The Indiana Department of Education released the grade cards for Indiana schools on Wednesday. The grades had been slated to be made public on October 15, but questions concerning five schools delayed the Indiana State Board of Education approval.
Beginning with the 2010-11 school year, that State Board of Education changed the labels of school categories that are based on student performance. The new A-F rating replaced the terms exemplary, commendable, academic progress, academic watch and academic probation. The revised reporting system was touted as being a more transparent way to inform the public.
Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction, Glenda Ritz, shared her appreciation for the work schools are accomplishing. She said, “I want to thank Indiana’s educators, administrators, parents, and most importantly, students for their countless hours of work over the last academic year. This data shows significantly increased performance for our schools, particularly in schools that have been lower performing in prior years.”
Grades are based on points given in several areas including the student growth model and graduation rates, along with college and career readiness.
Schools were given the preliminary results from the schools performances and improvement categories for the 2013-14 school year by September 12. After reviewing the result, schools then had an opportunity to file appeal requests; however, the appeals had to be submitted by September 28.
Washington Discovery Academy (formerly Washington Elementary) in the Plymouth Corporation had received straight “A’s since 2005. They had a perfect (4.00) points for the 2012-2013 school year, then came in as “C” for the 2013-2014 school year.
Other Plymouth School Corporation grades for last year were:
Menominee Elementary “B” for both years ; Webster Elementary went from an “A“ to a “B”; Jefferson Elementary “A” for two years straight; Riverside Intermediate- maintained an “A“ for both years; Lincoln Junior High-dropped from a “B” to a “C” ; and Plymouth High School-also kept an “A” for both grading periods.
Plymouth Schools Superintendent Daniel Tyree expressed his thoughts on the latest scores. Tyree said, “I am very happy with the majority of our school grades.” In my opinion, schools should be able to get an A or a B on the state’s grading system.” He added, “We had two schools fall below a B this year and we will work on that. Most importantly, three of our schools got an A and two got a B. Along with all of the other fabulous things our schools are doing, I am extremely pleased.”
The Plymouth School Corporation grade came in at a “B” level for the last two years.
Both Triton Elementary and Triton Jr.-Sr. High School had “A’s” last year. The latest grades came in as “B” for both buildings. The corporation grade also dropped from an “A” to a “B”.
Triton’s Superintendent Donna Burroughs said there are concerns over the system used to assign grades. She said, “I think we will be happy with our results. We live with the system and work with the system; but the grades can be misconstrued.” By way of explaining her comments, Burroughs said, “For instance if a child had perfect score last year and missed even one the next year, it goes against the school since the score is based on growth.”
Union-North’s two schools fared well last year. LaVille Elementary was an “A” last time and maintained the “A” level, while LaVille Jr./Sr. High School dropped from an “A“ to a “C“.
Superintendent Mitch Mawhorter praised the schools staffs for ranking so high. He said, “Last year we had 17 delays and water problems, but the teachers found a way to get the highest rank we have ever had.” He continued, “ We use a three step process: Planning (what do kids need to know; how? (assessments to identify students who are struggling); and remediation (what do we need to do to make sure they understand).
Oregon-Davis Elementary was listed as a “B” school last year and Oregon-Davis Jr.-/Sr. High School received a “C” . The latest grades were identical. The corporation grade dropped from a “C” to a “D”.
Argos Elementary had a perfect (4.00) point score last year. They were given an “A” rating for last grading period and the latest. Argos Jr./Sr. High School increased from a “B” to an “A“. Corporation-wise, they rose from a “B“to an “A“.
Bremen Elementary-Middle School received a “C” for the last two years and Bremen High School maintained their “A” level. The Bremen Corporation grade is listed as a “B” for both grade cards.
John-Glenn’s Urey Middle School ranked at a “C “ last year and raised it to a “B“. John-Glenn High School had an “A” and kept the top grade, again ranking as an “A” school. North Liberty School also had an “A” for both report cards. Walkerton Elementary had a “B” last year, but dropped to a “C”. John-Glenn School Corporation is now listed as an “A” school, raising their grade from a “B”.
Culver Elementary had a “C” for the 2012-2013 school year and raised it to an “A”. The Middle School was previously listed as a “D” school and made the jump to an “A” school. Culver Community High School was rated as a “B” school and came in as a “B” school again. The Culver School’s Corporation grade went from a “C” to an “A”.
Carol Anders Correspondent
