District & School Performance

PRESS RELEASE:  With the release of Wednesday’s School Performance Results, Tangipahoa Parish School Superintendent Melissa Stilley announced that 74 percent of this parish’s public schools improved their overall school performance score from 2021. Stilley said 23 of the 31 Tangipahoa Parish Schools improved in their overall School Performance Score, according to the state results released on Wednesday. The superintendent noted, “We are incredibly proud that 74% of our public schools increased their School Performance Score on the heels of a pandemic!” 

Of the 23 sites showing improvement, 7 schools grew their scores by more than 5 points with some hitting in the double digits for growth in one year. Amite Elementary School demonstrated the highest increase with 21.4 points growth in SPS from last year. Midway Elementary had 15 points growth in their School Performance Score in just one year.

 The district increased the overall Assessment Index from last year. This index indicates how students are performing on statewide assessments, with the parish’s high schools having the greatest gains of 7.2 in assessment index. Grades 3-8 reported an increase in assessment index of 2.4. In one year, the following schools moved up their Letter Grade Ranking to a “C”:

• Amite Elementary  
• Amite High
• Loranger Elementary
• Midway Elementary

 

The majority (20) of the district’s schools fall in the overall Letter Grade of “C”; two “B” schools (PHS & SHS); and one “A” school (SLU).  

Two of our schools, Chesbrough Elementary and Southeastern Louisiana University Lab School, are Top Gains Honorees. This designation is awarded to schools that have a progress index equivalent to an ‘A’ and have not earned any labels for student subgroups and/or discipline.

Schools with PROGRESS Letter Grades of “A” for 2022

• Amite Elementary
• Chesbrough Elementary
• Independence Leadership 
• Loranger Elementary
• Loranger Middle
• D.C. Reeves Elementary
• SLU Lab
• Tucker Elementary
• Martha Vinyard Elementary 
• Perrin Early Learning Center

           

Schools with PROGRESS Letter Grades of “B” for 2022

• Champ Cooper Elementary
• Greenville Park Leadership
• Independence High Magnet
• Loranger High
• Midway Elementary
• Natalbany Elementary
• Lucille Nesom Memorial
• Ponchatoula Jr. High
• Ponchatoula High School
• Roseland Elementary Montessori 
• Spring Creek Elementary
• Woodland Park Magnet
• Hammond Westside Montessori
• Hammond Eastside IB School

Stilley attributed the improvement to a number of factors dating back to several initiatives introduced in her first year as superintendent. “We continue to see improvements, thanks in large measure to the high quality Tier I instructional curriculum implemented four years ago and our dedicated teachers who go the extra mile to implement the curriculum with fidelity.  As we said at implementation, this curriculum pushes us to raise our expectations for student performance, and these scores prove that our students have made the leap and are becoming more and more successful,” Stilley said.

Stilley said the district’s emphasis on attracting and retaining high-quality teachers and school personnel is also a factor in the shift in these scores, along with the implementation of best practices that are proven to increase student achievement. 

“I say it every day. Our greatest asset in the Tangipahoa Parish School System is our people. The district’s efforts to attract and retain the very best is making a noticeable difference in the quality of our instruction, as evidenced in these test scores,” Stilley said. She said the return to in-person instruction post-pandemic has also made a positive impact. “When you consider that we suffered significant losses in instructional time last year due to COVID-19 and Hurricane Ida, these scores are not only emblematic of what our students can do - they are truly an example of our parish’s commitment to excellence each and every day.”

Information Release Regarding Simulated Performance Scores 12/3/21

 

Pursuant to the receipt of a federal waiver for accountability in our state ESSA plan, for the 2020-2021 school year, BESE waived all of its policies related to the production of school performance scores. 2020-2021 was a year unlike any other, and results cannot be accurately compared. Also, by not producing official school performance scores, the Louisiana Department of Education and BESE are able to make good on their commitment to not utilize this data for evaluative purposes. Assessment results may not accurately reflect student learning due to higher than usual rates of non-participation in addition to the disruptions caused by COVID-19.

 Simulated School Performance Scores are not official results and should not be considered comparable to other years. Simulated School Performance Scores do use actual data that are verified by school systems. They are provided for informational and planning purposes only and should be interpreted with caution while also considering the many other factors that may have influenced them. Official letter grades, School and District Performance Scores, and intervention labels will be carried over from the 2018-2019 school year.

 As most school districts across the state experienced a decline in student attainment of Mastery due to the impacts from a two-year pandemic, it negatively impacted the simulated District Performance Score (DPS) for approximately 71% of the districts across the state. In Tangipahoa Parish, our simulated state results are no different, showing a three-point drop in our overall District Performance Score (DPS). 

 The Louisiana Statewide Performance Score dropped almost two points compared to pre-pandemic results in 2019. Statewide. High-poverty schools, high minority schools and schools where virtual learning was more prevalent saw more of a decline than non-similar schools. The larger the number of students who attended most of the school year virtually, the larger the decline in scores the school would have seen.

