Laurie Fiorenza, director of student learning | oprfhs.org
Laurie Fiorenza, director of student learning | oprfhs.org
Oak Park and River Forest High School Director of Student Learning Laurie Fiorenza says she’s certain that her plan to ban freshman honors classes will be successful, if she isn’t quite sure yet how she’ll prove it.
Fiorenza told OPRF parents during a district webinar Tuesday she was working on a plan to measure the honors ban’s impact on students, but she wouldn’t have it ready until later in the semester.
“It’s really important to understand we want to monitor in small steps along the way, not just evaluate at the end,” she said. "We’ll be working with a consultant to assist us in our data strategy plan to ensure that we are monitoring along the way and each division will adjust”.
| District 200
Fiorenza has spearheaded the honors ban proposal, which is expected to be approved at the Thursday Oct. 28 board meeting, ahead of her plan. It would require all OPRF freshmen to take the same English, foreign language and history classes, regardless of their skill level.
At the webinar, Fiorenza said she hopes the honors ban will equalize performance among white, black and Mexican students, while creating “cultural consciousness” among white students. She said OPRF will provide its teachers with "racial equity coaches" and a "trauma-informed interventionist" to implement her plan.
She said she plans a survey of students, to assure they "report they belong" and "experience culturally-relevant curriculum and perspective taking."
OPRF parents have expressed concern that Fiorenza’s plan will drag down the test scores and grades of high-achieving students.
A community parents group, the Oak Park-based Committee for Equity and Excellence in Education, said in a newsletter last week that an honors ban at Evanston Township High School (ETHS) has failed, dragging down grades for top students forced to study material they have already mastered.
"State data shows student achievement at ETHS has trended downward" since the honors ban, the group wrote.
Once approved, the plan would start with OPRF's freshman class in 2022-23.
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