L-P rated ‘approaching exemplary’ in first report card under new state system

La Salle-Peru Township High School earned an “approaching exemplary” designation in the 2026 Illinois Report Card released Friday, the first under the state’s redesigned accountability framework, as its four-year graduation rate climbed to 94.8% while chronic absenteeism worsened and enrollment continued to decline.The report card marks the debut of Profiles of Performance, which the Illinois State Board of Education said said sets clearer expectations for schools. Under the new framework, 28.3% of schools statewide earned exemplary status, compared with about 10% under the previous system. L-P was rated “commendable” a year ago, though the categories are not directly comparable.L-P Superintendent Clayton Theisinger was not the district’s superintendent during the 2025-2026 school year, which is what the data covers, but said the results are a platform to build on.“This data came from the ‘25-’26 school year, so I was not here, but I was clearly keeping a track of how L-P was doing, an