 A three point increase or gain was noted in the simulated Strength of Diploma component of DPS for high school students across Tangipahoa Parish and a two point increase in the district’s overall simulated Cohort Graduation Rate, which means we are doing better graduating students on time. Independence, Loranger, Amite, Kentwood and Sumner High Schools all increased their overall simulated School Performance Score (SPS), along with Southeastern Lab School, Woodland Park Magnet, Greenville Park Leadership Academy, and Martha Vinyard Elementary during an unprecedented and difficult time in K-12 education. 

All of our school staff and employees battled through challenges that no other generation of educators had to endure to educate our youth. We would like to commend all our employees for their role in educating our students every day, Stilley said.  

After two years of a global pandemic, these results provide us a new baseline. Our school leaders and teachers are working very hard to improve student achievement every day. We are committed to excellence and we do not take our commitments lightly. Our summer camps, intervention times within the school day, and after school programs all work to provide students with what they need to be successful in school and in life. 

We would like to thank our families, who are our partners, in supporting their children so that they are successful in their educational endeavors.  We know that when we work together, great things will happen for our children. 

Families and community members may visit the Tangipahoa Pairsh School System website at https://www.tangischools.org/contact/ask-a-general-question to ask a general question and/or resolve a school-related issue, and they may subscribe to receive our digital newsletter. 

2020-2021 state, school system, and school-level simulated performance score summaries, as well as a frequently asked questions document that includes statewide data points may be found on the LDOE website www.louisianabelieves.com 

 

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STATE TESTING RESULTS

2018. With this week’s release of statewide test results where “Mastery” is the new proficiency, School Superintendent Melissa Stilley said Tangipahoa Parish Public Schools are approximately seven points away from a “B” rating, and 23 of the district’s 33 campuses earned a “B” or better in providing academic interventions to help their struggling students grow their test scores over the previous year. 

After the state raised the bar on what qualifies as student achievement, Stilley said Tangipahoa Parish students maintained an overall “C” status from the Louisiana Department of Education. The district earned a letter grade equivalency of a “B” in K-12 Progress Points, Strength of Diploma, and Cohort Graduation Rate Indices.

The district increased its District Performance Score by two points in just one year, during its first year of a K-12 high quality curriculum implementation. 2019 district performance scores almost surpass the six-year growth from 2013-2018 of 2.2 points. 

“We were less than a fifth of a point away from having more growth in one year of testing than our parish experienced in the six previous years combined,” Stilley said.

The district will need to secure an additional seven points to be labeled a “B” district by the Louisiana Department of Education for 2020. Stilley said she feels confident that the district can accomplish this goal by next year. 

“We are in year two of high quality curriculum implementation and everyone is working toward the same goal of proficiency in reading, writing, and mathematics,” Stilley said. 

The district is most proud of the data which reflects that 23 of the parish schools proved to be very successful in the academic interventions they provided to students. There are six parish schools that earned an “A” Letter Grade for their Progress Index, which means that they had exceptional growth in their students during this past year. Stilley said much of this is due to their strategic efforts to provide interventions to students during the school day in order to eliminate student achievement gaps. 

The “A” Schools for Progress Points Index are: Chesbrough Elementary, Independence Magnet, O.W. Dillion Leadership Academy, Southeastern Lab School, Amite Westside, and Woodland Park Magnet School. 

"Everyone on our campus must have and maintain a growth mindset,” said Reginald Elzy, principal of Woodland Park Magnet School. 

Henrietta Vernon, principal at O.W. Dillon Leadership Academy, concurred. “Our focus here at Dillon has always been on improving learning for ALL students.”

Both principals cited teacher collaboration during this implementation of the new Tier I curriculum as crucial components of their schools’ success.

“Through the redesign of collaboration meetings, working with teachers to internalize and annotate the curriculum, we were able to raise grade-level mastery,” Vernon said. She believes her school’s “persistent, narrowed focus” will help them “continue to improve educational outcomes for our children.”

Elzy described teamwork as the secret to his school’s success. He said every employee supports the work the students are doing and they encourage everything from after-school tutoring and special instruction to general care for students’ success and well-being. He said everyone on campus is learning, including his employees, who are engaged in ongoing professional development all year long. 

“I believe that by setting reasonable, attainable school goals focused on yearly academic progress, we will give everyone those small successes that will lead to a larger success of eventually increasing our overall school performance score,” Elzy said.

In addition, 17 parish schools earned a “B” Letter Grade for their successful efforts in providing interventions to close achievement gaps. This includes Champ Cooper, Greenville Park, Independence Leadership, Loranger Elementary, Midway Elementary, Natalbany Middle, Ponchatoula Jr. High, Ponchatoula High, D.C. Reeves, Roseland, Spring Creek, Martha Vinyard, Tucker, Perrin, Hammond Eastside, Hammond Westside, and Loranger Middle.

Southeastern Lab School is recognized as an Equity Honoree and Top Gains School by the Louisiana Department of Education.

Chesbrough Elementary School is recognized by the state as a TOP Gains school moving their overall school performance letter grade from a “C” to a “B” in just one year. Chesbrough had double digit growth in their mathematics assessment index from 2018 to 2019.

