Death Notice

Alan "Al" John Mumbrue, age 67, of Evanston, Illinois, died at home on October 7, 2007. He was a teacher, historian, musician, archivist, singer, runner, husband, uncle, and friend. He lives on in the hearts of Mary, his wife of 43 years, joyful to have been his companion through life; his niece Patricia Henderson Pottenger; his nephews Roger Henderson and Stephen Griffith. A memorial service will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 3 at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 939 Hinman Ave., Evanston. Contributions may be sent to Butler Hospital, Memory and Aging Program, Attn: CADASIL Research Fund, 345 Blackstone Boulevard, Providence, RI 02906

In Memoriam

Alan "Al" John. Mumbrue, age 67, of Evanston, Illinois, died at home on October 7, 2007.

Al was a teacher, historian, musician, archivist, singer, runner, husband, uncle, and friend-but this impressive list of titles alone does not sum up the multi-talented, caring, warm, and likeable person that he was. He is remembered by his friends, family and colleagues for his wonderful, playful sense of humor and for his generosity and commitment to them.

Born on July 9, 1940, in Paw Paw, Mich., Mr. Mumbrue was a long-time resident of Evanston. Al graduated from Western Michigan University, and earned his Master's Degree in History from the University of Michigan.

From 1963 until 1992, he taught U.S. History, logic, and psychology at Evanston Township High School. With an inspiring teaching style, he delighted in watching his students learn, grow, and prepare themselves for higher education and the larger world. In 1987, he was awarded a sabbatical for outstanding teaching.

Mr. Mumbrue had a life-long love of music and studied piano and organ. He also raised his voice in song as a long-time member of St. Luke's Episcopal Church Choir in Evanston. He had a great interest in genealogical research and the history of St. Luke's, where he was at one time a member of the vestry.

His outstanding record as history teacher at ETHS, his role as archivist at St. Luke's, and his well-known love of history led in 1996 to his nomination by the Evanston Historical Society (now Evanston History Center) to join its Board of Trustees. Serving on the Programs and Collections Committee, Mr. Mumbrue was instrumental in the archival research relating to a silver platter created by Charles Gates Dawes (Vice President of the United States, 1928-1932) and signed by all the Senators who served during that time.  Always a dedicated and valued member of the Board, he was re-nominated twice, and in 2002 he resigned with distinction after serving for the maximum six-year term allowed by the Society's by-laws. He remained a Life Member of the Evanston History Center.

Mr. Mumbrue was a runner for many years, and enjoyed baseball (Go, Cubs!). He combined his twin passions for history and running in some unusual worldwide travel, from running on the track at Delphi, Greece, to jogging on the Great Wall of China.

Mr. Mumbrue lives on in the hearts of Mary, his wife of 43 years, joyful to have been his companion through life; his niece Patricia Henderson Pottenger; his nephews Roger Henderson and Stephen Griffith; his grand-nephews Timothy Jungel, Eric Jungel, and Daniel Henderson; grand-nieces Amanda Duvall and Alyse Pottenger; great-grand nieces Taylor Jungel and Hailey Jungel, and great-grand- nephew Nicholas Jungel.

In recent years, Mr. Mumbrue stoically faced the challenges of CADASIL, a very rare, debilitating neurological disease.  His courage in the face of adversity will long be an inspiration to everyone who knew and loved him.

A memorial service for Al Mumbrue will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Nov. 3 at St. Luke's Episcopal Church, 939 Hinman Ave., Evanston. 

Contributions in memory of Mr. Mumbrue may be sent to Brown University Medical School as follows: Butler Hospital, Memory and Aging Program, Attn:  CADASIL Research Fund, 345 Blackstone Boulevard, Providence, RI 02906, where he was a participant in clinical studies.

District 202 Fails to Make AYP; Restructuring in Progress

By Jennie Berkson

Despite improvement in scores for some groups of students, District 202 failed to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) under the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) for the fifth year in a row.

This has resulted in the placement of the District in restructuring status, according to a report given to the School Board on Oct. 9.

High school juniors take the Prairie State Achievement Examination (PSAE) to determine whether the District is meeting NCLB standards.

The goals of the NCLB are that each district make AYP and that 100 percent of students meet state standards by 2013-14. The year 2001-02 served as the baseline year.

"The percentage of students meeting or exceeding standards improved for every subgroup in reading, math and science, with the exception of Hispanic students," reported Judith Levinson, director of research, evaluation and assessment.

However, the improvements were not enough to ensure AYP for most subgroups, in each of which 55 percent of students were required to meet or exceed standards on last spring's PSAE.

