The federal government has given the thumbs-up to a Minnesota Department of Education plan that would dramatically change the way the state's schools are graded, education officials said Wednesday.
The updated approach, to take effect in the 2018-19 school year, will focus on the lowest-performing 5 percent of Title 1-funded schools. It also will identify high schools with a graduation rate below 67 percent or where any student group — black, Asian, Latino or low-income, for example — falls below a 67 percent graduation rate.
The plan is part of the nationwide changeover from the federal No Child Left Behind law to the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which became law in 2015. The change was intended to give states more freedom in decisionmaking.
Citizens' comments made during about 300 public hearings helped shape the plan.
"Minnesota's plan ensures that local school districts will be held accountable for supporting every student in their schools," the state Education Department said in the news release. "Instead of looking solely at overall student achievement, schools will be accountable for the achievement of students by race, socio-economic status, status as an English learner, and disability status. Schools will also be required to look at their expulsion and suspension data closely.
Also under Minnesota's plan, the state's Regional Centers of Excellence will work with more schools and districts identified as needing support to improve. And for the first time, high schools with graduation rates below 67 percent for any student group will receive help from the centers.
Schools or districts identified for support will be notified in the fall of 2018.
