Facts don’t care about our feelings. However, if OPRF High School ignores facts for much longer, more than feelings will be hurt; less student opportunity will be the result.
We all understand that one of the best things any community has going for it is a vibrant, dynamic, diverse and energy-filled high school that educates our young adults fully while creating community goodwill. We are fortunate to have such a high school. However, many believe OPRF is at an inflection point. I hope our local school leaders begin to look at issues less politically and more critically before much of that goodwill, and taxpayer generosity, is gone.
Our OPRF leadership, many of whom have long been involved with OPRF in varying roles or in board seats, recently “discussed” the State of the District at the Dec. 16 District 200 Board of Education meeting. For me, it was uninspiring and much of the same. While the meeting alluded to a lengthy document, the actual board discussion was void of meaningful challenge or deliberation to help our students. Administrators offered few answers but several admissions.
In fairness, OPRF is still a high-performing district. Yet trends do matter, and the trend is currently not our friend. The students in our community who need our support are not getting it. Families are beginning to look at non-public school options more and we somehow are being told that there is nothing to really see here; just move along.
I offer two graphs below that suggest there is something to see here. A picture tells a thousand words.
Ross Lissuzzo
River Forest