RRPS gets top marks on report card

RIO RANCHO — We all like to get good grades, and that even applies to those giving the grades, which made the latest Board of Education meeting for Rio Rancho Public Schools so exciting.

At the Feb. 10 meeting, the board was given a presentation by Dr. Happy Miller, executive director of Research, Assessment, Data & Accountability for RRPS, who broke down the latest findings in the SY23-24 New Mexico ESSA Accountability Model (NMEAM).

“The school accountability data is accurate,” Dr. Miller said, reassuring the Board. “We went through very stringent verification.”

What is the NMEAM?

The NMEAM is part of the federal Every Student Succeeds Act, which is a set of guidelines and measuring systems issued by the federal government.

The state of New Mexico initially submitted the plan in 2017 (after two years of work), when the legislation was first enacted, but it was revised in 2021 to accommodate the COVID-19 pandemic.

The NMEAM was developed by the New Mexico Public Education Department (PED), and can be found at nmvistas.org.

According to its website, nmvistas.org, “is a public data reporting website that showcases school performance based on state accountability and other required criteria from the ‘Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA)’, as mandated by the U.S. Department of Education. The site aims to assist families and community members in identifying schools that are excelling or schools in need of additional support. These school identifications are based on a set of multiple measures informed by stakeholders representing New Mexico’s communities.”

How does it work?

Each school level is given a score out of 100 points. Those points are then given an overall grade that will indicate how far behind or ahead a particular school might be.

Here are the designated levels, starting with the best possible rating:

1. Spotlight: Top 25%
2. Traditional: Good standing
3. TSI: Targeted support and improvement
4. ATSI: Additional targeted support and improvement
5. CSI: Comprehensive support and improvement, bottom 5% of schools
6. MRI: More rigorous interventions, for schools with a CSI rating for more than three years

Here is the specific scoring system, according to the NMEAM:

Elementary and middle school

• ELA Proficiency 20
• Math Proficiency 20
• Science Proficiency 10
• ELA Growth 15
• Math Growth 15

English Learner Progress 10

• Regular Attendance 10

Total Possible Points 100

High school

• ELA Proficiency 15
• Math Proficiency 15
• Science Proficiency 10
• ELA Growth 5
• Math Growth 5
• English Learner Progress 5
• Regular Attendance 10
• College and Career Readiness 5

4 Year Graduation Rate 10

• 5 Year Graduation Rate 8
• 6 Year Graduation Rate 7
• Growth in 4 Year Graduation Rate 5

Total Possible Points 100

What changed?

There were numerous changes in the scoring methodology from last year, which Miller walked the board through.

The largest change was in how points are accumulated. In previous years, points were determined based on the percentage of students testing at, or near, proficient in any given subject. That system has been changed and this year, points were instead based on student performance levels.

State targets are no longer included in point calculations.

Additional changes from previous years included updating the definition of “Regular Attendance”, changes to college and career readiness criteria, and updates to English Learner Progress metrics, among many others.

How did we do?

RRPS continues to be one of the leading school districts in the state, with 10 “Spotlight” schools and eight “Traditional” schools.

Spotlight schools (the highest rating) included Enchanted Hills (67.4 points), Ernest Stapleton (65.1), Joe Harris (65.9), Sandia Vista (63.6), Vista Grande (63.7), Mountain View Middle (66.1), Rio Rancho Middle (60.0), Cleveland High (67.9), Rio Rancho High (68.0) and Rio Rancho Cyber Academy (82.6).

Traditional schools (the second-highest rating) included Cielo Azul (54.9), Colinas del Norte (49.3), Maggie Cordova (54.4), Martin Luther King Jr. (56.0), Puesta del Sol (48.7), Rio Rancho Elementary (49.5), Eagle Ridge (56.5) and Lincoln (58.6).

The only school not in these top two tiers is Independence High School (IHS), which got 34.5 points and an MRI rating.

Miller explained that IHS’s low score is the result in flaws in the scoring system, not an issue with the school’s staff, administration or students.

“[IHS] is an alternative high school,” she said. “A lot of the kids coming into alternative high schools are behind in their graduation timeline. It can be very difficult to get them caught up in time to make that four-year mark.”

Miller added that the discrepancy in the rating system is something seen across all alternative high schools, and nearly all MRI-designated schools in New Mexico fall under the “alternative” label.

What is UNM’s COVID-19 study?

Next, Superintendent Sue Cleveland addressed Miller and asked about a recent study the district is participating in with the University of New Mexico to determine the longer-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on students.

“If you want it in a really big nutshell, 40% of students were pretty adversely affected by the pandemic,” Cleveland said. “And the second thing is, in many cases, it’s not getting better for them.”

While the UNM study does not have a direct impact on the accountability report, it does potentially point to another explanation for any performance deeps from previous years, according to Miller.

“The scary thing is that all of our students have very negative emotional associations with that time,” Miller said. “So, it’s not just those 40%. Those are the ones we are most concerned about, but all of our students have this trauma that is still within them.”

UNM has not released the full findings of the study, but Cleveland said they are planning on releasing it soon.

Additional info

There are a few extra requirements from the PED for this particular report.

Specifically, State Statute Section 22-2C-11 NMSA 1978 requires the school district’s annual accountability report be published. According to Miller, publishing a link to the report on the nmvistas.org website does meet this requirement.

For more information, or to read the full report, nmvistas.org.