October 4, 2007

To:        Citizens of District 86

From:    Dr. Nicholas Wahl, Superintendent of Schools
             Dr. Claudia Geocaris, Principal, Hinsdale South High School
             Mr. Kevin Pobst, Principal, Hinsdale Central High School

Re:       Information About Class Rank Gathered from Comparable High School Districts

This fall we have initiated a process to investigate the impact of class rank. Presently, every student is assigned a “rank” position based on their Grade Point Average (GPA). In our district, students are given both a "weighted" and a "non-weighted" rank. Those ranks are communicated to colleges on the transcript.  Several comparable high school districts in our area have eliminated or modified their process of assigning rank because their research has indicated that some students can be disadvantaged by the reporting of rank.  To provide information to our students, parents, and faculty regarding the impact of eliminating the assignment of rank, we have gathered documents from several of those schools.  Links to those documents are listed below.

Whether you were able to attend the meeting on October 22 or not, we encourage you to read the following documents.

The documents, all in Adobe Acrobat format, are as follows:

• Memo to the District 86 Board proposing inquiry into this topic.
   
• A report on District 86 investigations into Class Rank, issued October 30, 2007.
   
• National Association of College Admission Counseling (NACAC) document on college admissions that includes a discussion of the role of “rank.”
   
• Two documents from Glenbrook High School District 226 reporting results of their pilot study and subsequent decision to eliminate class rank. document 1 document 2
   
• District 113 Highland Park letter to parents announcing the elimination of assigning class rank and the results of their pilot study and the rationale for the decision.
   
• A report to the Stevenson High School Board of Education of a study conducted by Stevenson in cooperation with set of colleges.
   
• A report to the New Trier High School Board of Education of an ongoing “pilot” study of the impact of eliminating their “decile” system, in addition to individual class rank which began with the Class of 2000.

If you have questions or comments, please contact Dr. Claudia Geocaris at 630-468-4210 or Mr. Kevin Pobst at 630-570-8210.