Columbus Municipal and Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated school districts both moved up a letter grade in the Mississippi Department of Education’s 2023-2024 Accountability Ratings, while Lowndes County School District maintained its A rating.
SOCSD’s rating improved to an A, while CMSD moved to a B.
MDE released the ratings Tuesday for each public district and their schools statewide. The ratings, which are federally mandated by the U.S. Department of Education, use different factors to grade districts and schools on an A-F scale with 1,000 being the highest number grade a district can receive.
The 2023-2024 scores were calculated based on proficiency and growth rates in math and English Language Arts in grades 3-8; the growth of the lowest performing 25% of students in English Language Arts and math; performance in science on state assessments in grades 5 and 8; and English learners’ progress toward proficiency in the language.
For high schools, accountability scores use the four-year graduation rate; student performance on the ACT and the Algebra I, English II, Biology and U.S. History state assessments; and student participation and performance in Advanced Placement and dual enrollment/dual credit courses.
Growth makes up more than half the grade for elementary schools and more than one third the grade for high schools and districts, according to MDE.
Columbus Municipal School District
CMSD received an overall score of 604, pushing the district just over the mark to move its rating to a B. Before earning the C rating in 2021-2022, the district was rated D for more than a decade.
Superintendent Stanley Ellis called the rating a milestone for the district, adding it reflects new strategies and initiatives aimed at improving student achievement.
“The district has undertaken numerous initiatives to enhance educational quality and student outcomes,” he said in a statement to The Dispatch. “From implementing new teaching strategies and curricula to investing in professional development and student support services, every step taken has contributed to this success.”
Franklin Academy was the only school in the district to receive a lower rating this year. The elementary school’s grade dropped from B to C.
Sale Elementary and Columbus High School maintained C and B ratings, respectively.
Four of the district’s schools increased by a letter grade. Stokes-Beard and Cook elementaries improved from a C to a B, while Columbus Middle School moved up from F to D. Fairview Elementary made the highest jump in the district, improving from a C rating in 2022-2023 to an A in 2023-2024.
Ellis said the rating is both a benchmark of improvement and a sign for continued success.
“It signals to students, parents and the broader community that the district is on an upward trajectory, with a clear vision for continuous improvement,” he said.
Lowndes County School District
LCSD retained its A rating for a third year, with only one school going down a letter grade. The district’s overall score increased from 699 points last year to 708 points this year.
“Each year, we use these results to celebrate our students’ achievements and identify areas for improvement,” Superintendent Sam Allison said. “… Although these results are largely based on a few tests administered each spring, they represent the culmination of the hard work done by many over the school year.”
Only New Hope Elementary had a lower letter grade this year, dropping from an A last year to a B this year.
Every other school maintained the same rating, with New Hope Middle and West Lowndes Elementary both keeping a B. West Lowndes High maintained a C rating for a third year. With an overall score of 615 this year, the high school still needs 33 points to reach a B.
The district’s three Caldeonia campuses and New Hope High School each maintained an A for the third straight year.
Allison attributed the district’s continued success to the efforts of teachers and administrators.
“We are grateful for the dedication of our teachers and administrators in ensuring that students are taught in a way that fosters growth and success,” he said. “We also appreciate the hard work of our students and the support their parents provide throughout the learning process.”
Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District
In addition to the district overall, three schools improved by at least a letter grade. The district’s overall score increased from 648 total points last year to 671 this year. No individual school ratings declined at SOCSD this year.
Superintendent Tony McGee said quality, intentional instruction in the classroom was the driver of the district’s success.
“Our teachers really focused on providing good quality instruction in all grades … this past year,” he said. “A lot of really good work by our teachers and principals across the district, a lot of good quality instruction in the classroom and just focus on detail.”
Overstreet Elementary bumped its B up to an A this school year, making it the only A-rated campus in the district. Starkville High and West, Sudduth, and Henderson elementaries maintained a B rating.
Partnership Middle School improved from a C to a B. Armstrong Junior High saw the largest improvement in the district, gaining 127 points and jumping from D to B.
McGee said a “laser focus” on improvement helped push the growth at Armstrong. Moving ninth graders from the Armstrong campus back to SHS honed that focus, he said, along with the work of quality teachers and administrators.
“We knew that Armstrong historically had been one of our schools that has underperformed, so to speak, and we knew that the school was a lot better than that,” McGee said. “So we just put the challenge out to principals and teachers: ‘We want to move Armstrong (forward). We want it to be one of the bright spots in our school district,’ and they stepped up and met the challenge.”
Out of the three districts, SOCSD was the only one to have no schools with a C rating or lower.
West Point, Noxubee schools
West Point Consolidated School District’s overall rating increased from a C to a B this year.
South Side Elementary maintained its A, while Church Hill and East Side elementaries both jumped from B to A. West Clay maintained a B, while Fifth Street School went from C to B. West Point High School was the only campus to see a decrease, going from B to C.
Noxubee County School’s district wide score also improved, rising from C to B.
Both Earl Nash Elementary and B.F. Liddell Middle School increased from a D to a C, while Noxubee County High School maintained its B rating.
McRae is a general assignment and education reporter for The Dispatch.
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