Dear Parent or Guardian,

Beginning February 18, 2025, parents across Illinois will have an opportunity to participate in the tenth annual statewide Illinois 5Essentials Survey. This survey is designed to generate a detailed picture of the inner workings of your child's school. As a parent, this opportunity will allow you to share your thoughts on the important elements of school effectiveness in a survey about your child's school. On behalf of the Illinois State Board of Education, the Illinois 5Essentials Survey will be administered online by UChicago Impact at the University of Chicago. The survey gathers data related to five indicators that can predict important student outcomes, including improved attendance and larger test score gains. These five indicators that affect and predict school success are:

• Effective Leaders 
• Collaborative Teachers 
• Involved Families 
• Supportive Environments 
• Ambitious Instruction 

Prior research in more than 400 schools has shown that schools that were strong on at least three of these "5Essential" indicators were 10 times more likely to improve student learning gains in math and reading than those that were weak on three or more Essentials. 

All teachers and 4th through 12th-grade students will also be responding to this survey. 5Essentials Reports will be generated for schools if their teachers and/or students meet the response rate threshold of 50 percent. These reports will be sent to schools and districts in May 2025, and will also be included in the State School Report Card. 

Additionally, our district has chosen to provide the optional 5Essentials Parent Supplemental survey. If at least 20 percent of parents complete this survey, a parent supplement will also be generated. The parent data will not be reported on the State Report Card. 

Your participation in the parent portion of the survey will help us understand the conditions at your child's school and guide improvement. Your identity and survey responses will be kept completely confidential and will never be connected to you or your child. 

The Illinois 5Essentials Parent Survey will be conducted from February 18, 2025, through March 31, 2025. To take the survey please visit https://survey.5-essentials.org/Illinois/ and select the appropriate survey to begin. For more information about the Illinois 5Essentials Survey, or to view previous years' Reports, please visit https://5-essentials.org/. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me at cmckay@district130.org. 

Sincerely,

Colleen M. McKay, Ed.D.
Superintendent

Dear Parent or Guardian,

We are writing to inform you about a student survey that will be administered at your child's school called the Illinois 5Essentials Survey. This is the ninth year the Illinois State Board of Education will implement this survey across the state. This survey is based on 20 years of research at the University of Chicago. It asks students about their experiences in school, giving school leaders critical student input to help develop school improvement plans. 

Student participants will be required to log in using their state student ID and birth date in order to complete the survey. Students' identities will be completely confidential. Teachers or administrators will never see individual responses to survey questions and will only receive aggregated information, such as the total percentage of students who agree homework assignments help them learn the course material. 

Please be aware that under the Protection of Pupil Rights Act. 20 U.S.C. Section 1232(c) (1) (A), you have the right to review a copy of the questions asked of your student(s). Survey questions can be found on the Illinois 5Essentials Support Center (https://impactsurveyshelp.force.com/s/article/illinois-5essentials-survey-questions).

If you do not want your son or daughter to participate, fill out the information attached below and ask your child to return this sheet to his or her teacher. 

Sincerely,

Colleen M. McKay
Superintendent

Links to more information:

https://files.gabbart.com/1992/january_29_2025_illinois_5essentials_survey_parent_form_english.pdf

https://files.gabbart.com/1992/january_29_2025_illinois_5essentials_survey_parent_form_spanish.pdf

https://files.gabbart.com/1992/january_29_2025_illinois_5essentials_survey_parent_letter_english.pdf

https://files.gabbart.com/1992/january_29_2025_illinois_5essentials_survey_parent_letter_spanish.pdf