St. Michael-Albertville School District is on target for meeting challenging state academic achievement standards. Based upon results released by the Minnesota Department of Education, STMA has index scores for 34 eligible groups and has met 100% of the requirements under the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) for making Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). The targets and score rates for all students across tested grades are shown below.
STMA is also closing the achievement gap for students who historically have not achieved at higher levels. The scores for Hispanic, Black, Limited English Proficiency, Special Education and Free and Reduced Priced Lunch subgroups exceeded the target or made significant improvement in the percent of students who met the state academic standards in math and reading.
“We are encouraged that the number of students who are proficient is increasing each year,” said Superintendent Marcia Ziegler. “We have met the state academic standards even as the percent of students required to meet proficiency increases.” The NCLB goal is that 100% of the students must be proficient by 2014.
The Minnesota Department of Education released the percent of students meeting or exceeding standards in math, reading and science. The numbers of proficient students increased in all three areas over 2009 and are higher than the Minnesota averages. Reading and science scores increased at a higher rate than the state average.
Over the last several years STMA has stepped up its efforts to improve student achievement. Superintendent Ziegler credited improved achievement to offering a rigorous, well articulated curriculum taught by highly skilled teachers and programs that target additional instruction for students who are not proficient.
STMA’s vision is to consistently rank academically in the top 25% of public school districts in Minnesota by 2012. Based on Minnesota Comprehensive Achievement-II (MCA-II) state assessments in reading and math, STMA’s average rank in 14 areas places the district in the top 19%. STMA ranked in the top 25% in the state in 9 of 14 areas representing math and reading scores in grades three through eight and reading in grade 10 and math in grade 11. The average rank increased the last three years from the top 24% in 2008 and the top 21% in 2009. Superintendent Ziegler stated that the goal shows a commitment to compare ourselves with the best schools in the state and to measure our success in a way that is meaningful to our parents and community.
ACT scores have increased for the fifth year at STMA. The composite score of 23.0 exceeds the national average and for the first time slightly exceeds the Minnesota average.
The ACT is a curriculum-based achievement test that measures the skills and knowledge taught in high school that are deemed essential for college and career readiness. The STMA ACT results on college readiness benchmarks report that the percent of STMA students meeting the college readiness benchmarks has increased as well. As one example, the district’s math college readiness score has increased to 71% of the students meeting or exceeding the college readiness benchmark surpassing the Minnesota average of 61%.
For the sixth straight year, Minnesota's high school graduates posted the highest average ACT score among states where a majority of graduates took the college entrance exam. Superintendent Ziegler noted that matching the Minnesota state average which is the highest in the nation is a significant benchmark for the district. She stated that the district will continue its focus to help each and every child prepare for college and career success.