DORLAND A. NORRIS
Deputy Superintendent
ELIZABETH SHEPPERD
Assistant Superintendent
SUE MCGOWN
Assistant Superintendent
JAMIE HADJAN
Chief Financial Officer
LONZO GREENWOOD
President
KINNIS WILLIAMS, SR
Vice President
IRMA GOLLIDAY
Secretary
VICTORIA CLAY
Treasurer
VALERIE GEE
ANTONIA INGRAM
LAVONDIA NEELY
School District 189
1005 State Street ~ East St. Louis, Illinois 62201
(618) 646-3000 Fax: (618) 583-7186
Superintendent’s Fax: (618) 583-7186 www.estl189.com
Superintendent of Schools
PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Kimberly Roberson, director of Public Information, kimberly.roberson@estl189.com
Vice President
June 26, 2014
East St. Louis School District 189 Receives $10.5 Million School Improvement Grant
Funding will be used to improve academic outcomes at Lincoln and Mason Clark Middle Schools
East St. Louis, IL - East St. Louis School District 189 recently received a $10.5 million School Improvement Grant
(SIG) from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) to improve academic outcomes for students at Lincoln and Mason Clark Middle Schools. The district was among nine in the State of Illinois to receive the award, which will help the district make significant changes to improve student performance and college readiness.
The district’s award was the second highest granted by the state. The City of Chicago School District 299 received the highest award at more than $16 million.
“We are extremely pleased to be named as one of nine districts that were selected to receive the SIG grant,” said Arthur Culver, superintendent of East St. Louis School District 189. “Our SIG committee dedicated an extraordinary amount of time and talent preparing the grant proposal. Our teachers, administrators, parents and community members were instrumental in the planning of the grant. Teachers Lesaundra Blakely, Natasha
Mosley, James Groves, Leah Crowell and Sharon Crockett represented the District in an exemplary manner at the ISBE interview for finalists.
“The SIG will allow us to extend the school schedule at both Lincoln and Mason Clark in order to provide increased learning time and increased time for staff professional development,” Culver said. “Our academic intervention plan will include resources for college and career readiness and tutorial support, an academic
Saturday Academy, peer mentoring and support for family engagement. We will also address improving our

school culture and climate through Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports (PBIS) training and other support systems.
The district plans to implement the grant using the turnaround intervention model. The Illinois Association of
Regional Superintendent of Schools (IARSS) will be the district’s lead partner in implementing the SIG. IARSS will provide support in improving student outcomes, as well as monitor success. Grants are awarded for three years, pending reapplication and state approval each year.
The district will add four positions to support student academic development at the middle schools:
 an academic interventionist to focus on college and career readiness;
 a family engagement coordinator to support the families’ involvement in improving education;
 a Read 180 teacher to support reading improvement; and
 instructional coordinators to provide on-site professional development for teachers.
In addition, the district began implementing during the 2013-14 school year an assessment program to provide data analysis of student performance levels that administrators utilize to make curriculum and instructional decisions. The school-wide assessment incorporates a diagnostic assessment, quarterly benchmarks, and endof-unit assessments that are aligned with the Illinois State Standards and used to track student mastery of content skills and instructional effectiveness.
East St. Louis School District 189 serves 6,300 students in grades preschool through 12th grade. The district is committed to providing experiences that ensure that students are afforded the broadest range of opportunities to reach their academic potential and thus become contributing and productive members of society. To learn more about the district, visit us at www.estl189.com
or follow us on Twitter or Facebook.
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