South Shore College Preparatory High School
Contact Information
| Principal: | Janice Wells |
| Phone: | 773-535-8350 |
| Web site: | www.southshoreinternational.org |
| Address: |
1955 East 75th Street Chicago, IL 60649 |
| Freshman class size: | 165 current, 230 potential (Selective Enrollment only) |
| Total enrollment: | TBD (grades 9 – 12) |
Background
South Shore International College Prep (SSICP) opened its doors in the fall of 2013. This new Selective Enrollment High School resides in a brand new building which cost nearly $100 million.
In addition to the Selective Enrollment program, the SSICP building will also house an International Baccalaureate (IB) and Career and Technical Education Program (CTE). The IB and CTE programs have different curriculums and a different, less rigorous admissions process than the Selective Enrollment program. Combining Selective Enrollment students with students admitted through a different process – within the same building – is a relatively new “trend”. Among the ten Selective Enrollment High Schools, only Westinghouse, Jones College Prep and more recently Hancock have a student base that is not 100% Selective Enrollment.
Admissions
In its debut admissions year (2013-2014), SSICP posted a composite score of only 699, giving it the lowest admissions score in the Selective Enrollment High School family. To put this score in perspective, a student with a 699 score could have 2Bs, 2Cs and test scores in only the top 25%.
It’s understandable that South Shore as an unproven commodity would have low admissions scores. However, in addition to its low composite score, too few qualified students (e.g., meeting the minimum 650 score on the 900 point admissions scale) applied to SSICP in its initial year. In fact, SSICP has slots for an additional 65 students – should enough qualified students apply. To fill these seats, SSICP has been actively seeking academically qualified students as transfer candidates.
In the most recent round of admissions, South Shore’s average score was still the lowest in the Selective Enrollment High School universe at 649 points, down 47 points from last year’s 696. The average score fell as CPS used the tougher MAP test as the 7th grade standardized test in its admissions formula. Average scores at South Shore fell evenly across all Tiers — about 50 points.
As shown in Figure 3. South Shore Cut-Off Admissions Scores by Tier, cut-off scores for any South Shore student admitted in the Tier system are at the “minimum qualifying score” level.
Programs
SSICP will offer Honors level classes in a variety of topics including English, Algebra, Geometry, Pre-Calculus, Calculus, Chemistry, Physics, Anatomy, Biology, US History, and World History.
Advanced Placement classes will be available areas including Government, Psychology, Literature, Language and Composition, Biology, Chemistry, Calculus, Statistics, American History, World History, and Spanish. In addition to offering various levels of Spanish, SSCIP will offer a full Chinese language curriculum that includes Mandarin I, II, III, and IV. Electives will include Computers, Journalism, Speech and Rhetoric, Dance, Film, Music, and Band.
SSICP students could potentially participate in a variety of sports including basketball, bowling, cheerleading, cross country, football, golf, soccer, softball, tennis, track and field, volleyball, and wrestling. Activities include chess, Chinese Club, Model UN, National Honor Society, and Spanish Club.
Performance
SSICP is too new for its students to have generated any academic performance statistics.