The State Department of Education has released 2023-2024 Report Card Ratings, which show more than 80% of the district’s schools are meeting, exceeding, or substantially exceeding criteria to ensure all students meet the Profile of the South Carolina Graduate. Overall, two Aiken County Schools, Chukker Creek Elementary and Aiken Scholars Academy (high school), received Excellent ratings, nine were rated “Good,” 21 “Average,” seven “Below Average,” and one “Unsatisfactory.”
State Report Cards include metrics for Academic Achievement, including the SC Ready Assessment for English Language Arts and Mathematics in Elementary and Middle School and High School End of Course Assessments for English and Algebra 1 at the High School Level, as well as an indicator termed Preparing for Success, which displays SC Ready Science results for elementary and middle school students and End-of-Course Biology and U.S. History test results for high school students. Student Progress, also known as Growth, is a factor, as is the Progress of Multilingual Learners and School Climate, two focus areas of the school system during the 2023-2024 school year.
CULTURE AND CLIMATE
The results are in from a survey administered in the spring to teachers, students and parents throughout the state. The results from students and teachers related to school climate in all indices exceeded state averages, including overall perceptions of school climate, safety, social-physical environment, working conditions, and instructional focus. In addition, 80% of the district’s schools increased their Climate scores, nearly half (49%) increased by at least one proficiency category. Eleven schools received “Excellent” climate ratings.
“We’re encouraged to learn that the security measures implemented to ensure a safe environment for our students, teachers, and staff are contributing to a positive culture and climate of our school campuses,” District Superintendent Dr. Corey Murphy shared.
MULTILINGUAL LEARNERS
Multilingual Learners have been an area of emphasis. The district exceeded state averages in the percentage of multilingual students who met progress toward proficiency target, with 38.7% achieving English Language proficiency goals. Additionally, 28.8% achieved English Language Level Proficiency, which also exceeds the states numbers. In addition, two schools, Chukker Creek Elementary and Millbrook Elementary, earned Excellent Ratings in the Multilingual Learner’s metric.
“Over the last year, Aiken County Public Schools has restructured our delivery of services to students learning English as a second language to better serve the more than 2,000 Multilingual Learners throughout the district,” Chief Officer of Instruction Dr. Amy Edwards stated. “We’re proud of the growth in this area, and are seeing how language acquisition is impacting Multilingual learners immediate and long-term academic success.”
ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS
In addition to Chukker Creek Elementary receiving an “Excellent” overall rating, seven of the school district’s nine “Good” overall rated schools are represented in the elementary school level, including Aiken Elementary, Belvedere Elementary, East Aiken School of the Arts, Gloverville Elementary, Hammond Hill Elementary, Millbrook Elementary and Warrenville Elementary.
Belvedere and Hammond Hill elementary schools are also among the District’s three schools receiving an “Excellent” rating for the Academic Achievement metric, both advancing a level on the rating scale from “Good” the previous year. Belvedere Elementary and Hammond Hill Elementary students outpaced district and state averages by more than 10 percentage points in ELA students Exceeding, Meeting and Approaching Expectations with 88.6% and 87.2%, respectively. Belvedere and Hammond Hill’s Students Exceeding, Meeting and Approaching Expectations covered an even larger spread in numeracy. The county’s two “Excellent” rated schools for Academic Achievement boasted percentages of 87.1% (at Belvedere) and 85.9% (at Hammond Hill), outperforming the state.
At the elementary level, ACPSD students performed similar to state averages in English Language Arts (ELA) on the SC Ready Assessment with 76.7% of students Exceeding, Meeting and Approaching Expectations. East Aiken School of the Arts, the district’s Arts in Basic Curriculum Fine Arts Magnet School, exceeded district and state student performance percentages of students Exceeding, Meeting and Approaching Expectations in both ELA and mathematics, moving its Academic Achievement needle from the previous year’s rating of “Average” to “Good” for 2023-2024. Chukker Creek, Aiken, Gloverville, and Millbrook elementary schools also received “Good” ratings for Academic Achievement, maintaining their rating which indicates school performance exceeds criteria to ensure all students are on track to meet the requirements of the Profile of the SC Graduate.
MIDDLE SCHOOLS
North Augusta and Paul Knox Middle School’s overall “Good” Ratings place them among the state’s top 38% of middle schools performing at levels which exceed and substantially exceed criteria to ensure all students meet the Profile of the SC Graduate.
With student scores on SC Ready assessments outperforming state and district percentages in ELA for students Exceeding and Meeting standards, Paul Knox (PK) maintained its “Good” Academic Achievement rating from the previous year. PK’s Patriots also exceeded district averages in math in both exceeding standards, as well as the total of students exceeding, meeting and approaching.
Many of the district’s traditionally high-ranking schools on State Report Cards were impacted by the additions of Median Annual Targets and Added-Value Targets as part of the new growth model. Six district middle schools received overall ratings of “Average” for the 2023-2024 Report Card and include A.L. Corbett, Highland Springs, Jackson STEM Magnet, Kennedy, New Ellenton STEAM Magnet, and Ridge Spring-Monetta.
“We know where we fell short, and we have a plan to address these areas,” Edwards continued.
HIGH SCHOOLS
Once again for the 2023-2024 State Report Card, Aiken Scholars Academy received an “Excellent” Overall Rating and an “Excellent” rating in each category. ASA is consistently ranked among the best schools in the state.
North Augusta High School’s on-time Graduation Rate increased in 2024 by 3.4 percentage points, advancing from 2023’s Four-Year Graduation Rate of 87.1% to 90.5%. Across the district’s other high schools’ graduation rates declined from 2023’s 88.7% to 84.5%. The Five-Year Student Success Rate for high school graduation in the district remains high at 89.8%, bettering the state’s Five-Year rate of 85%.
In addition to the importance of Graduation Rate is the College and Career Ready (CCR) indicator. High ratings for both show a school is preparing students to graduate and for post graduate success. For this year’s Report Card, Aiken Scholars Academy and Ridge Spring-Monetta High earned “Excellent” CCR ratings; Aiken High’s CCR rating is “Good.”
“Graduation is just the beginning for our students,” High School Assistant Superintendent Bert Postell commented. “Ridge Spring’s grad rate of 84%, coupled with its ‘Excellent’ College and Career Readiness indicator is strong, as is Aiken High’s 83% grad rate and ‘Good’ CCR. Those combinations are something we’re planning to see increase across our district’s high schools. Additionally, the district has increased its number of Career and Technology Education (CTE) completers for a second year in a row.”
Academic Achievement at the high school level, as measured by End-of-Course (EOC) Assessments, will remain a focus area for the district. North Augusta and South Aiken’s scores earned the high schools’ “Average” Academic Achievement ratings. Aiken Scholars Academy students’ “Excellent” rating reflects End-of-Course Assessment success in English, with 98% earning an “A,” and 88% earning an “A” or “B” on the Algebra 1 EOC exam.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Complete details on all South Carolina schools are available publicly by visiting the SC School Report Cards website.
“While we’re pleased to see the impact of increased focus in several areas of priority,” Superintendent Murphy commented, “our work currently underway to improve student achievement in core subject areas, on-time graduation, and College and Career Readiness will further help ensure that our schools’ Report Card Ratings reflect the intelligence and ambition of our district’s students, as well as the expertise of the professional educators and support staff committed to their success.”