Martinsville City Public Schools will continue to be accredited for the 2023-2024 school year, according to data released by the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) on Thursday. All Martinsville schools have been accredited since 2017.
Three of four MCPS schools have received triennial accreditation status due to consistent past high performance, while one school was Accredited with Conditions. Clearview Early Learning Center does not qualify for accreditation by VDOE.
Accreditation is determined by several school quality indicators based on state and federal benchmarks. These indicators are a measure of proficiency and growth in math, English, and science. They also account for achievement gaps in English and math, chronic absenteeism, and, at the high school level, graduation and completion rates, dropout rates, and college, career, and civic readiness.
To achieve Accredited status, a school must attain Level One or Level Two on each of its school quality indicators or must be in a triennial accreditation period. Schools with one or more school quality indicators at Level Three are accredited with conditions.
While MCPS is seeing some of the same trends in academic performance being reported across the state, in other areas the district is surpassing state averages and pass rates.
“Martinsville students have continued to make steady progress in all areas since we returned from remote learning and our students get closer each year to reaching pre-pandemic levels of achievement,” said MCPS Assistant Superintendent of Instruction Dr. Angilee Downing. “For example, Martinsville High School has surpassed its pre-pandemic pass rates in reading and is approaching its pre-pandemic pass rate in math as well.”
Downing said she was also pleased with the district’s science data, particularly since the 2022-2023 school year was the first year fully implementing the state’s new science curriculum. “Usually, when you see a new test, you see drops in scores,” Downing explained. “Overall, Martinsville students have either maintained or improved on their science scores.”
Martinsville is also seeing continued improvement in the area of chronic absenteeism.
“We saw significant drops in our rates of chronic absenteeism for 2022-2023, which speaks to the great work our schools are doing,” Downing said. “Our district is taking a root cause approach to student absence, taking a look at causes and barriers and helping connect families with the resources and supports they need to ensure our students are attending school.”
Last year, Martinsville Middle School principal Ama Waller was recognized by the VDOE for her leadership in the field of chronic absenteeism.
“I am proud of the success that our students and staff achieved last year,” Downing said. “Closing the learning gaps from pandemic-related school closures requires continuous work, and our families and staff have put in the effort. Martinsville City Public Schools will continue our work to ensure our students receive the quality education they need for their success and the growth of our community.”
“I am very pleased with the hard work demonstrated by our students, parents, teachers and staff,” said MCPS Superintendent Dr. Zeb Talley. “This is our seventh year of consecutive school accreditation and three out of four of our eligible schools have achieved triennial success. This is great news for our families and community!"