops action plans, and assists Principal Hussey in leading improvement activities that will increase student achievement. Various team members take on leadership roles in such areas as the implementation of our Response-to-Intervention program. This program is designed to provide targeted assistance to struggling students.

Staff development opportunities are designed to help teachers improve their skills in delivering effective lessons. The team has recently spent a great deal of time reviewing student achievement data on a variety of standardized tests. The group is using this baseline data to establish improvement targets. The district is working on closing the achievement gaps that exist within our student population. For more information about Rising Star visit www.centerii.org and use guestDIL2061 for both the login and password.

“Under Review”

I recall as a young social studies teacher at Coal City High School working on the development of “learner objectives” in response to 1985 legislation that required school districts to commit to paper what they were trying to accomplish. Under the solid leadership of Mrs. Sharon Bunton and others, we completed this task designed to guide our instruction. The assessment systems and requirements have changed over time, but the lasting value can be summed up in one word: accountability.

Illinois joined the ranks of nearly every State in the Union by adopting the common core standards. These standards outline the competencies and skills students should be able to demonstrate throughout their years of schooling. We have adjusted our three- year curriculum review cycle accordingly so our teachers can examine and unpack the standards and align our courses accordingly.

The assessment system starting in 2014 will change so the next several years will be challenging as we continue to prepare students for the Prairie State Achievement Exam (PSAE) while monitoring the introduction of a new system. We have implemented a review cycle that will allow us to make curricular adjustments when needed and use achievement data to guide our decisions. For more information on the common core standards visit http://www.isbe.state.il.us/common_core/default.htm

“Opportunities Unlimited”

I included a section with the same title in last year’s curriculum article. I think it is important to remember a main goal of most public high schools is to provide students with a well- rounded education. This includes programs that prepare them for college, technical training, the military, or workforce. MCHS offers a variety of advanced placement classes, Junior College, college prep, and vocational programming designed to prepare students for the future. The Grundy Area Vocational Center continues to produce students that are employable and leaders in their respective areas at the State and National levels.

Technology implementation continues to be a priority as tools such as the IPad help make opportunities available to students. Earlier this month, our students were able to witness open- heart bypass surgery via a live feed from Christ Advocate Hospital as part of a Museum of Science and Industry program. The students were able to ask questions and interact with classes from the Chicago area and Canada. Teachers are searching for ways to implement technology in an effort to improve student achievement.

We continue to work with our feeder districts so that our curriculum is well articulated between grade levels. The Parent School Improvement Panel is developing a “parent university” in an effort to help students and parents with the transition from middle school to high school. The principals in the community meet regularly to discuss curriculum and various departments meet in an effort to share information and make sure standards are being met. This will be particularly important as the common core standards are implemented.

If you have any questions related to curriculum or our improvement efforts contact Mr. Kelly Hussey at khussey@morrishs.org or at 815-942-1294 or Dr. Pat Halloran at phalloran@morrishs.org or at 815-941-5327. Visit us at www.mchs.org or follow us on Facebook or Twitter at mchsdistrict#101.

"Keeping Score"

MCHS is involved in a host of improvement activities designed to improve student achievement. The strategic plan guides our efforts in the areas of teaching and learning, human/student resources, communication, and finance. The "Rising Star" leadership team has been working hard as our main school improvement group. Each year we update the board and community on our progress toward meeting our objectives. The District #101 Scorecard provides a look at our progress toward accomplishing the objectives developed to meet our established goals.

We are focusing as a school on using existing student data to improve learning opportunities. The implementation of the common core standards and a new assessment system have already caused some outstanding discussions between teachers, department chairs, and the administration. Changes in the principal and teacher evaluation systems as a result of Illinois education reform efforts are also worth following closely.

The district continues to work toward improving opportunities for students. The parent/school improvement panel is a parent driven group that is working with Principal Hussey to help students transition smoothly from middle school to high school. Their input has been valuable!

Although many aspects of the No Child Left Behind legislation failed to make an impact, the era of accountability we currently live in is leaving a positive mark. We are "keeping score" in order to make sure we are preparing students that are college/career ready!! We still have a long way to go!

The Common Core is Coming!

I hope everyone is off to a great start in 2012!! Time goes so quickly and planning for next year has already begun. The changes we are facing in education are the most challenging and most exciting of my 27 years in education. The new common core standards are receiving a lot of attention and the uncertainty of how they will be measured is causing some added "stress". In Illinois, Senate bill 7 revamped the way teachers are dismissed, evaluated, and earn tenure. It created more emphasis on the use of student performance in the evaluation process and has caused administrators to sharpen their classroom observation practices. Many of the reforms are positive- it is just dealing with the rapid pace of change that is tough.

I attended a workshop on Monday that explained the NCLB waiver process and the direction Illinois was headed in attempting to measure growth- something many of us have been wanting since the "100% by 2014" arbitrary goal inched closer and closer. I was encouraged by a draft document that illustrated the various factors that will go into this new measurement of "an effective" school. I am confident that we are headed in the right direction with curriculum and assessment development, increased rigor in the classroom, and the use of our data management system to help us monitor progress and improve instruction. It will be interesting to see if Illinois is granted a waiver.

An added stress for our system has been the implementation of a 7 period day- a move away from the four block structure. I have been impressed with how the faculty, students, and staff have attacked this shift and hit the ground running. As with most new things there will be some growing pains- but it appears with some improvements here and there we will be stronger as a result of change. Time will tell.

The next three years may prove to be very interesting- and it will take a team effort every step of the way!!