Area schools receive passing grades

All area school districts earned passing grades of a C or higher on their 2019 state district report cards issued by the Ohio Department of Education, with both Minster and Marion Local leading the pack with overall scores of A.

Celina and St. Marys schools received a C grade overall, while Coldwater, Fort Recovery, New Bremen, Parkway and St. Henry schools received Bs.

The report cards are intended to measure the success and accomplishments of Ohio's schools, as well as highlight unique qualities and attributes, according to the ODE. Districts are graded on six different areas: student achievement, graduation rate, progress, improving at-risk K-3 reading skills, gap closing for vulnerable students and student preparation for success.

Minster Local Schools Superintendent Brenda Boeke said she was once again very proud of the work students and staff had put in to keep the district as one of Ohio's highest performing schools. Minster earned an overall A grade this year, just as they did on their 2018 district report card.

One of the only differences in their report card was the B grade Minster received under the K-3 reading component. Last year, the district was not required to report data for that section, as the district had fewer than five at-risk readers in those grade levels. Boeke said staff would dive into the data and look for areas to improve.

Marion Local Schools also secured an overall letter grade of A, up from the B they received last year. The letter grades they received in five components remained the same as last year with the exception of the component measuring how the district managed to improve at-risk K-3 readers. The district fell below the threshold that would have required them to report improvements for at-risk K-3 readers, improving their overall grade.

Superintendent Mike Pohlman said he's very pleased with the district's results and the overall report. While the district has areas in which it can improve, he said the report card doesn't totally define the district.

Coldwater Exempted Village Schools maintained an overall B grade, though it had some changes in how the district faired in different components. The district's achievement grade fell from a B to a C and progress also dropped from an A to a B, but the district's grade for improving at-risk K-3 readers moved up from a D to a C.

Coldwater superintendent Jason Wood said the scores came as no surprise, and the administration team would work with teachers to improve in certain areas.

New Bremen Local Schools' letter grades remained the same, with some variations in the data, according to district superintendent Jason Schrader. The school's performance index rating, which measures the test results of every student, was up from last year, which Schrader said signals the district is moving in the right direction and positions them among the top performing schools in the state.

Highlighting areas for improvement, Schrader said staff will focus strongly on the prepared-for-success component, for which the district received a D grade. A lot of information goes into calculating the grade for that component, Schrader explained, adding some factors the school has direct control over, and others it doesn't.

The prepared-for-success component largely focuses on college prep and looks at a district's advanced placement rates, ACT and SAT participation and the number of kids who go on to attend college and graduate within a six-year period. It doesn't count students who go to vocational schools and enter the workforce, though there is a push to include that data, he indicated. 

While some of the criteria for the prepared-for-success component is important, Schrader said he also followed the philosophy of "the district knows what is best for its students." Just because a student doesn't follow a typical college preparatory path doesn't mean they aren't prepared for success, he noted. 

Celina City Schools saw some changes in their component grades. Their progress grade tumbled from a B to a D this year, while their score in gap closing rose rebounded from a D to a B. Superintendent Ken Schmiesing said he was pleased with the increased score in gap closing, which measures how well schools meet the performance expectations of their most vulnerable students.

"I'm really pleased with that. It shows we're doing extra work with English language learning students and students with disabilities," Schmiesing said.

As for the lower progress score, which looks at the growth of each student, Schmiesing said that was one area on which the district would need to work.

"The last several years we have been receiving Momentum Awards for progress among our students. We want to get that back at the area it needs to be at," Schmiesing said.

St. Henry Consolidated Local Schools Superintendent Julie Garke said she was very satisfied with the results of her district, but noted some areas staff would continue to work on, such as the progress component.

"This is one measure on how to evaluate what we're doing. This measure relies heavily just on tests. Our staff are committed to meet needs of the students to ensure their success," Garke said.

Parkway Local Schools saw their overall grade rise from a C to a B this year, and superintendent Jeanne Osterfeld said she was very pleased with the hard work turned in by students and staff. She noted the growth in areas with students with disabilities and the lowest 20% of students, saying the district would continue to grow in that area.

"Students come prepared to learn every day. I'm proud of what they've been able to accomplish, and we're going to look at ways we can continue to improve," she said.

Fort Recovery Local Schools has demonstrated a four-year trend of improvement, said superintendent Larry Brown. 

The district improved in three categories - achievement, moving up from a C to a B; progress, which improved from a C to a B; and prepared for success, which improved from a D to a C.

The district maintained its overall grade of B. Fort Recovery Local Schools also maintained A grades in gap closing and graduation rate, of which Brown said the district is proud.

"While our schools recognize that standardized testing does not measure all aspects of educational development, we will continue to evaluate this data to make instructional changes related to our curriculum goals," Brown wrote in an emailed statement.

Brown said staff plan to continue improvement in the progress category, specifically focusing more on students in the lowest 20% in achievement and students with disabilities.

St. Marys City Schools received largely the same letter grades as last year, with their grade in gap closing dropping from an A to a B. Superintendent Bill Ruane did not return a call for comment before press time.

State Report Card Scores:

EDITOR'S NOTE: For complete details about the district report cards, visit reportcard.education.ohio.gov.