Today, the District of Columbiaās Office of the State Superintendent of Education released 2017-18 scores for all D.C. schoolsā performance on , the state assessment administered to all public school students. ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC remains the highest performing PreK3-12 public school system in the District, providing a comprehensive educational pathway for 6,300 of the cityās students on their path to and through college and careers.
On average, ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC students outperformed the D.C. Public Schools (DCPS) and the charter sector average on both the Mathematics and English Language Arts assessments. More students scoring a 4 and 5 on the PARCC attend ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC than any other charter system in the city. Across every grade level, ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC students identified as at-risk performed significantly above the public charter school and DCPS average in both Mathematics and English Language Arts.
ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DCās alumni support program, ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× Through College & Career, also released promising data on college access and enrollment of ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC College Preparatory alumni. Since its founding, 88% of KCP graduates have matriculated to college as compared to the District’s 37% average. ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC College Preparatoryās Class of 2013 boasts a 40% college graduation rate, well ahead of the District’s 16% six-year college graduation rate. Collectively, 59% of the KCP’s Classes of 2013 to 2017 are persisting in college or have earned their degree. Weāre excited to support these alumni as they complete college and enter careers.
PARCC has driven an important dialogue in D.C. about college and career readiness. āAs weāve seen from our college enrollment and persistence rates, it is one of many data points we use on the road to college and self-sustaining careers,ā said Susan Schaeffler, founder and chief executive of ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC. āWe want to see our scholars excelling as artists, athletes, poets, coders, and engaged citizens pursuing lives full of choice and opportunity. Weāre excited to celebrate all of our studentsā achievements and continue our focus on ensuring a more equitable future for the District of Columbia.ā
Some additional highlights from ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DCās 2017-18 PARCC results include:
- ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC Promise Academy at our Benning Campus again ranks as the highest performing charter elementary school in the District of Columbia. ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC Lead Academy at our Shaw Campus is the second highest performing charter elementary school in the city and the highest performing in Ward 6.
- At our Douglass Campus, ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC Heights Academy and ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC AIM Academy are the highest performing elementary and middle schools in Ward 8. Ā Weāre proud of the Douglass Campus for their growth and continued educational leadership in Anacostia.
- Students at our Benning Campus collectively led Ward 7 PARCC test takers, with ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC KEY Academy being the second ranked Ward 7 middle school and Promise Academy being the top-performing elementary school in Ward 7 and top-performing charter elementary in the District.
- ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC Lead Academy and ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC WILL Academy, at our Shaw Campus, were among the most improved public charter schools in the city. Lead Academy studentsā proficiency rates grew by a combined 18.9 percentage points on the ELA and Mathematics assessment and WILL Academy studentsā proficiency rates grew by a combined 18.3 percentage points. We are excited to build on this progress during 2018-19 school year.
- Across the ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC network, our students have consistently ranked among the cityās top performers in math proficiency rates in recent years, and we were pleased to see those outcomes again this year (42% proficiency vs. city average of 29% proficiency). Promise, Heights,Ā Spring, Lead, and Quest Academies are five of the highest performing charter schools on the Mathematics PARCC exam.
āWe experienced much success across the ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC network this past year, and Iād especially like to commend our ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC College Preparatory high school ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× for their solid performance amid tragedy when they lost a classmate during PARCC testing,ā Schaeffler said. āWe will continue to wrap our arms around our KCP students and support them in any way possible.ā
This is the fourth year that students in the District of Columbia have taken this Common Core-aligned assessment, which was designed to be far more challenging than our previous assessment (the DC CAS) and is aligned to ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DCās mission of preparing students for college and careers.
āTeachers and parents are incredibly proud of the skills and knowledge that ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC students demonstrated on last yearās PARCC assessment,ā Schaeffler said. āWe have bright students and hardworking teachers, and their efforts have led ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC schools to be among the top performers in the District of Columbia. Ā With our school year already underway, our staff, students, and parents are recommitting to building upon our strengths, while reflecting and improving on our areas of growth.ā
ČĖĘŽĀŅĀ× DC, the largest public charter school network in Washington, D.C. and second largest system behind DCPS, has been operating high-quality schools in the District for 17 years and currently educates 6,300 students in grades PreK3 through 12 at 16 schools.
For more information, please contact Adam Rupe.