D181 celebrates host of achievements, including students’ top academic performances
As we wound down the 2024 calendar year, we couldn’t help but reflect on all the fantastic things we accomplished together. Our district once again excelled in various areas and continued to solidify our reputation as a premier district.
As a district, our collective efforts have been recognized at the state and national level. Clarendon Hills Middle School received the prestigious National Green Ribbon Award for its commitment to health and wellness and facility efficiency. Since all of our facilities mirror the CHMS efforts, we are confident that all district schools will be recognized in the near future. Additionally, two more District 181 schools received national recognition for their exceptional collaboration and improvement efforts by achieving the prestigious designation of “PLC at Work” schools. Once again, we have been mirroring these efforts at all of our schools and anticipate more recognitions and celebrations in the coming year.
Additional accolades from the Illinois Association of School Boards and Illinois Association of School Business Officials acknowledged the district’s innovative programs, financial management and the school board’s community engagement.
Ultimately, we are most proud of our academic efforts since we know that means our students are excelling academically. This progress was noted by several external organizations, from Niche to US News & World Report. Niche ranked our schools A+, and US News & World Report ranked our schools at the highest level — Best Elementary and Middle Schools. Finally, D181 was one of the highest-performing elementary districts in the state, and we couldn’t have been prouder.
Here’s further evidence of our students’ outstanding academic performance. Fall 2024 MAP testing revealed consistent reading achievement at the 83rd percentile and increased math achievement to the 94th percentile. These results and data from the 2024 Illinois Assessment of Readiness and Illinois Science Assessment, where students achieved record highs in English language arts, math and science, showcased the district’s commitment to academic growth.
Beyond academics, we continue our focus on keeping our students safe and in an outstanding learning environment. We invested in safety measures and innovative curricula to create a positive learning environment. We were also excited to expand our full-day kindergarten program to give our youngest learners more opportunities to grow and learn in the fall of 2025.
We are deeply grateful to our dedicated staff, outstanding administrators and supportive board members. Their hard work and commitment serve as critical pillars of our success. We also want to thank the D181 Foundation and PTOs for their unwavering support.
We wish everyone a wonderful holiday season and a Happy New Year!
— Dr. Hector Garcia, superintendent, Community Consolidated Elementary District 181