Seven student subgroups failed to make AYP: African-American, Hispanic and low-income in both reading and math, and learning-disabled students in math. For 2008, NCLB requires that 62 percent of students in all subgroups meet standards.

The larger and more diverse a school is, like ETHS, the more likely it is to have trouble making AYP for all subgroups.

The 2007 results showed that while more than 90 percent of white students met or exceeded standards in reading and mathematics, the percentages of black and Hispanic students meeting or exceeding standards hovered around 35 percent. About 39 percent of students with disabilities met standards in reading and about 28 percent met them in math. Of the economically disadvantaged student subgroup, 37 percent met standards in reading and 32 percent in math. See table on page 1.

There are consequences for schools each time they fail to make AYP. Schools that have failed for five consecutive years to make AYP are placed in "restructuring."

This sanction requires that the school write a plan to be implemented in the following year. The plan must indicate that the District will undertake one or more of the following actions:

1. Reopen the school as a public charter school
2. Replace all or most of the school staff, which may include the highest level administrator, who are relevant to the school's inability to make AYP
3. Enter into a contract with another organization, such as a private management company with a demonstrated record of effectiveness, to operate the school as a public school
4. Implement any other restructuring of the school's governance that makes fundamental reform.
"Has the administration looked at any of the options in terms of direction?" asked Board president Martha Burns.

"We have, and we don't like any of them," replied Superintendent Eric Witherspoon. "Basically what we're going to do is work closely with the State Board of Education and get some direction.

"This is new territory, not only for us, but for them. We do know that we want to be very assertive and strong in the plan we put forward, and we will see if it meets their criteria or not."

The State requires the District to provide a restructuring plan by February 2008.

Dr. Levinson said many other Chicago-area high schools are not making AYP and are on the verge of having to restructure phase.

Dr. Witherspoon explained that the larger and more diverse a school is, like ETHS, the more likely it is to have trouble making AYP for all subgroups. "Even though you make AYP for all groups except for one, you don't make AYP for the entire school."

Board member Mary Wilkerson asked about measures being taken to assist upcoming students who have low scores on the EXPLORE and PLAN tests, indicating that they might have difficulty on the PSAE.

Dr. Levinson replied that all students who have not met standards on previous tests have been identified to teachers and to department chairs so that the students can be provided with additional assistance.

"Who are we holding accountable to make sure that this data is being used [to help students]?" asked Ms. Wilkerson.

As part of restructuring, the District could reopen the high school as a public charter school; replace all or most of the school staff, even up to the highest administrators, enter into a contract with a management company to operate the school and implement other restructuring of governance.

"We have a very strong system through our Professional Learning Communities," said Dr. Witherspoon. Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) are small groups of teachers who meet weekly to review best teaching practices in their area of expertise.

"Teams are really looking at individual student progress every week," Dr. Witherspoon continued. "We are also keeping very close track of how each PLC is doing. We will make sure . . . that every student needing assistance will be receiving additional support in test prep as well."

Dr. Witherspoon went on to say that, in addition to the new System of Supports program established this year, which provides mandatory morning study time for students receiving below a C minus, there are resource centers for each core subject that are open to students all day long. After school, teachers and staff are volunteering to provide assistance, and students are volunteering at a morning peer tutoring center.

"I have never seen a school respond so rapidly and so universally to step forward to say we believe something urgent is needed here, and we're all going to pull together to try to do something profound," Dr. Witherspoon said.

Some support systems are already in place, and by next February the District must provide a restructuring plan to the State.

Dr. Levinson reported that state representatives want to work with ETHS "to ensure that we move forward and address underperforming subgroups."

She explained that several staff members from the North Cook Regional Office have been assigned to assist District 202 with "resources, both money and professional development."

Study Questions ISAT Gains

By Larry Gavin

A study released on Oct. 4 titled "The Proficiency Illusion" claims that a substantial portion of the dramatic increases on the 2006 Illinois Standard Achievement Tests (ISATs) is due to changes made to the test, rather than to improvement in student achievement. The 238-page study, conducted by the Northwest Education Association (NWEA) and the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, analyzed the tests used by 26 states to measure progress under the No Child Left Behind Act.

As part of the "Proficiency Illusion" study, researchers analyzed whether the changes made by the State Board in 2006 made it easier to meet standards on the 2006 ISATs compared to prior years. They concluded that much of the reported gain on the 2006 ISAT was due to changes in the tests.

School District 65 Superintendent Hardy Murphy told the RoundTable, "We don't agree with that. We're seeing not only an increase in ISAT scores, but also an increase in the percentage of students scoring above the 50th percentile rank nationally in reading and math."

