Board gets final ratings from state
At its meeting Monday night, the SMCISD board of trustees received the final version of the 2017-2018 Texas Academic Performance Report (TAPR) for the district and each campus. Deputy Superintendent for Teaching, Learning and Assessments Monica Ruiz-Mills presented the report in detail, explaining that the data was not new, but was the final version of the TAPR report presented last year. The report is available for public viewing at smcisd.net/accountability, she said.
For 2017-2018, districts across the state received letter grades from the Texas Education Agency. SMCISD received a “C” on an A-F scale. Ruiz-Mills said that next year, each campus will also receive a letter grade on the A-F scale. For this year, all of SMCISD’s campuses received a rating of “Met Standard.” The state’s two ratings for campuses have been “Met Standard” and “Needs Improvement” for several years.
Trustee John McGlothlin expressed concerns about some of the district’s performance ratings, especially elementary reading, that have declined from the 2014-2015 TAPR.
“We went the wrong direction with third-grade reading, and you could say the same about fifth-grade reading,” he said. “... Have you identified a problem that’s caused that regression, and do we have a plan in place?”
Ruiz-Mills said the test has changed multiple times since 2014-2015 and the third-grade test is written two grade levels above what it was. She also noted that the district is taking steps to introduce letters training and other literacy components earlier for students.
“We’ve been implementing literacy and really working with the teachers,” she said.
Other highlights of the TAPR report that Ruiz-Mills touched on included increases in “approaches standards,” “meets standards” and “masters material” percentages over the previous year. The district’s Special Education Determination Standards is “meets requirements” for the first time since being reported in spring 2015, and the district’s ASVAB (Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery) Status — reported for the first time this year — is “meets requirements.”
In addition, two campuses received distinction designations. Crockett Elementary was noted for academic achievement in English/Language Arts and Postsecondary Readiness, and Miller Middle School was noted for academic achievement in Social Studies.
McGlothlin and Trustee Lupe Costilla also expressed concerns about the district’s college readiness measurement, which has declined. Costilla pointed out the importance of students enrolling in dual-credit classes, which could give students a head start and decrease costs for college if students can get 10-15 credits before enrolling.
“That’s something that a parent doesn’t have to worry about paying,” she said.
