By Margaret Hodson ’16, News Editor
Ninety-nine point two percent at or above norms. That is just one of the ISACS survey statistics Head of School Dr. Robert Macrae mentioned during his “State of the School” speech on January 14th. ISACS stands for Independent Schools Association of the Central States, and its survey was taken last year by 1,000 people from seven different constituent groups related to the school. Although it is generally very difficult to get objective statistics in education, the ISACS results help to chart Country Day’s progress over time and in comparison to other private schools. There were 525 total performance ratings, and Country Day met or exceeded the ISACS norms in all categories but four. Dr. Robert Macrae used these results in his speech to highlight how far the school has come, as well as to outline plans for future improvement.
Many of the survey results corroborated previously known information: the school supports academic achievement, is innovative in its educational offerings, and has strong commitment to moral values and character development.
Although the school has always been strong in these three categories, there were still numerous instances of improvement since 2005. One area where great strides were made is the number that agreed or strongly agreed that positive school spirit was evident in the community. This number has increased 25%, from 66% of students to 91% of students, since 2005. The number of students that agreed/ strongly agreed that Country Day has a “Caring community environment” increased 12% since 2005. Another interesting statistic is the number of students that believe the “school’s mission is largely achieved.” Eighty-nine percent of students agreed or strongly agreed with this statement, a 29% increase from 2005.
One area where the school can improve is in the retention of new students. Although there has been a 2.8% decrease in the attrition rate (% of students leaving the school) since the 2009-2010 school year, the average rate for the past four years, 8.8% percent, could be lower. Helping to assimilate new families into the community is a good way to ensure that new students remain at the school. Another area of improvement comes from the ISACS survey result showing that 86% of students “feel well known.” While this is 16% higher than in 2005 and 13% higher than the ISACS norms, this number can still be improved upon. Speaking of these statistics, Head of School Robert Macrae said, “Why are 14% of our children not feeling known and loved?”
Along with presenting the ISACS survey results, Dr. Robert Macrae previewed the school’s future plans. Dr. Robert Macrae hopes to boost the enrollment of new students in the upcoming years. He encouraged the community to reach out to neighbors and friends and invite them to visit Country Day. Mrs. Cheri McMaster, parent of Carter ’14, Davis ’16,
Spencer ’19, and Cooper, ’26, gave a fabulous speech about how positive word of mouth can help bring new families to Country Day; Mr. Kenneth Raterman, parent of Kellan ’23, spoke about what it was like for his family to be recruited to the school by the McMasters. Dr. Robert Macrae also spoke of plans to integrate outdoor play and exploration into the curriculum at Country Day. For Dr. Robert Macrae, it is important to be a “top school in the world in technology, yet still really connected to the environment.” In order to help achieve this goal, Kaki Scheer was hired as the Outdoor Programs Coordinator. In the works for the 2014-2015 school year is a plan to build a PlayScape for the Lower School students to enjoy. Also planned is the designing of the Leonard Family Aquatic Center, with ground breaking projected for 2015. Another goal is to complete fundraising and design work for athletic complex renovations. Overall, the speech was a great way to update the community on the school’s progress and future plans. The fabulous night
was capped off with a visit to the New Lower School Commons, and celebrations all around.