Matt Vanover, spokesperson for the Illinois State Board of Education (State Board), told the RoundTable, "The Fordham Institute is formalizing a plan for a national curriculum and national standard. The Fordham folks are pushing a national agenda. The study has some shortcomings."

In the five-year period 2001-2006, District 65 improved its overall performance on the ISATs by 22 percent. Almost two-thirds of that improvement took place on the 2006 ISATs.

"The Proficiency Illusion"
In 2006 the State Board made a number of changes to the ISATs. Among these changes were altering the "cut scores," those used to determine whether a student met standards.

With the exception of eighth-grade math, the State Board maintains that the new cut scores were changed to convert to a new vertical scale and that they are equivalent to the old cut scores when it comes to measuring student performance. The State Board acknowledges it lowered the bar to meet standards for eighth grade.

The State Board also extended the time to take each section of the reading and math tests, which on a cumulative basis added up to 60 more minutes to take the tests; a new firm was retained to prepare the test questions; and other changes were made.

As part of the "Proficiency Illusion" study, researchers with NWEA analyzed whether the changes made by the State Board in 2006 made it easier to meet standards on the 2006 ISATs compared to prior years. The NWEA did this by analyzing reading and math results from a group of elementary and middle schools in which almost all students took both the ISATs and the Measure of Academic Progress (MAP) test in 2003 and 2006. The MAP test was developed by NWEA and is used in more than 2,500 school systems in 49 states.

NWEA researchers concluded that the changes made it significantly easier for third- and eighth- graders to meet standards in reading on the 2006 ISATs and for fifth- and eighth-graders to meet standards in math on the 2006 ISATs. Gains shown on the ISATs at those and other grade levels were not present on the MAP tests.

NWEA also estimated the impact the changes made by the State Board would have on the 2006 ISAT results, using the MAP test results as the yardstick.

As an example, NWEA researchers determined that third-grade students in 2003 had to score at the 52nd percentile nationally on the MAP test in order to meet standards in reading on the ISATs; in 2006, third-graders had to score only at the 35th percentile nationally on the MAP test in order to meet standards on the ISATs.

Since the MAP test was constant, they concluded that the changes to the ISATs increased the number of students meeting standards on the ISATs by 17 percent - the difference between the percentile ranks on the 2003 and 2006 MAP tests.

Using this approach the NWEA researchers estimated that the changes made by the State Board increased the number of students meeting standards on the 2006 ISATs by the following percentages: third- grade reading -17%; fifth-grade reading - 3%; eighth-grade reading - 14%; third- grade math - 2%; fifth-grade math - 8%; and eighth-grade math - 27%.

The table below compares NWEA's estimated increases due to the changes made by the State Board and the actual increases experienced by School District 65 students on the 2006 ISATs for the grades and subjects indicated:

The "Proficiency Illusion" study also concluded that meeting standards in math on the 2006 ISATs was easier than meeting the math standards of 80% of the other states reviewed. For reading, the study concluded that it was more difficult to meet standards on the ISATs at the third-grade level than 70% of the other states reviewed, but at the eighth-grade level meeting reading standards on the ISATs was easier than 80% of the states reviewed.

"In our looking at it, regardless of what the cut scores are, we're seeing more students scoring at or above the fiftieth percentile rank nationally. ... We're seeing demonstrated improvement." -- District 65 Superintendent Hardy Murphy

According to the study, Illinois' eighth-graders who performed at the 21st and 22nd percentiles nationally on the MAP tests in reading and math (meaning that 79 and 78 percent of the students taking the test did better than they), met standards on the 2006 ISATs.

D65 Points to increases in percentile ranks
Dr. Murphy said the study was apparently done as part of a national dialogue about using national standards versus state standards to measure progress under NCLB. "In our looking at it, regardless of what the cut scores are, we're seeing more students scoring at or above the fiftieth percentile rank nationally," he said. "We're seeing demonstrated improvement."

Starting with the 2006 ISATs, about 30 questions from the nationwide Stanford Achievement Test were included in the ISATs to enable school districts to compare how their students were doing in relation to students nationwide.

Paul Brinson, director of information services for District 65, told the RoundTable that an estimated 50% of the District's third-graders scored above the 50th percentile rank nationally in reading on the 2003 ISATs; the number grew to 79% on the 2007 ISATs. In math, the percentages grew from 61% on the 2003 ISATs to 74% on the 2007 ISATs.

Dr. Murphy said the District also had substantial gains at the fifth-grade level. In reading, an estimated 59% percent of the District's fifth-graders scored above the 50th percentile rank nationally on the 2003 ISATs; the number grew to 80% on the 2007 ISATs. In math, the percentages grew from 73% on the 2003 ISATs to 85% on the 2007 ISATs.

