NWEA Acquired by HMH

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, a learning technology company known as HMH, will acquire the research and assessment nonprofit NWEA. The press release states that, “The combined organization will harness the collective power of instruction and research-based insights to support educators in their efforts to drive better outcomes for students.”

NWEA, the Northwest Evaluation Association, was used by 10,000 school systems last year and will now function as a division of HMH. NWEA’s materials will be integrated with the HMH platform, and NWEA’s suite of MAP assessments will not be impacted. Tools will continue to be available to educators, and assessments and workshops that are scheduled will proceed as normal.

Proceeds from the acquisition will be used to form a new national charity based in Oregon. The details have yet to be finalized, but the foundation will serve students and educators across the country.

Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266

An Overview of Robert Lindblom Math and Science Academy High School

Located in the West Englewood neighborhood of the south side of Chicago, Robert Lindblom Math and Science Academy (also known as Lindblom) originally opened in 1919 as a technical high school, reopening in 2005 as a Math and Science Academy and a selective enrollment high school. The school is ranked 11th best public high school in Illinois. Total Enrollment is 1,056 with a student to teacher ratio of 18:1. Of the total enrollment, 98% of students are people of color and 67% of students receive free or reduced-price lunch. It boasts an extremely impressive graduation rate of 100%.

Courses offered at Lindblom contain a “demanding college preparatory curriculum where all courses are offered at honors or Advanced Placement [levels].” These include conventional classes as well as more unique offerings such as Women’s Studies, Web Design, Environmental Science, Biotechnology, Horticulture and Plant Biology, and Art and History of Propaganda. Languages offered include Chinese and Arabic while fine arts encompass visual art, choir, and band.

Lindblom also incorporates a colloquium day where students have an array of electives and enrichment classes to choose from including but not limited to Tai Chi, Knitting, A Capella, Photography, African Dance, Archery, Basketball, History of Hip-Hop, Self Defense, Robotics, Aviation, Women in Medicine, and more. For students interested in athletics, they have many from which to choose: basketball, football, soccer, dance, water polo, wrestling, volleyball, cheerleading, bowling, cross country, and track and field to name a few.

For more information about academics or athletics at Lindblom, visit their website: https://lindblomeagles.org/index.jsp.

Lauren Lynch, Tutoring Coordinator
lauren@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266

CPS Announces Application Process For 2019-2020 School Year

Last month, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) released information regarding the application process for the 2019-2020 school year. This refers to students who will be beginning high school during the 2019-2020 school year. The Northwest Evaluation Association Measures of Academic Progress exam (NWEA MAP) will once again be used for the eligibility and selection to Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools and to public high schools with academic requirements (Selective Enrollment High Schools).

For students who attended a CPS elementary school during the 2017-2018 school year, their 2018 spring NWEA MAP scores will be used for the admissions process.

Students who attended a non-CPS elementary school during the 2017-2018 school year will be required to take the NWEA MAP exam this fall. CPS will be administering the NWEA MAP exam free of charge throughout the city. The test will be offered at four sites: (1) Curie Metropolitan High School, (2) Lane Tech High School, (3) Lindblom Math and Science Academy, and (4) Westinghouse College Preparatory High School. Students will be scheduled for the test location closest to their residence.  

CPS will offer the NWEA MAP exam on six dates in September (dates listed below). Parents must submit the registration form to the Office of Access and Enrollment by no later than 5 PM on Friday, September 7, 2018.

Test Dates

• Saturday, September 15, 2018
• Sunday, September 16, 2018
• Saturday, September 22, 2018
• Sunday, September 23, 2018
• Saturday, September 29, 2018
• Sunday, September 30, 2018

For more information about the application process for the 2019-2020 school year, please visit https://go.cps.edu/. Also, feel free to contact Charlie Howard with any questions.

Charlie Howard, Owner Test Prep Chicago
charlie@testprepchicago.com
(872) 221-0175

CPS Announces Application Process For 2018-2019 School Year

Yesterday, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) released information regarding the application process for the 2018-2019 school year. The Northwest Evaluation Association Measures of Academic Progress exam (NWEA MAP) will once again be used for the eligibility and selection to Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools and to public high schools with academic requirements (Selective Enrollment High Schools).

For students who attended a CPS elementary school during the 2016-2017 school year, their 2017 spring NWEA MAP scores will be used for the admissions process.

Students who attended a non-CPS elementary school during the 2016-2017 school year will be required to take the NWEA MAP exam this fall/winter. CPS will be administering the NWEA MAP exam free of charge throughout the city. The test will be offered at three sites: (1) Lane Tech High School, (2) Lindblom Math and Science Academy, and (3) Westinghouse College Preparatory High School. Students will be scheduled for the test location closest to their residence.  

CPS will offer the NWEA MAP exam on two dates in September , two dates in October, and on two dates in January (dates listed below). CPS recommends that parents register their children to take the test in September or October. Parents must submit the registration form to the Office of Access and Enrollment by Friday, September 1, 2017 if they want their children to sit for the exam in September.  For students to test in October, parents must submit the registration form by Monday, October 2, 2017. For students to test in January, parents must submit the registration form by Friday, December 1, 2017.

Test Dates

• Saturday, September 23, 2017
• Sunday, September 24, 2017
• Saturday, October 21, 2017
• Sunday, October 22, 2017
• Saturday, January 13, 2018
• Sunday, January 14, 2018

For more information about the application process for the 2018-2019 school year, please visit www.cpsoae.org. Also, feel free to contact Charlie Howard with any questions.

Charlie Howard, Owner Test Prep Chicago
charlie@testprepchicago.com
(872) 221-0175

CPS Announces Application Process for 2017-2018 School Year

Yesterday, Chicago Public Schools (CPS) released information regarding the application process for the 2017-2018 school year. The Northwest Evaluation Association Measures of Academic Progress (NWEA MAP) will once again count for 1/3 of the selection process for admissions to Selective Enrollment Elementary Schools (Regional Gifted Centers, Academic Centers, International Gifted Programs) and Selective Enrollment High Schools.

For students who attended a CPS elementary school during the 2015-2016 school year, their 2016 spring NWEA MAP scores will be used for the admissions process.

Students who attended a non-CPS elementary school during the 2015-2016 school year will be required to take the NWEA MAP exam this fall/winter. CPS will be administering the NWEA MAP exam free of charge throughout the city. CPS has not yet made known the different testing locations, however they have announced that they will attempt to assign each student to a location which is most convenient to his/her residence.

CPS will offer the NWEA MAP exam on four dates in October (dates listed below) and on one date in January (date not yet determined). The NWEA MAP registration form must be received by the Office of Access and Enrollment by Friday, September 9 for a student to test in October. If the September 9 registration deadline is missed, a registration form must be submitted before December 9 for a student to test in January.

October NWEA MAP Test Dates

• Saturday, October 8

• Sunday, October 9

• Saturday, October 22

• Sunday, October 23

(There will be two testing times on each of the dates listed above: 9am and 12pm).

For more information about the application process for the 2017-2018 school year, please visit www.cpsoae.org. Also, feel free to contact Charlie Howard with any questions.

Charlie Howard, Owner Test Prep Chicago
charlie@testprepchicago.com
(872) 221-0175