The glaring academic achievement gaps between Black and white students at Hinsdale High School District 86 is one of the issues highlighted by the recently released Illinois school report card, and a problem area administrators have been pointing to since spring.
That’s why the results weren’t surprising, said Chris Covino, assistant superintendent for academics.
“The area that we are the lowest in or have the biggest gaps in is the achievement gaps between students of color and white students,” Covino said over the phone. The gaps include the discrepancy between students who have individualized education plans, otherwise known as IEP, and those who don’t.
In an April presentation to the board, Patrice Payne, Director of Instructional Equity at Hinsdale High School District 86, showed that Black and brown student representation in special education courses was more than double.
Based on the report card data released last month, Black or African American students account for 6.8% of the student body, but 17% of the students in the special education program are Black or African American, compared to white representation with individualized education programs, which is comparable to the overall student population.
At the Oct. 27 board meeting, Covino shared an academic report for the 2021-2022 school year, mirroring information released by the state earlier in the day. During his presentation, he indicated a “measurable disparity” between District 86 students of color in honors and AP courses compared to their white peers, as well as grade distribution between students of different racial groups. Black students have the fewest A’s and the most Cs, Ds, and F grades, according to Covino’s report.
The latter, including achievement gaps between racial groups, is one of the only places on the Illinois school report card where District 86 is underperforming state averages.
“I wish there was a way for the district to better connect with the families of the Black and brown students who are struggling with grades and test scores — some of these families don’t have the same time and availability as their white counterparts,” said Hinsdale South parent, Ericka Polanco Webb.
Webb said she isn’t surprised by the racial disparities because district outreach to the families of students that are struggling isn’t up to par, and they’re often left out of the conversations being held on a decision-making level.
“And we can’t discredit what COVID did to Black and brown communities. Many family structures have changed, you have students that are now being raised by siblings or students being raised by aunts and uncles, or grandparents,” Webb said. “You have single-parent households — access is different for those families [and] all of those are contributing factors.”
The data showing the racial gap is part of the recently launched Equity Journey Continuum that analyzes district-level data points already collected and reported to ISBE, such as suspensions and expulsions, graduation rates, and teacher demographics to help school districts view their data through the lens of equity.
According to Jackie Matthews, Executive Director of Communications for ISBE, the tool places districts along a continuum from step one (large gaps between student groups) to step four (minimal gaps between student groups).
Based on the Illinois Report Card, out of 289 total teachers in District 86, 89.2% are white and 1% are Black. Hispanic teachers account for 3%, while Asian teachers make up 3.6%.
As a Black parent in a predominantly white community, Webb said she hopes to see more diverse educators in the district.
When students see themselves in the staff and the curriculum, outcomes are different, Webb said, which is something Payne also alluded to when discussing culturally responsive teaching.
“For me, saying that we can’t find Black educators or that they don’t come here is not acceptable. [The district] should recruit those people and do the work to find those educators,” Webb added.
A lot of the data in the report card points to the impact of COVID-19 on students who were likely already struggling, Covino said, and part of the recovery model is meeting students where they are at.
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“The pandemic didn’t create anything. The pandemic exacerbated issues that already existed or issues that we weren’t noticing,” Covino explained. “And one of the things we have to be cognizant of as we recover is not to focus only on learning loss.”
The district runs on a “continuous improvement model,” Covino said, which includes examining the base-level curriculum in core and elective classes to make sure students are meeting standards measured by external assessments like the state report card.
The district is in the process of eliminating below-grade level classes in exchange for on-grade classes coupled with additional support systems, a change some parents blame for lower proficiency among students.
Hinsdale resident Kim Nibeck Notaro said at the Oct. 27 meeting that “District 86 can’t afford changes,” citing plummeting SAT scores and “shortcut courses creating gaps.”
Still, the percentage of students from District 86 who met or exceeded the performance levels that ISBE set for the SAT was higher than the state average.
Commenting on the scale of learning recovery, community member Catherine Greenspon said at the last meeting, that a solution should include more instructional time, instead of the recent approval of early release Wednesdays.
“Students and education are tied together [but] what’s better for the kids might not always work for the educators, and what seems better for the educators might not always be in the best interest of the kids,” she said.
Overall scores in view, Hinsdale Central earned a designation of “Exemplary” and Hinsdale South earned a designation of “Commendable” on the Illinois Report Card.
A designation of exemplary means a school performed in the top 10% of all schools in the state, had a graduation rate above 67%, and had no underperforming student groups at or below the “all students” group of the lowest-performing 5% of schools.
A designation of commendable also points to a graduation rate above 67% with no underperforming student groups.
The district’s increase in chronic absenteeism, according to state data, is another area Covino attributes to “reeling back from the pandemic.”
“Students had 18-24 months worth of low expectations and inconsistent schooling and we are now starting, really, the first full normal year where we can raise expectations again,” he said. “I think it’s just going to take some time, maybe a year or two for everyone to readjust back to what it means to do school well.”