Argenta-Oreana CUSD 1

The Argenta-Oreana CUSD 1 district in Illinois serves students from 3 schools: Argenta-Oreana Elementary School, Argenta-Oreana High School, and Argenta-Oreana Middle School. While the district faces some challenges, there are also bright spots, particularly at the middle school level.

Argenta-Oreana Middle School stands out for its relatively strong academic performance, with 48% of students proficient or better in English Language Arts, compared to 39.8% for the district and 41.2% for Illinois. In math, the middle school's performance was lower at 15.8% proficient, but still better than the district's 22.8% and the state's 28.4%. Argenta-Oreana Elementary School also has some bright spots, such as 50% of 3rd graders being proficient or better in math and 52.4% of 5th graders being proficient in science.

However, the district faces significant challenges, including high chronic absenteeism rates, particularly at the high school (27.6%) and middle school (30.8%) levels. Additionally, math proficiency rates are consistently lower than English Language Arts across all grade levels and schools, suggesting a need for a more consistent, vertically aligned curriculum and instructional approach. The district should also consider ways to provide additional support and resources to the high percentage of economically disadvantaged students, as indicated by the high rates of free/reduced lunch eligibility.