Ingenuity State of the Arts Report 2016-17 Ingenuity_SOTA_2016-17 | Page 21

CREATIVE SCHOOLS CERTIFICATION
CREATIVE
SCHOOLS
CERTIFICATION
66%
Percentage of CPS
schools categorized
as Strong or Excelling
in 2016–17
21
The data from the 2016–17 CSC show continued improvement in arts
education access for students across CPS. Whereas the three-year trend of
steady improvements slowed in 2015–16, large district-wide improvements
reappeared in 2016–17. The continued district-wide improvement is
especially encouraging given the fiscal uncertainty CPS and the state of
Illinois have faced in recent years. Even in the face of these challenges,
school leaders have, it seems, continued to see the benefits of prioritizing
arts education for their students.
The percentage of schools rated Strong or Excelling has increased every
year, with 66 percent of 653 schools achieving those top category rankings
in 2016–17. This is an increase from 60 percent in 2015–16, 57 percent in
2014–15, 50 percent in 2013–14, and 29 percent in 2012–13. The 434 schools
categorized as Strong or Excelling is an increase of 38 schools over the
number that received one of those ratings in 2015–16. These Strong and
Excelling schools enrolled 260,225 students, or 73 percent of the total
enrollment in the district, an increase of almost 10,000 students from
the number enrolled in such arts-rich schools last year.
THE PERCENTAGE OF EXCELLING SCHOOLS CONTINUES TO INCREASE
2013–14
664 schools
2014–15
664 schools
2015–16
660 schools
2016–17
653 schools
43%
2012–13
681 schools
28%
35% 39% 22% 21% 23%
21% 22% 20%
8% 6% 10%
14%
 Excelling
 Strong
 Developing
 Emerging
 Incomplete
15%
22%
22%
26%
6%
12%
14%
13%
3%
12%
43%
PROGRESS REPORT | 2016–17