Mr. Brinson said the percentile ranks for 2003 are all estimates.

"Our percentile shift is in the right direction," Dr. Murphy said.

The State's Board's response
Mr. Vanover told the RoundTable there are a number of problems with the "Proficiency Illusion" study. He said, "We don't know the size of the sample they used. We don't know how many students or what schools take the MAP test."

The State Board questions whether the study is part of a debate on national standards.

He added, "What they fail to take into account is that there is a framework for Illinois learning: the Illinois learning standards. What they discount is that students are actually learning. What they're saying is that if you have a large number of students taking a test and the scores are going up [there is something wrong]."

The Proficiency Study disputes Mr. Vanover's comments. The study states, "NWEA curriculum experts evaluate the particular state's content standards" and "the MAP test is purposely aligned to each state's standards."

The study also states that enough students were in the sample for each state to make the results reliable; an appendix to the study states the sample sizes in Illinois ranged from 1179 to 1654 students per grade level - roughly the same sample size used by the State Board in some of its own test procedures.

Before changing the cut scores in 2006, the State Board conducted a "Bridge Study" in an attempt to make the new cut scores it adopted equivalent to the old cut scores.

With the exception of eighth-grade math, the State Board maintains that "the only thing that has changed is the numerical value of the cut score. Thus, meeting the Illinois Learning Standards according to the new vertical scale requires as much knowledge as (and no more than) the old ISAT scale did."

The State Board acknowledged that it lowered the bar to meet standards for eighth-grade math. The Bridge Study states the State Board did so because the score had been placed too high and was out of line with the other grades.

The Bridge Study estimated that the change to the cut score for eighth-grade math would increase the number of students meeting standards by at least 26 percentage points.

D65 Unveils Enrollment Data for 2007-08

By Larry Gavin

Paul Brinson, director of information services at School District 65, presented the Opening of Schools Report for 2007-08 together with supplemental enrollement and demographic data at the Board's Oct. 15 meeting.

Enrollment: Mr. Brinson said that 6,177 students are enrolled in grades K-8, up 15 students from last year. The enrollment, however, is down 537 students from five years ago and down 769 students from ten years ago. Mr. Brinson said, "The greatest loss of students has been African-American students."

Data presented by Mr. Brinson showed the following shifts in the last ten years: black students declined by 1,000; white students declined by 427; Hispanic students increased by 358; and other students (which includes multi-racial students) increased by 300.

Mr. Brinson said the drop in enrollment may be explained by a number of factors including a decline of about 1,200 school age children in Evanston between 2000 and 2006 according to census data and estimates, a decline in the black population in Evanston from 16,704 to an estimated 11,425 during the same period, and a rigorous enforcement of the District's residency requirement.

He also presented a chart showing enrollment at private schools in the Evanston area between 2000 and now and said, "The point I'd like to make is there's not a large variation in the enrollments. It does not support the comments that large numbers of students are leaving the District and going to private schools."

Kindergarten enrollment: 713 students are enrolled in kindergarten, 35 more than last year.

Pre-K: 295 children attend an early childhood education program at the Joseph E. Hill Education Center, 17 more than last year.

Ethnic breakdown: 41% of the students are white, 34% are black, 16% are Hispanic, 5% are Asian, and 3% are multi-racial.

At the kindergarten level, 46% of the students are white, 25% are black, 15% are Hispanic, 6% are Asian, and 7% are multi-racial.

Ethnicity by school: In accordance with the Supreme Court's decision in the Seattle School District case, the District says it did not use race as a factor in admitting students to the magnet schools or in granting permissive transfers. This year two schools, Orrington and Willard, have a racial group that exceeds 60 percent of the student body at the school. Orrington is 61% white; and Willard is 71% white. Three schools, Dewey, Orrington and Willard, exceed the 60-percent ratio at the kindergarten level. Dewey's and Willard's kindergarten classes are 61% white; Orrington's is 65% white.

Low income: 2,631 students, or 40% of all students, are identified as low-income, one percentage point less than last year. The percentage of low-income students at the District's schools ranges from a high of 67% at Oakton to a low of 24% at Willard.

Special education: 1,031 students, 16% of all students, are in special education programs. Of those, 44% are black, 29% are white, 18% are Hispanic, 4% are Asian, and 2% are mult-racial.

LEP: 594 students are limited English proficient (LEP). Of those, 403 are enrolled in a Two-Way Immersion or a transitional bilingual program; 18 are in a bilingual special education program; 109 are enrolled in an English as a Second Language program, and 64 have waived services.

