Dear Parents and Community Members:

School districts throughout Illinois publish an annual “report card” which provides information about the performance and demographics of our schools. It is my pleasure to publish the 2007 Hawthorn District 73 report.

All of our teachers and support staff, administrative team and the Board of Education are committed to the success of each and every student. Our stated goal of “learning for all” is not just a slogan, it’s our mission.

There are many ways of measuring student achievement. State standardized testing is just one example. Throughout all of our school buildings, teachers and principals are using many sources of data to help identify students’ strengths and weaknesses. Our emphasis on this already is beginning to show results. Focused teaching – along with other innovative techniques – helps to raise the floor and eliminate the ceiling for student learning. During the 2006-2007 school year the District met the state and federal standards for adequate yearly progress.

We are fortunate to have a diverse learning community at Hawthorn. The Board of Education and Administration are committed to making sure all Hawthorn students continue to be successful learners.

Please take a few minutes to review the report card information, as well as other measures of academic progress sent home to parents throughout the school year. It is vitally important for the entire community to participate in the education of our kids. We’d like to invite you to visit the “Learning@Hawthorn” section of our website at: www.hawthorn73.org for more information about programs and activities.

On behalf of the Board of Education, administrators and staff, thank you for your interest and support of the Hawthorn learning community.

Sincerely yours,

Timothy Shanahan
President, Board of Education