According to the Illinois School Report Card released on Nov. 4, MCHS has earned the title of “commendable” school once again.

This time of year, the state shares report cards that show how schools all across Illinois are doing across multiple categories.

In 2024, MCHS’s overall index score was a 70 percent and this year, there was an increase of 16 percent. The infographic below shows how the school got to that 86 percent score.

“I do feel like most of the indicators on here are important,” said Upper Campus Principal Greg Eiserman. “If freshmen aren’t leaving the FC on track, the graduation rate goes very low.”

Students wonder why they have to take the ACT. In reality, students are going to have to take a standardized test at some point and it’s the school’s job to prepare them for it.

According to ChalkBeat Chicago, “Illinois tests juniors on a school day each spring using a college entrance exam, such as the ACT or SAT, to fulfill an accountability mandate outlined in federal law starting in 2002. From 2002 to 2016, Illinois used the ACT, then switched to the SAT, which it used from 2017 to 2024. This past school year, the state returned to using the ACT.”

Over the last couple years, MCHS has been staying consistent with being a commendable high school. Getting a 94 percent in the school’s success is what the state calls them an exemplary high school and many of the schools in the state don’t reach that.

“We were quite a bit ways away and this past year, our graduation rate and our ELA proficiency are the highest they can be,” said Eiserman.

MCHS’s administrators say that they are always looking for ways to improve the school, whether that be the environment, or the opportunities that the school offers.

“There are definitely things that we have got to be better at,” said Eiserman. “From a school standpoint, the opportunities that students have now have changed over the years.”

Admin at MCHS were overall happy with the growth that students have shown.

“There are areas that we talk about like student attendance,” said Eiserman. “It’s just not how it used to be for a variety of reasons like post-COVID.”

“These are numbers,” said Eiserman. “It doesn’t necessarily paint the whole picture of us being proud of our athletic facilities and opportunities. We’re probably the best in the conference from top to bottom.”