Lincoln-Way strives for even better rankings
NEW LENOX -- Lincoln-Way High School District is not a stranger to the Sun-Times top 100 list.
However, this year saw their new school, Lincoln-Way North High School, to added to the list. The school opened in fall 2008, and students took the Prairie State Achievement exam for the first time in the spring.
"Our students just do a terrific job," said Principal Michael Gardner. "This is the first. We are excited. We work awfully hard at our academics. Academic achievement is our focus here. The kids understand it. Our parents appreciate it, and our community understands it as well."
However, Gardner said the district still recognizes it has a lot of work to do -- reaching the students who have not met or exceeded standards on test scores.
"We are happy, but never satisfied," he said. "Sixty-two on the list is quite an honor, but we still recognize we have a lot of work left to do."
Gardner said vocabulary will be one of the focuses next year to make sure students understand what they are reading and what the teachers are teaching.
"We continue to look at our data. We are not satisfied. We want every single student who leaves Lincoln-Way to meet the state standards. We continue to work hard on that and look for ways to better educate all of our students."
To help students, the district has a required reading program for freshman that is built upon during study hall periods during sophomore and junior years, in which students can receive help from reading teachers. The district also offers extended classes that are longer than 55 minutes for students who need extra time in math and science courses.
"We put in writing centers in each of our schools which really helped with writing skills," she said.
The district also challenge students by offering 22 Advanced Placement, college-level courses and 12 courses in which they can earn college credit from Joliet Junior College.
"We are really fortunate that we have great parent support. Our kids -- they work hard and we have excellent teachers here," she said. "But we do know we have some work to do and we will continue to do that."
