By Charlotte Caldwell
COLUMBUS — Report cards for school districts across Ohio were recently released by the Ohio Department of Education for the 2022-23 academic year.
According to the Guide to 2023 Ohio School Report Cards, this is the first year districts and schools received overall ratings. An overall rating of at least 3 stars means a district or school meets state standards. Star ratings were assigned to five of the six components; The College, Career, Workforce and Military Readiness component was not rated. This component looks at how well-prepared Ohio’s students are for future opportunities, whether training in a technical field or preparing for work or college.
The other five components which received star ratings include the following:
• Achievement: This component represents whether student performance on state tests met established thresholds and how well students performed on tests overall;
• Progress: This component looks closely at the growth all students are making based on their past performances;
• Gap Closing: This component is a measure of the reduction in educational gaps for student subgroups;
• Graduation: This component is a measure of the four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate and the five-year adjusted cohort graduation rate;
• Early Literacy: This component is a measure of reading improvement and proficiency for students in kindergarten through third grade.
The overall rating scale descriptions include the following:
• 5 stars: Significantly exceeds state standards;
• 4-4.5 stars: Exceeds state standards;
• 3-3.5 stars: Meets state standards;
• 2-2.5 stars: Needs support to meet state standards;
• 1-1.5 stars: Needs significant support to meet state standards.
Area superintendents were given the opportunity to review their district’s ratings and provide comments.
Sidney City Schools received 2.5 stars overall — 3 stars for achievement, 2 stars for progress, 3 stars for gap closing, 2 stars for graduation, and 2 stars for early literacy. The report found 32.2% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
“As a district, we continue to strive toward continuous improvement using multiple data points, including results from state testing. We continue to make instructional decisions that align with state requirements as well as evidence-based practices proven to positively impact student learning,” said Brooke Gessler, assistant superintendent and Title IX coordinator for Sidney.
“Decisions made that influence a student’s educational experience are not made primarily because of report card results. Our district is working to make systemic changes that put structures into place to support students based on their needs. These changes include implementing sustainable structures to address the academic and emotional needs of our students. So, we focus on instruction, programming, human capital, community partnerships, and developing internal processes that will create even better learning opportunities for our students. So, yes, because we are a reflective profession, we will continue to adapt to serve our students while also seeking ways to be consistent and equitable in how we serve our students and families.
“We acknowledge we need to address chronic absenteeism, a drop in the 4-year graduation rate, as well as moving our students to grade-level proficiency for tested areas. Successes specific to the report card include gap closing and student progress.
“Like many other districts, we continue to push ourselves as learners within our profession, which is not always easy because we are asked to think differently about teaching compared to how we learned as students. We are asked to engage with new material and pedagogical shifts, which presents different challenges. Yet, it never ceases to impress me how our administrators, educators, and instructional support staff step up to these new challenges. Our district is more than an ever-changing report card rating, whether we receive 3 stars or 5 stars,” Gessler concluded.
Fairlawn schools received 4 stars overall — 4 stars for achievement, 2 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 4 stars for early literacy. The report found 51% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
Anna schools received 4.5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 3 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 4 stars for early literacy. The report found 75.9% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
“We always strive for improvement, and use report card results as one measure. Recently we have integrated the Collins Writing method on a district-wide basis. This incorporates writing across the curriculum to improve students’ writing skills and content knowledge in all subject areas,” Anna Superintendent Andy Bixler said.”We utilize report card data as one of many measures to determine if our locally designed curriculum and instruction is working for all students and subgroups and will continue to analyze this data along with many other sources to develop programs, classes, and instruction that is meaningful at pushing Anna Local Schools’ students forward and preparing them for college and career readiness.”
Botkins schools received 4.5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 2 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 4 stars for early literacy. The report found 74.5% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
“We do use the state report card and testing as one of many data points to look at students’ progress. In the past year we have worked collaboratively with the MRESC Curriculum team to focus on different areas and levels of math as well as reading at the elementary level,” Botkins Superintendent Jeff McPheron said.
“The report card does not drive our instruction – student individual needs, our local curriculum, and state mandates drive those decisions. As such we will be shifting to the Science of Reading this year, implementing the new dyslexia screeners and tiered interventions, and continuing to focus on areas of math.
