Uncertainty Surrounding School Choice Forces District 205 Into 'Holding Pattern'

The 2013-14 school year could have a bumpy start if predictions by Elmhurst District 205 Superintendent David Pruneau come true. 

As of Tuesday, the district had not yet received standardized test results that will determine whether Elmhurst schools have made adequate yearly progress according to the federal No Child Left Behind law. But officials are pretty sure only one school, Jefferson, did achieve AYP. 

Conrad Fischer School, which receives Title 1 government funds because a majority of its students meet low-income and at-risk criteria, likely will not meet AYP for the second year in a row. That means Fischer parents must be offered the choice of busing their kids to Jefferson, according to the federal law. 

But a number of things need to happen before school choice can be implemented, and time is running out to get it all done before the start of school in about a month, Pruneau said.

First, the district must verify through standardized test results, due to be released any day now, that Fischer did not make AYP and Jefferson did, as predicted.

"We're kind of in a holding pattern until those scores are released," Pruneau said Tuesday.

Next, while the district has met with parents of both Fischer and Jefferson to explain school choice, the district must send an official letter to Fischer parents offering them the option of sending their children to Jefferson. That letter must be approved by the state board of education, and the district must make sure parents—including many who don't speak English—understand all of their options.

The district must then give Fischer parents 30 days to make their decision.

Once administrators know how many Fischer parents want to send their children to Jefferson—Pruneau said about 82 students can be accommodated—a number of logistical maneuvers must be worked out. They include adding staff, classroom space and materials at Jefferson, and providing bus transportation to get those students from the north end of town to the south every school day.  

RELATED: 

• Fischer Students May Soon Be Able to Transfer to Jefferson Due To Federal NCLB Provision
• Jefferson Parents Get Word Their School Would Be the Choice for Fischer Families
• Parents Claim Racial Tensions and Segregation Affecting District 205
• More Parents Share Concerns About Fischer; Superintendent Promises Better Communication

Additional teachers are on standby, not knowing if they will be needed, Pruneau said. It all depends on the distribution of students by grade level. There are two empty classrooms at Jefferson now, and Pruneau promised Jefferson parents earlier this month that the programs currently in place at the school will not be changed.

"We will not disrupt any programs to accommodate more students," he said.

But all this planning could be in vain, Pruneau said.

All but seven states have been given waivers releasing them from having to comply with the complex and expensive mandates associated with NCLB. Why Illinois hasn't been granted a waiver yet is unclear. A request has been submitted twice, most recently last week.

"I'm hoping we'll finally get a waiver," Pruneau said. "I'm hoping it happens soon, before we go through all this planning."

Board member Shannon Ebner pointed out that state Superintendent Christopher Koch has been silent on the status of Illinois' waiver.

"I have not seen any communication from the state superintendent," Pruneau concurred. "I can report back if there is anything in his bimonthly communication."

All of these mandates and procedures, which originally were designed to increase accountability for students' academic performance, have become a distraction from the district's primary duty, Pruneau said.

"I have no problem being accountable," he said. "But we are accountable to this community first."

That is no longer the case, he said. The district now must answer to federal and state mandates first.

"Local control and decision-making is being taken out of our hands more and more," he said. "If we're not preparing students for college and career, we should be held accountable. But the indications from not only the ISAT and ACT (scores) are that our schools are successful. Our students are improving."

The fact that nearly all District 205 schools are being called "a failure" is a misrepresentation, he said.

"I don't believe that is an honest assessment of accountability," Pruneau said.

School Board President Jim Collins agreed.

"By any rational assessment, any rational person would look at Conrad Fischer's track record and declare it one of the most successful schools in our district, not the least," he said.