CEDARVILLE — Cedar Cliff Local Schools received high marks on the state report card released by the state last week.
But one component which the district barely passed — prepared for success — concerns Superintendent Chad Mason. Not because of the D grade it received but because of how that grade is determined.
The grade is based on how many students earned a remediation-free score on all parts of the ACT or SAT, earned an honors diploma, and/or earned an industry-recognized credential. Each student receives one point for achieving that. Bonus points are earned for performance on an advanced placement or international baccalaureate exam or for earning college credits before leaving high school. The total number of points is divided by the graduation cohort — the total number of students in the adjusted classes of 2016 and 2017.
The percentage determines the letter grade.
“While I was pleased with some aspects of the grade card, I was still disappointed in how the state quantifies other areas,” Mason said. “ … Last year, Cedar Cliff Schools graduated 42 students, 37 of which went on to college, four in the work force, and one to the military. Surely, that is better than a ‘D’ by any standard. The nice thing about a small school like Cedar Cliff is we know our graduates, we know their families, and we talk to them after they graduate. Our community knows our students are college and career ready and we are much more interested in our student feedback as opposed to a report from Columbus regarding the state’s interpretation of our kids’ future.”
The district received no less than a C in the other components — achievement, progress, gap closing, graduation rate, and K-3 literacy —and an overall grade of B.
Cedar Cliff scored an A for its four and five year graduation rates of 96.4 and 98 respectively. It also received an A last year. Progress and gap closing each scored a B. Progress looks at the growth all students are making based on past performances. Cedar Cliff’s grade indicates students are making more than a year’s worth of growth.
Gap closing shows how well schools are meeting the performance expectations for the most vulnerable students in English language arts, math, graduation and English language proficiency. The district met 83.3 percent of the objectives, compared to 69.6 last year, which earned a D.
Cedar Cliff received a C in K-3 literacy and achievement, however the literacy number shot way up the grade scale. Last year, 36 students started off track and 20 moved on (55.6 percent) compared to 23.9 percent the year before.
Achievement which shows whether student performance on state tests met established thresholds and how well students performed on tests overall — also showed improvement. Cedar Cliff met 66.7 of the indicators, up from 45.8 percent the year before. The overall performance index was nearly identical to last year’s.
“Overall, it was a good report that highlights what we already know,” Mason said. “We have a great community, a great school, a great staff, and great kids. I definitely do not need a once-a-year report card to tell me that.”