“The state report card continues to be the challenge of hitting a moving target. The state consistently makes changes each year to what is expected of schools. The students, staff and community at Botkins Local School will continue to do what is best for our students and meet that challenge.
“We have been fortunate to have pretty successful report cards – but again our students need to be the focus and not a report card,” McPheron concluded.
Fort Loramie schools received 5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 3 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 5 stars for early literacy. The report found 91.2% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
“The district has made a focused approach on the use of technology and student data to show student growth. Using that data, and our investment in technology (1-1 school), has helped in our preparation for state testing. The results from this past year reflect those two initiatives and reflect all the other positive things our teachers and students are doing in the classroom. We also had conducted focused PD regarding student achievement to identify strengths and weaknesses within our testing standards,” Fort Loramie Superintendent Daniel Holland said.
“Based on performance index ratings, our school district was eighth out of 607 public school systems. That is a success that we are extremely proud of. One challenge we see is the continued decrease in state funding. We will continue to focus on providing a quality education to our students, even in the face of that adversity,” he continued. “We are planning nothing new with the latest results, and we will continue with our current processes. Our performance index increased from last year, and the district met all testing benchmarks.”
Hardin-Houston schools received 4 stars overall — 4 stars for achievement, 4 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 4 stars for graduation, and 3 stars for early literacy. The report found 46.5% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
“The district was pleased with both buildings’ individual report cards in addition to the overall district report card. I appreciate the efforts of our entire school community; staff, students, and parents. Not unlike any year, we will analyze all aspects of the report card with the intent of turning the few weaknesses or struggles into strengths for next year,” Hardin-Houston Superintendent Ryan Maier said.
Jackson Center schools received 5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 4 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 5 stars for early literacy. The report found 71.7% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
“There has been more of an emphasis in improving early literacy skills but I believe our teachers make a concerted effort to find areas to improve their classrooms on a daily basis,” Jackson Center Superintendent William Reichert said regarding what the district has done differently to improve results. “We will always have an eye on meeting kids where they are at. Different kids have different circumstances in terms of their abilities as well as their environmental influences. Showing growth and closing gaps will always be a priority.
We are extremely happy that the report cards over the past few years have reflected the hard work of our teachers, students and their support systems. We hope to keep it that way. West Central Ohio has some of the finest schools in the state and even the nation. We are happy to be part of this competitive region and that our students are performing at such a high level,” Reichert concluded.
Russia schools received 5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 3 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 5 stars for early literacy. The report found 92.3% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
“The district is continually trying new ideas to improve student overall performance. These decisions are made using our input from our staff and data generated from within the district,” Russia Superintendent Steven Rose said. “We are extremely proud of our students and staff for obtaining a Performance Index of 108.2. We are grateful to have such a strong and supportive community that helps us maintain our strong academic focus.”
Minster schools received 5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 4 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 4 stars for graduation, and 5 stars for early literacy. The report found 67.7% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
”We are very proud of the work our students and staff do every day to prepare our students to become the leaders of tomorrow. Minster’s results on the state report card are a reflection of the importance that our community puts on education and their support for our students. At Minster we spend a lot of time and effort on reviewing past results, providing interventions for students and identifying areas on the state test where we can grow. These steps take an immense amount of effort from our staff, and they deserve a lot of the credit for our test scores,” Minster Superintendent Josh Meyer said. “I would like to add that there are other areas where Minster students and staff excel that aren’t directly measured on the state report card. Our children also achieve at a high level in the fine arts; such as art, music and drama club productions, along with being recognized for their accomplishments in vocational education. We are also proud of our students and their achievements in these areas.”
New Bremen schools received 5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 3 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 5 stars for early literacy. The report found 64.1% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
New Knoxville schools received 5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 3 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 5 stars for early literacy. The report found 39.3% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
Versailles schools received 5 stars overall — 5 stars for achievement, 4 stars for progress, 5 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 4 stars for early literacy. The report found 80.9% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
Riverside schools received 4 stars overall — 3 stars for achievement, 3 stars for progress, 3 stars for gap closing, 5 stars for graduation, and 3 stars for early literacy. The report found 47.2% of students are ready for college, a career, the workforce and the military.
