Rochelle High School Reports Strong College Credit Results

ROCHELLE — Rochelle Township High School reported strong academic results and expanded college credit opportunities during Monday’s school board meeting. Principal Chris Lewis said freshman on track and graduation rates remained in the mid 90% range, while students taking Advanced Placement tests had a 91% pass rate, up from 89% in 2025. Seventy four percent of seniors graduated with college credit, including 59 students who earned at least 12 college credits, equal to about one semester of college. The school has 12 teachers certified to teach dual credit courses and plans to add dual credit chemistry for the 2027 to 2028 school year. New dual credit courses this year include biology and American history. School officials said the program can provide significant savings for families, with dual credit courses costing about $50 compared with higher tuition at Kishwaukee College and Illinois public universities. Students who qualify for free or reduced price lunches may also qualify for free dual credit courses. For the 2026 to 2027 school year, the school plans to focus on reducing student screen time, lowering academic deficiencies by 5% in each department and improving ACT composite scores by 1.5 points from spring 2026 preACT results.