Hinsdale Central High School earned the state's top rating on the 2026 Illinois School Report Card, while Hinsdale South High School landed one tier below.
The Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) released school-level results Friday, Oct. 30. Hinsdale Central received an Exemplary designation, the highest available. Hinsdale South received an Approaching Exemplary designation, the second-highest tier.
Hinsdale Central said on its Facebook page that the school earned an Exemplary designation on the 2026 report card. Hinsdale South called its Approaching Exemplary rating a "proud moment" on its own Facebook page.
New rating system
This year's report card uses a different system than previous years. The four designations are exemplary, approaching exemplary, commendable and developing.
Previously, ISBE ranked schools against each other. The top 10% were deemed exemplary and the bottom 5% were labeled comprehensive, according to Shaw Local. Under the new system, each school is judged against fixed statewide criteria.
For high schools, ratings are based mainly on proficiency, growth and graduation rate. A school where any student group is rated comprehensive can be rated no higher than commendable.
Statewide context
Across Illinois, students posted the highest English language arts proficiency rate since the state began using the Illinois Assessment of Readiness test in 2019. That rate reached 55.4%, Shaw Local reported, citing ISBE data. Math growth remains below pre-pandemic levels for most student groups, though the state saw gains there as well.
The specific proficiency rates, graduation data and other numeric indicators behind each District 86 school's designation have not yet been detailed in public statements from either school.
Under the new fixed-criteria system, more than one school can earn the top designation in the same year, a shift from the old approach that capped Exemplary at 10% of schools statewide.
