Illinois Releases 2025-26 School Report Card Ratings
The state updated its evaluation system to include five categories for school performance across Illinois.
Updated on Oct. 29, 2026 in Secondary Education
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The Illinois State Board of Education has released its 2025-26 school report card ratings under a new system that features five distinct categories instead of four. These ratings now account for student progress, engagement, and school experience while evaluating schools against fixed criteria.
Why it matters
By splitting the commendable designation into two categories and adjusting how absenteeism is factored in, state officials aim to provide a more nuanced look at performance. The updates reflect a shift in focus toward student outcomes and institutional environment rather than competitive rankings.
The state expanded its rating system to five categories and lowered proficiency cutoffs for the Illinois Assessment of Readiness. In Evanston/Skokie District 65, proficiency gaps remain, with 48.1% of Dawes students not meeting math standards.
The players
Illinois State Board of Education
This state agency is responsible for the oversight of public education and the implementation of assessment standards across Illinois school districts.
Evanston/Skokie School District 65
This school district serves students in Evanston and Skokie and is a primary focus of the local performance data released in the state report card.
The details
Six elementary schools in the Evanston/Skokie District 65 earned exemplary ratings, while three middle schools were marked as approaching exemplary. Officials also adjusted proficiency cutoffs for grades 3 through 8 and removed absenteeism as a factor that lowers an individual school's rating.
Timeline
April 2025: The Illinois State Board of Education approved new guidelines for school evaluations.
2024-25 school year: 73% of schools across the state received a commendable rating.
2025: The state board officially lowered proficiency cutoff scores for students.
2025-26: The state released the latest iteration of the Illinois Report Card ratings.
Culture Shift
The transition to a five-category rating system reflects a broader cultural shift toward prioritizing holistic student experience over simple standardized metrics. By decoupling absenteeism from school rankings, the state is moving away from punitive measures toward more comprehensive institutional evaluation.
Parents and local residents can use the new report card data to assess how schools in Evanston and Skokie are performing under the updated evaluation criteria. These ratings influence how stakeholders view the efficacy of student engagement and progress initiatives in their neighborhood schools.
The takeaway
The new rating system offers a revised framework for understanding how Illinois schools serve their students. Residents should focus on the specific progress and engagement metrics now included to better understand the performance of local schools beyond just test scores.
Further reading
For more information on academic standards, visit the Secondary Education section.
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Do you trust the current school rating system to accurately reflect school quality in your area?
