Madison County Schools ranks 13th out of NC's 115 districts in proficiency
RALEIGH - The state released its 2021-22 school accountability results, and the local school system earned some bragging rights for its marks.
In the latest School Performance Grades released last month by the state Department of Public Instruction, Madison County Schools scored a 60% level of proficiency ranking for all subjects and all students. The state level of proficiency average was 51.4%. MCS also received the highest possible rating for its four-year graduation cohort rating of higher than 95%.
The student achievement data for the 2021-22 school year is based on analysis of all end-of-grade and end-of-course tests, which are aligned to the North Carolina Standard Course of Study in English Language Arts (Reading) and Mathematics and the Essential Standards in Science for all public schools in North Carolina.
Madison ranked third overall in the Western Region in student proficiency. In addition to Madison, the Western Region is composed of Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Swain, Macon, Jackson, Transylvania, Polk, Rutherford, Buncombe and Haywood Counties.
"The 2021–22 school year was the third school year with impacts from the pandemic," the state DPI said in the results. "Schools resumed face-to-face instruction, and virtual programs continued to be available for students. Students and the education community continued to be affected by COVID, particularly when COVID exposures required students to be absent from school or revert to remote learning. These reports must be reviewed within that context, meaning, though instructional delivery was not as varied as in the 2020–21 school year, it continued to be an anomaly in comparison to the 2018–19 school year, which was prior to the onset of the pandemic."
Madison County Schools students saw marked improvements from last year's scores. On average, reading proficiency for grades three to eight rose 22.2%, while math scores jumped 36.4%.
At the high school level, N.C. Math 1 scores rose 15.2%, while N.C. Math 3 scores rose 32%. Biology scores also saw a noticeable improvement, making a 23.4% increase, while English II scores rose nearly 10%.
Superintendent Will Hoffman said he was pleased with the latest accountability results.
"Madison County Schools continue to maintain a high standard in our academic accountability results, and we continue to rank among the best school systems in North Carolina," Hoffman said. "The achievement of our students and staff is remarkable, and it underscores our vision that when we all pull together as a learning community, even through a pandemic, we can achieve anything. The success of our students can be credited to our amazing administrators, teachers and staff who are making it happen in every classroom, in every school, every day."
Madison County Schools will continue to implement an intervention model of instruction at all schools to support student learning for the 2022-23 school year.
“I continue to be amazed at the true grit of our students and staff in Madison County Schools," Assistant Superintendent Lisa Gahagan said. "When faced with adversity, they work hard and perform at a level to be extremely proud of. We are a school family that cares for the well-being of our students and staff academically, socially and emotionally. Together, we make it happen."
The school performance grades and metrics are available here.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Madison County Schools ranks 13th out of 115 districts in proficiency
