Morris Community High School earns commendable grade in school report card

Morris Community High School scored a commendable grade in the Illinois State Board of Education’s school report card for the 2022-2023 school year.

The high school achieved an 85.16 overall index score, and the report card indicates that there are no under-performing student groups. It also indicates that Morris High School is not in the top 10% of schools statewide.

Superintendent Craig Ortiz said the district is focused on improving this score, and the district definitely needs to increase its percentage of students meeting or exceeding standards. One area of focus for teachers, Ortiz said, is finding opportunities to improve test scores.

One area Ortiz said the district finds encouraging is that 91.6% of freshman students are on track. “On track,” in this sense, means students who have earned at least five full-year course credits and have earned no more than one semester “F” score in a core course like math, science, science or social science.

According to the Illinois Report Card, freshmen who are on track are four times more likely to graduate from high school.

Ortiz said that number is up seven percentage points from last year, and it’s the highest in six years.

“Ninth grade is a critical year for students, so we are happy to see this metric heading in the right direction,” Ortiz said.

The Illinois State Board of Education’s report card website, illinoisreportcard.com, recommends exercising caution when comparing this year’s report card to past years, although Morris High School’s commendable rating is in line with previous years.