In Frederick County Public Schools, 73 percent of schools earned 4 or 5 stars via the 2023-24 Maryland Report Cards released by the Maryland State Department of Education today. In Maryland, 41 percent of schools earned 4 or 5 stars.
Five stars is the highest rating a school can earn, and FCPS had 9 schools earn that distinction. FCPS also had 12 schools ranked in the top 10 percent across Maryland. District and school-level work to reduce chronic absenteeism aided many schools in improving their results.
“Students across FCPS continue to make strides in key areas like academic growth, achievement, and overall school excellence,” Superintendent Dr. Cheryl L. Dyson said. “By combining this data with additional local measures, our staff is committed to building on our successes and tackling areas where we can improve. Our FCPS Learning Journey serves as our strategic framework, ensuring every student’s unique path prepares them to succeed in their careers, college, and as contributors to their communities.”
The report card shares evaluation data based on:
- Academic performance in reading, math, and science
- Academic growth
- English language proficiency
- Chronic absenteeism
- School climate
- Well-rounded curriculum
Middle schools also earn points for the state social studies assessment. For high schools, the state also measures students “on-track” in ninth grade and the graduation rate.
“We were excited to see that FCPS had no star ratings below a 3 this year,” FCPS Chief of Schools and Accountability Dr. Jamie Aliveto said. “Even for schools that maintained the same star rating, most improved in their state percentile rank. Whether the state’s accountability model, or progress on our Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that measure success in our Strategic Plan, we are beginning to see evidence of improvement.”
FCPS will continue to review data, local and state, that show strengths and areas of need. The FCPS team is committed to interrogating our performance with a commitment towards improvement, Dr. Aliveto said.
Maryland designed the report cards to meet federal requirements that help set standards for school accountability. Today, federal accountability standards for schools are legislated in the Every Student Succeeds Act.
See the results of the report cards here: https://reportcard.msde.maryland.gov/