Peoria Public Schools administrators see District 150 making “meaningful academic progress” across several key areas — and at almost every school — on this year’s Illinois Report Card.
Superintendent Sharon Kherat credited the district’s proficiency improvements in the latest annual progress report from the Illinois Board of Education to the dedicated efforts of teachers and staff.
“Through hard work, intentional strategies, lots of support, encouragement, and trust, we are really moving in the right direction and great things are happening,” Kherat said Monday during a news conference at the Annie Jo Gordon Learning Center on Peoria’s South Side.
Compared to 2024, Peoria schools showed stronger proficiency percentages in two of the three measured subjects. The district’s high school graduation rate ticked higher to 81%, while the number of eighth graders passing algebra surged from 18% to 72%. Additionally, the chronic absenteeism rate fell from 39% to 33%.
“What we also saw was that ELA [English Language Arts] and mathematics proficiency went up,” said Kherat. “Attendance went up, teacher retention went up, teacher diversity went up. So the majority of our indicators, we went up.
“We do want to focus on science; our results for science was not where we wanted it to be, and so that will be a huge focus for us. But other than that, all of our student growth went up.”
The 2025 state report card reflects recalibrated proficiency benchmarks to more accurately reflect a student’s preparedness for moving onto college or entering the workforce. While acknowledging the district’s proficiency scores remain below the state average, Kherat said she didn’t think the reduced state standards artificially boosted the figures for District 150.
“If you take a look at the growth, you will see that our growth has improved significantly,” said Kherat. “Even with the recalibration of the proficiency scores, we have still improved proficiency as well.”
Another key component in the report card is each school’s summative designation, a descriptor summarizing how well student needs are met. The five designation levels, ranging from exemplary to needing intensive support, are based on factors such as academic performance, student growth, high school graduation rates, and achievement in state assessments.
Two Peoria schools — Reservoir Gifted School and Northmoor Primary — earned the exemplary designation, while 10 more schools received the second-tier “commendable” designation. Four schools that were in the fourth-tier “comprehensive” designation a year ago moved up, while Franklin Primary School was the district’s only one in the “intensive” category.
“I’m very proud of the progress that we’re making, obviously,” said Kherat. “There’s still a lot more that we want to do, and we believe next year’s outcomes will even be better.”
Kherat specifically pointed to strides made at the Annie Jo Gordon Learning Center — which climbed to the “commendable” designation despite it’s 91% low income rating — as exemplifying the district-wide focus on consistent improvement.
“If Annie Jo Gordon can do it, so can the other schools,” she said. “They’re showing that despite the odds, high standards and great academic outcomes, it’s definitely possible, and they’re showing that right here on the South Side.”
Fabian Daniels, the school’s principal, said the first key step to getting the school on a better track was strengthening the staff by “getting the right people in the right places at the right time” and reducing high turnover.
“Our students have a culture here that is based on being a family. We focused on making sure we educated the whole students, that was from their academics to their social-emotional needs. But not only the students; we also reached out to the families,” said Daniels.
“They know that when we they send their student here to AJG, that they’re receiving the best and they’re being cared for. When you can come into a school in an environment where you know that you do not have to worry about your social well-being, the students were able to focus on their academics.”
