For Immediate Release
September 30, 2019
Contact: Steve Edwards, Coordinator of Policy and Communications
540-662-3888 ext. 88235
The Virginia Department of Education has announced that each of Frederick County’s
public schools has achieved the highest level of accreditation for 2019-20. All 18 schools have
been designated as Accredited based on the Virginia Board of Education’s school accountability
system. The system provides a comprehensive view of school quality while encouraging
continuous improvement for all schools and placing an increased emphasis on closing
achievement gaps among students. Last year, 17 of Frederick County’s schools were
designated as Accredited and one was designated Accredited with Conditions.
Schools Superintendent David Sovine says, “After many years of hard work on the part
of teachers, administrators and support staff, it’s extremely gratifying to have all of our schools
accredited at the highest level. We firmly believe that if we are relentlessly focused on providing
high-quality, research-based instruction that engages students in their own learning and we
focus on meeting individual student needs, students will be successful. Although accreditation
ratings are just one measure of school quality, we are very pleased to have all schools attain the
highest level of accreditation this year.”
Virginia’s accreditation standards measure performance on multiple school-quality
indicators, not just overall student achievement on Standards of Learning tests.
All schools are evaluated on the following school-quality indicators:
- Overall proficiency and growth in English reading/writing achievement (including
progress of English learners toward English-language proficiency)
- Overall proficiency and growth in mathematics
- Overall proficiency in science
- English achievement gaps among student groups
- Mathematics achievement gaps among student groups
- Absenteeism
In addition to the school-quality indicators noted above, high schools are evaluated on
the following school-quality indicators:
- Graduation and completion
- Dropout rate
- College, career and civic readiness (effective 2021-2022)
Performance on each school-quality indicator is rated at one of three levels:
- Level One: Meets or exceeds standard or sufficient improvement
- Level Two: Near standard or making sufficient improvement
- Level Three: Below standard
In order for a school to be Accredited, all of the school quality indicators must be at
either Level One or Level Two. Schools with one or more school-quality indicators at Level
Three are Accredited with Conditions. Schools that fail to adopt or fully implement required
corrective actions to address Level Three school-quality indicators are denied accreditation. A
school that is denied accreditation may regain it by demonstrating to the Virginia Board of
Education that it is fully implementing all required corrective action plans.
Assistant Superintendent for Instruction Jim Angelo says, “There are many people who
have played a role in helping all of our schools attain Accredited status. Although we have
reached the highest accreditation level, we are committed to continuing our research, data
analysis and professional learning so that we can continue to progress and fulfil our vison of
being an innovative community where caring relationships and authentic learning inspire all
students. All of our schools are to be commended for this achievement. I’m particularly proud
of the team at Redbud Run Elementary who has worked hard to move from being Accredited
with Conditions last year to Accredited this year.”
Information on Accountability and Virginia’s Public Schools
School Quality Reports