National Blue Ribbon Schools Program

Scott Altman Primary School is a K-3 elementary school comprising approximately 205 students located in Pekin, Illinois. Due to a loss of manufacturing in the past decade, the city has experienced an increase in families living in poverty. This situation has increased the number of students who have qualified for Free and Reduced-Price Lunch to 53%. Therefore, it has been the school’s priority to educate the whole child and meet each student's individual needs. The school has formed professional learning communities (PCL) that focuses on best practices for student engagement, meeting individual needs by scaffolding and differentiating instruction. Staff collect and analyze data to monitor student progress and make informed decisions so that all students have access to a rigorous curriculum appropriate to their needs. Through its PCL's and embedded professional development, the school has been able to implement and sustain quality curricula that allow teachers to be responsive to their students’ needs and support their individual goals. Due to these efforts, the state of Illinois has identified Altman as a high achieving school. The school received the Academic Excellence Award, which is given to schools when 90% of students met or exceeded state standards in both reading and math for at least three consecutive years on the state assessment. Altman was able to achieve this award by creating a school culture that centers on the needs of students, providing high=quality instruction, and building a strong learning community for all stakeholders.