Community Oversight and Academic Growth: The Impact of Parents Care

By Philippe Melin, Parents Care Cofounder

Since 2022—when Parents Care was founded to provide independent oversight of our local public schools—student achievement in Lake Forest has surged.

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At the high school level, Lake Forest High School (District 115) has seen the highest SAT growth (+7%) among a peer group of top-performing public high schools, including Stevenson, Glenbrook North, and Deerfield.

These scores represent the combined percentage of students meeting or exceeding state standards in both English Language Arts (ELA) and Math—a clear, comparable measure of college readiness across districts.

At the elementary and middle school level, Lake Forest District 67 stands out with a 33% increase in students meeting or exceeding standards on the Illinois Assessment of Readiness (IAR)—again, measured across both ELA and Math. Among the elementary-only districts sampled, this is the largest gain by far.

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These aren’t isolated improvements in academic growth. The two districts with the most consistent, organized community oversight—District 115 and District 67—also happen to be the two districts with the strongest academic gains. Other top North Shore districts without comparable levels of oversight did not see the same results. That’s more than coincidence. It’s a sign that accountability works.

The progress we’ve seen is the result of many people working toward a common goal. Students are showing up and striving to meet higher expectations. Teachers are doing the hard, daily work of instruction and support. Parents are staying engaged and pushing for better outcomes. And since arriving in 2022, Superintendent Matthew Montgomery and his team have focused on improving academic performance. Amid all of this, one factor that should not be overlooked is the role of parental and community oversight. When schools know that the public is paying attention—reading reports, asking questions, watching meetings, and holding systems accountable—it reinforces a culture of excellence. Oversight matters, not as a source of conflict, but as a source of shared responsibility. That’s the model we believe in, and it’s one we hope more communities will embrace.

By contrast, Lake Bluff District 65—which has not been a focus of Parents Care—has shown modest improvement since 2022. A 17% gain is commendable, but its overall scores still trail most other North Shore districts, and its growth since 2022 is about half of neighboring Lake Forest. The trend is positive—but the gap remains. We believe Lake Bluff students deserve the same level of urgency, transparency, and public accountability that has helped drive progress in Lake Forest.

If parents, educators, or board members in Lake Bluff are ready to take the next step, we would welcome a partnership.

As a community, we should never settle. Lake Forest has made major strides, but we are still catching up to the top-tier performance of schools like New Trier, Glenbrook North, and Stevenson. We owe it to our students to keep pushing forward.

Parents Care was founded to raise expectations, insist on transparency, and make student success the top priority. These results suggest it’s working, but we must continue