THE HURRAH HELPER

For 24 years, Russ Marineau volunteered with and/or chaired HURRAH (Happy Upbeat Retirees (and other) Residents Actively Helping) Executive Council, the group that recruited and placed senior citizens in the schools as volunteers. He helped grow the Naperville 203 community relations organization into a robust band of volunteers who were valued in the schools. Principals determined HURRAH’s focus in their schools: mentoring a troubled student, working with a student on study skills, serving as a classroom helper, assisting with clerical duties in the office, or tutoring students.

He liked to say that retirees get as much, if not more, out of assisting students. Before he began volunteering at Washington Junior High in 1991, Marineau retired from a 30-year career at IBM. In a twist to the program in 2013-14, high school students interested in wellness partnered with Benedictine University to develop a fitness program specifically tailored for senior citizens. HURRAH seniors received fitness and strength assessments and instruction on how to use exercise equipment. Marineau died on July 24, 2015 at the age of 81.

Facility improvements, security, and technology continue to be on the docket of Board of Education agendas throughout the year, as well as changing demographics and declining enrollment.

Five more elementary schools underwent a renovation of their front entrances, adding vestibules, call buttons, and driver’s license scanners, which overall increased security for the schools. Other work was to upgrade science lab stations at the junior high schools by 2017-18 to help them comply with new federal science standards. Naperville 203 also developed a plan to revamp the science curriculum in Grades 6-12 that encouraged freshmen to take Chemistry, followed by Biology in Grade 10 and Physics in Grade 11. The change was developed to meet the mandated Next Generation Science Standards.

Enrollment continued to decline, and near the end of the year, Naperville 203 cut about 16 teaching positions across the District. A study showed that enrollment had fallen to 16,438 students this school year, a decrease of 910 from 17,348 in 2011-12. The demographer said that trend should continue and the District should expect a drop of 1,125 students by 2019. He noted that Naperville was “aging” and those demographics were also changing, as 13.4% of students were from low-income homes.

Projections showed that Naperville 203 would need fewer teachers at the elementary and junior high levels for the 2016-17 year.

Technology in the classroom took a big leap. Ten years after this photo was taken in 2007, 8,000 Chromebooks were provided to all high school students. The next year, 6,000 were distributed to junior high students.

Eight thousand Chromebooks were handed off to students at high school registration before the start of school. It was a Herculean effort to prepare and configure the laptops and plan and prep for the digital initiative. Phase I of the plan to ensure that every student in the district had a district-issued device to use in class and at home went off without a hitch. The significance of the initiative was immense: a more equitable environment for students and efficiencies for teachers and better engagement and participation for students. The next year, 6,000 Chromebooks were distributed to junior high students, and the following year Chromeworks and iPad devices would be provided to elementary students depending on their grade level. The student technology fee would cover the costs for the school districts to lease the devices.

Officials celebrated the results of the PARCC (Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers) exam, which reflect the new Common Core standards. Overall, Naperville 203 students, not surprisingly, performed at a much higher level than those statewide. In English, 68% met or exceeded expectations; and likewise, 60% in math. Statewide, averages dropped considerably. The PARCC test was given to all Illinois students in the spring of 2015 and replaced the Prairie State Achievement Exams (PSAE) for high schoolers and the Illinois Standards Achievement Tests (ISAT) for elementary students. It was criticized widely in the state for its length and perceived difficulty.

Other Highlights

• Meadow Glens was one of 335 National Blue Ribbon Schools honored by the U.S. Department of Education. It was recognized in the category of Exemplary High Performing Schools and celebrated at a ceremony on Nov. 9-10 in Washington, D.C.

• Six hundred people attended Naperville 203’s inaugural picnic for new and existing families. The free event showcased all of the many resources and community organizations available for students’ families.

• Newsweek Magazine ranked District 203’s high schools among the top 100 in the country. Naperville North ranked 58 and Naperville Central ranked 95. “Any time our schools are recognized for their great work, it reflects the exemplary partnership among our students, staff, parents, and community,” Superintendent Dan Bridges said at the time. Similarly, the U.S. World Report’s 2015 Best High Schools ranked North and Central as among the best in the state. They also ranked the schools using a college readiness score that analyzed the number of Advanced Placement tests students took and passed. Naperville Central’s 42.8 college readiness figure is figured on 48% of students completing an AP test with 41% passing. Naperville North had a readiness rating of 40.6 with 44% of students taking an AP test and 39% passing it.

• Naperville 203 sold 1.75 acres surrounding Hobson Nursery School to the Forest Preserve of DuPage County for $630,000. The land was added to the 14-acre Goodrich Woods, which is owned by the Forest Preserve in partnership with the Naperville Park District.

• Six juniors from Naperville Central and four from Naperville North earned perfect scores on the February or March ACTs. According to ACT, less than one-tenth of 1% of students who take the college-readiness exam log a perfect score.