Woodland Elementary School Outlines Improvement Plan to Edwardsville Board of Education
Following a lower rating on the Illinois School Report Card in 2023, Woodland Elementary School teachers have worked hard to boost the school back to a "commendable" status.
EDWARDSVILLE - During the regular meeting of the Edwardsville Community Unit School District #7 Board of Education, members of the Woodland School Improvement Team presented the Board with plans to further improve Woodland Elementary School.
Get The Latest News!
Don't miss our top stories and need-to-know news everyday in your inbox.
Woodland Principal Andy Williams and his team explained that Woodland Elementary School was named a “targeted” school in 2023, earning a 59.15 score on the Illinois School Report Card. By 2024, the school had launched a School Improvement Plan and increased their score to 76.55, making it a “commendable” school.
“It’s a challenging job, and it’s one that the staff puts in every single day,” Williams said. “Really, this is a staff thing. This is not an administrative thing. It’s them coming together and doing the work and putting the love of what we’re doing into it.”
Assistant Principal Alicia Hillier explained that Woodland made “intentional shifts” to support the school’s goals and “foster a more inclusive learning environment for all of our students.”
The school had monthly school improvement meetings, targeted professional learning that enhanced collaboration among staff members, administrative monitoring, and professional learning communities, among other initiatives. They also received school improvement funds from the Illinois State Board of Education, which were used to pay for professional development.
The School Improvement Team has several plans in place to continue Woodland’s growth.
Hillier explained that the team identified two priorities for the 2025–2026 school year: “Provide high-quality instruction and differentiation for all students” and “Provide collaboration time for general education and special education teachers to evaluate student data and plan for differentiated instruction.”
The team’s first goal is that by June 2026, all Professional Learning Teams will work collaboratively to create and use learning targets for all essential standards in one subject area. This means they will identify and review essential standards, generate learning targets, and ensure students know these standards through learning walks by the administration and members of the School Improvement Team.
The second goal focuses on using data from six common formative assessments to inform instructional shifts and ensure mastery of all essential learning targets by each student.
The third goal is focused on behavior. The school district’s multi-tiered system of support provides tier one supports to all students. By the end of the 2025–2026 school year, the School Improvement Team hopes that 85% of Woodland students will have received no behavior logs per quarter, given that they have these tier one supports.
The fourth goal is centered on the Second Step curriculum, which supports students’ social-emotional development and focuses on fostering a positive school culture and climate, the team explained. Teachers will ensure that 100% of classrooms deliver all 20 lessons as outlined in the program.
Williams said the team will continue to meet monthly. Board members thanked the School Improvement Team for their work.
“We don’t get those kind of changes without everybody working together and without leaders who listen,” said Board President Bob Paty. “Thank you. We appreciate you.”
The Board unanimously approved the Woodland Elementary School Improvement Plan. This plan will now be submitted to the Illinois State Board of Education.
More like this:
- Most Popular
- Top Stories
- Most Recent
