ROCKFORD, IL — Ehren Jarrett experienced triumph, confronted tragedy, celebrated success and endured disappointment in his 13 years as superintendent of Rockford Public Schools.
Hailed for stabilizing one of the largest school systems in Illinois, Jarrett leaves June 30 to become superintendent of Hononegah High School District 207 where he previously worked as a teacher and principal.
He hopes it will prove to be the final stop of his career.
Jarrett said he was blessed to serve as superintendent of Rockford Public Schools where he has recently guided the district through painful contract negotiations and budget cuts.
In a city often deeply critical of its intuitions, the job was one of the biggest challenges of Jarrett’s life.
“Never in my wildest dreams when I was a high school English teacher and a basketball coach did I ever think I would be the superintendent of Rockford Public Schools,” Jarrett said. “I have so much gratitude for that opportunity. On the other hand, it is definitely a full-contact sport being the superintendent of Rockford Public Schools. There are lots of difficult decisions that need to be made and often those difficult decisions are pretty openly criticized.”
Jarrett reflected on his 15 years in Rockford Public Schools leadership during an interview with the Rockford Register Star. As Indiana educator Larry Huff gets set to take the reigns of District 205, Jarrett said that he hopes people believe he is leaving the district in a better position than when he arrived.
“I’ve done my best to control what I believe we can control as a school system and tried to maintain as positive an approach as I can as we’ve systematically worked hard to improve a district that, frankly, is one where we still have work to do to regain the trust of our community,” Jarrett said.
Revolving door
The son of an orthopedic surgeon who worked at what was then Rockford Memorial Hospital, Jarrett grew up mostly in Rockford. He attended Bloom Elementary School for kindergarten through sixth grade and graduated high school from Rockford Lutheran.
He taught English, world history, geography and U.S. government at Rockford Lutheran and at Hononegah High School. Jarrett moved into administration, serving as an assistant principal at East High School and assistant principal and principal of Hononegah. He was hired as an assistant superintendent in Rockford in 2011 and then superintendent in 2013.
His appointment came after Rockford Public Schools pushed their way through eight superintendents in 13 years.
Jarrett’s superintendency marked the end of that revolving door, making him the district’s longest serving superintendent in 60 years.
Schools have AC
Having that kind time in the top spot allowed Jarrett to direct investment of nearly $700 million into school improvements including $170 million to install air conditioning in all schools.
“We went from 30% of our schools being air conditioned to all of them being air conditioned,” Jarrett said. “We went from having an average age of building over 80 when we started, now it’s in the low 60s because we were able to build two new schools. And we demolished eight or nine of the really older ones. We improved our athletic facilities, our fine arts facilities and expanded offerings.”
‘Long, slow climb’
High school graduation rates have improved significantly during his tenure. Graduation rates went from from a pandemic era low of 64% in 2021 to 77% in 2025, a 13-point improvement even as it still lags state average of 89%.
But Jarrett said that when 2026 graduation rate data is released, it is expected to show that the district had an overall graduation rate of more than 80% for the first time last year.
“That’s been a long, slow climb.” Jarrett said. “And a lot of people deserve credit for that, but I’m proud that we’re making progress.”
Avoiding catastrophe
Jarrett said the district partnered with the city of Rockford to hold the line on its property tax levy for a decade. It was at a time when he believed if the school district’s rate climbed any higher it could have been catastrophic. Property taxes for the school district peaked at nearly $8 per $100 of assessed valuation in 2015. The rate is now about $4.50.
“While people may not physically be paying less on their taxes, what that means is property values have grown dramatically while tax expenditures by the community have remained relatively constant,” Jarrett said. “I think there was a scenario where without the leadership of our board and the city on that issue … it could have been catastrophic for growth in our region.”
Unfinished business
Universal, all-day, early childhood classes with provided transportation remains an elusive goal and one the next superintendent could attempt to tackle, Jarrett said.
“If I were to highlight the very top thing that I ran out of time and would like to see us do, it would be to approach birth to five with the same veracity that the community has approached the idea of college and career readiness,” Jarrett said.
Another area of concern remains the district’s elevated level of chronic absenteeism. More than 42% of Rockford students were chronically absent last school year, defined as being absent more than 10% of the school days or more than 17 days. State average is just over 25%.
Although last year’s rate was a vast improvement over the whopping 61% that were chronically absent in 2022, it remains far too high, Jarrett said.
Jarrett also said that the school district has to improve trust in the school district.
“There’s a lot of deep seeded trust issues that are still embedded in our community towards the Rockford Public Schools,” Jarrett said. “I would like to believe that we made some meaningful progress, but I think under Dr. Huff’s leadership, there’s going to be an opportunity to go further with restoring trust and a positive view of the school system.
Jeff Kolkey writes about government, economic development and other issues for the Rockford Register Star. He can be reached via email at jkolkey@rrstar.com and on X @jeffkolkey.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford schools chief reflects on 13 years of ‘full-contact sport’
Reporting by Jeff Kolkey, Rockford Register Star / Rockford Register Star
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By Jeff Kolkey, Rockford Register Star | USA TODAY Network
