Bradley Schools Earn Commendable Status Again

Bradley Elementary School District 61 has secured a second consecutive year of "commendable" status from the Illinois State Board of Education.

Rebecca Selk, the district’s director of curriculum and instruction, presented the 2026 report card metrics at a community stakeholder meeting on Thursday. The designation is the second-highest of five available categories. School leadership noted that while the ISBE recently altered its criteria, making direct comparisons to previous years difficult, the district views the current standing as positive progress.

The district currently enrolls 1,316 students across three buildings with an average class size of 18.6. Bradley East serves preschool through second grade, Bradley West covers grades 3 through 5, and Bradley Central houses grades 6 through 8. The demographic profile shows 66.7% of students are low-income, a jump of approximately 7 percentage points from 59.5% in 2024. Additionally, 4.7% of students are homeless, 20.9% have individualized education plans, and 9.5% are English language learners.

Attendance figures present a mixed picture. Average daily attendance remains steady at roughly 93%, marking a 1% increase since 2024. However, chronic absenteeism, defined as missing 10% or more of the school year, rose by about 3% to 23%. This figure is down from the 25% level recorded between 2022 and 2024. Chronic truancy, which occurs when students miss 5% or more of days without a valid excuse, has remained near 22% for the last two years, up from 12% in 2024. Superintendent Chris Hammond stated that administrators are implementing weekly processes to address these gaps. "I think any little bit helps," Hammond said. "The more touch points that we can have with our families around getting our kids to (school), the better, and quite honestly, the most critical time for them to not miss school is those early years."

Academic proficiency in both English language arts and math exceeded the district's target of 2% to 3% annual growth. ELA proficiency rose by 2.4% with a growth percentile of 47.1, while math proficiency increased by 2.9% with a growth percentile of 40.8. Selk attributed these gains to sustained effort despite changing demographics. "Even when we have these demographics, and they’re increasing in some areas that we sometimes don’t have any control over, we’re feeling good about our academic progress and where we’re going," she said.

Administrators are urging community partners to engage with the schools to maintain this momentum. A Family Strong Night is scheduled for Jan. 28 to provide parents and families with detailed information on current district needs.