ACC: The enrollment of students in the African-Centered Curriculum (ACC) program at Oakton School is 21 at kindergarten, 23 for first grade, 16 for second grade and 14 for third grade.

Busing: 2,190 students are eligible to take the bus because of distance, saftey or a program. Of those 37% are white, 36% are black, 7% are Asian, 16% are Hispanic and 3% are multi-racial. Of those who are eligible, a total of 1,710 students take the bus, 39% of whom are black, 33% are white, 18% are Hispanic, 7% are Asian and 3% are multi-racial.

ETHS Could Include PE in GPA

By Jennie Berkson

Citing concerns about teen fitness, the District 202 Physical Education (PE) Department exhorted the School Board to consider a proposal to include PE grades in ETHS' weighted grade-point average (GPA).

PE Department Chair Shirley Nannini reminded the Board that "well-being" is one of four District goals for this year, a significant component of this goal being the promotion of "student wellness and personalization, including good nutrition and physical activity.

"Not counting Physical Education in the weighted GPA sends a clear message about the importance Evanston Township High School places on physical education," said Ms. Nannini. "Many students do not work as hard as they would if PE grades were included in the weighted GPA."

Not the same old gym class
"This is an excellent idea and long overdue," said Superintendent Eric Witherspoon. "Physical Education is a vital component of learning here at ETHS. People who think that Physical Education today is what they remember as gym class will find that it is a very different kind of curriculum which provides knowledge and skills that students need for a lifetime."

The proposal was also supported by letters signed by all department chairs and all ETHS staff developers, a group of senior teachers.

According to Ms. Nannini's report, most PE courses do not include skill grading, which she suggested may have presented a barrier to inclusion of PE in GPA in the past.

"Students are graded on effective effort, level of activity, improvement, specific course curriculum and understanding of concepts focusing on lifelong wellness. Students are not graded on their fitness level. The focus on assessments is for students to improve their fitness level, whatever that level may be," the report stated.

Impact on GPA
The report also anticipated questions about impact on a weighted GPA, since there is currently no honors credit for PE. According to the calculations, students with extremely high GPAs would experience a slight (.07) reduction in GPA even if they received an A in PE, because PE has no opportunity for honors credit. A student in the middle of the class who received an A in PE would experience an increase in GPA. Class rank would not change for the highest-scoring students.

Student Services Department Chair Dottie Coppock told the RoundTable that many colleges and universities recalculate GPAs for admissions purposes, so that the GPA provided by ETHS is not always the one considered by colleges. For example, some colleges only use the GPA for core courses, others do not include fine or performing arts courses unless they are at the AP level, and still others do not include the grades from freshman year.

Other area schools
More than 30 area schools responded to a survey about whether or not they included PE in the weighted GPA. Seventeen schools, including Niles North, Naperville and Lake Zurich do include PE; 15 schools, including Maine East, Maine South, Glenbrook North and Glenbrook South do not. Ms. Nannini said New Trier had not responded to numerous requests for information, although she had personal knowledge that they do not include PE in the GPA.

Board members respond
Board response to the proposal was mixed.
"Students need to learn how to be healthy," said Board member Missy Fleming. "This is a wonderful extension of the [well-being] goal."

"I'm in favor of this proposal," said Board member Omar Khuri. He pointed out that students are compensated for their effort with grades.

He suggested that some students may not be as conscientious about attending a class where the grade "doesn't count."
Other Board members were not as enthusiastic.

"I'd like to think that the motivation comes from the fun they're having in class," said Vice-President Rachel Hayman. "Students are under a lot of pressure." Including PE grades in the GPA would just add to that pressure, she said.

Margaret Lurie said she thought parents would be concerned about the possibile reduction of the GPAs of high-achieving students. She requested that a letter be sent to parents informing them of this proposal and asking for input prior to the Board's proceeding to a vote on such a change in policy. Other Board members agreed that such input would be valuable.

Pigozzi to Fill Vacancy on District 65 School Board

On Oct. 15, the District 65 School Board unanimously selected Andrew Pigozzi to fill the vacant position on the Board created by Sharon Sheehan's resignation. Mr. Pigozzi had run as a candidate for School Board in the April election. He will serve on the Board through the April 2009 election.

Board President Mary Erickson said, "We were very, very impressed with the caliber of people who applied for the position. We made a unanimous and enthusiastic selection of Mr. Pigozzi."

Nine other persons applied for the position: Carolyn Castellini; Dr. Zaida Cintron; Ms. Jessica Clarke; Lisa Ditkowsky; Robert Eder; David Harpool; Karen Johnson; John Osterlund; and Mindy Wallis.