Crestwood Secondary School is a publichigh school, located in Cresco, Howard County, in northeast Iowa. Crestwood is the high school for the Howard–Winneshiek Community School District. It serves students from the cities of Cresco, Chester, Lime Springs, Elma, and Ridgeway. Students from nearby Protivin can choose to attend this school as well. The school district was formed in 1960 by combining the independent school districts and high schools of Cresco, Chester, Elma, Lime Springs, and Ridgeway. The current high school building was built in 1969.
Academic design
The school is developing a student centered learning environment that is addressing grading systems, gaps in knowledge, and student pacing. Students, teachers, community members, school board, post-secondary education, and administrators are developing this system. Developing young people with the skill sets necessary for careers can be seen through this Competency Based Education system. Traits of the CBE system are:
Students advance upon proficiency
Competencies include explicit, measurable, and transferable learning
Assessment is meaningful and a positive learning experience for students
Students receive rapid, differentiated support based on their individual learning needs
Learning outcomes emphasize competencies that include application and creation of knowledge along with development of important skills and dispositions
Coursework
Dual Credit Coursework
Crestwood High School offers the following to students through Northeast Iowa Community College (NICC):
Opportunities for post-secondary credit on campus
33 unique courses with 1588 college credits during the 2013–14 school year
These college credits saved parents nearly $687,662 in college expenses
On average, this is a savings of over $4,117 per student per year
College-level curriculum including:
Advanced Placement (AP)
Dual Credit Classes
CNC/Advanced Manufacturing
Certification Programs
Project Lead The Way (PLTW)
Athletics
Crestwood is a founding member of the Northeast Iowa Conference (as Cresco), and the Cadets participate in the following sports:[2]