Chesbrough Principal Roslyn Varnado described her school’s success as a daily exercise to pursue excellence.

"The remarkable staff and students at Chesbrough chase excellence daily through the use of Tier I curriculums like Eureka and Guidebooks.  With excellence in instructional practices by our teachers and following and trusting the curriculum, we were able to achieve great gains in our mathematics last year.  We are excited about what is to come as the district has implemented Tier I ELA curriculums in K-2 this year.  Our dedicated staff will continue to build meaningful relationships, which will help us continue to think high and reach high,” Varnado said. 

Independence High School had double digit growth in their School Performance Score moving the school from a “D” to a “C” school in one year. Independence High School outpaced other high schools in the district with a 98.5 ACT Index in 2019 compared to their 2018 ACT Index of 55.6. Principal Chasity Collier said her team has high expectations for her students, and as a result, her school has made it a policy that if a senior has not scored an 18 or higher on the ACT, that student may not leave school half-day. Instead those seniors remain on campus and work on ACT remediation or WorkKeys.

"It wasn't just one ‘thing' that we did to improve our score; rather it was a compilation of best practices and instructional strategies over the past four years that we implemented with fidelity and subsequently tracked effectively.  For instance, our ACT index went from a "D" to an "A" in one year by implementing a few best practices such as requiring all students who did not score an 18 or higher on the ACT to take an ACT remediation class and subsequently test for ACT WorkKeys,” Collier said, adding, "Student progress is our focus and we will continue to raise the bar for our students because they deserve the best opportunities.” 

Ponchatoula High School increased its School Performance Score by 1.8 points maintaining its “B” status in the district. Ponchatoula High increased their ACT Index 6.7 points from 73.6 in 2018 to 80.3 in 2019.

The district overall had a six-point jump in their Strength of Diploma Index which is based on the number of credentials students earn while in high school that prepares them for high wage, high demand jobs. In addition, this index is also influenced by students earning Carnegie credit for Advanced Placement, CLEP testing and Dual Enrollment.The overall district Strength of Diploma Index was 83.2.  Two parish schools were well above the district average for this index. Jewel Sumner High School ranked top in the district for their Strength of Diploma Index of 96.7 which is an increase of 6.2 points from last year. Kentwood High followed second with 92.5 in their Strength of Diploma Index, an increase of 8.5 points from last year. 

Principal Jay Stuckey attributed his school’s gains to "our faculty's dedication to excellence in both college and career readiness.  We continue to push our students beyond their own expectations to become marketable graduates with certifications and credentials that prepare them for any may choose to take.”

Lisa Fussell, Tangipahoa Parish School System’s Director of Academics pointed to the partnership with Northshore Technical Community College as a key ingredient in helping students gain high-wage, high-demand career credentials.

“Our implementation of Jump Start pathways began 6 years ago, and from the start, Northshore Technical Community College has been a partner enabling us to extend opportunities to students to earn Advanced and Basic Statewide credentials. On the north end of the parish, NTCC's Florida Parishes Community College Campus has opened their doors and worked with our high schools to increase opportunities for earning credentials. The schools have been able to add pathways such as: automotive, certified nursing assistant, medical assistant, Welding, and scaffolding to name a few. We are excited to continue to expand programs for students through our partnership with Northshore Technical Community College,” Fussell said. 

The latest test scores also show Tangipahoa Parish had its largest gains in Graduation Rates in ten years. The 2019 Cohort Graduation Rate Index was 84.7, an increase of 21.2 index points in one year. Kentwood High School had the highest Cohort Graduation Rate Index of 98, followed by Jewel Sumner High of 97.2, and Loranger High with an index of 93.2. All three of these schools were well above the district average for Cohort Graduation Rate Index. 

Kentwood High Principal Rochell Bates said ensuring every student has a pathway to graduation has been critical to his school’s success.

"Kentwood High places an emphasis on ensuring that all students have a graduation pathway toward receiving a diploma. We work closely with our teachers, central office curriculum personnel, and SPED to ensure that we are all on track. Our school counselor checks the students pathways and courses taken to also ensure that the students are taking the proper courses in their pathway and that they are on track to graduate on time. Teachers that teach courses toward certifications in JumpStart also collaborate with the counselor and with the students to make sure all credentials are in line with the state. The district has placed an emphasis on attendance and we do our best to make sure that students are at school which helps our efforts in assisting them toward graduating. We feel that this is one area that we can impact without a lot of problems and we have placed an emphasis on getting this score up,” Bates said. 

Hammond High IB Magnet School had a 6.7 point increase in their overall school performance score just falling short 1.6 points from earning a “B” letter grade from the state.

The majority of the district schools maintained their school performance letter grades from last year during this time of new curriculum implementation and proficiency expectations raised to Mastery and Advanced.

“We are so proud of the success our students are experiencing in Tangipahoa Parish public schools,” Stilley said. “Every school has something to be proud of in this report! Of course, none of this would be possible without the dedication and commitment of our Tangipahoa Parish School System team. We have already reached out to every employee to thank them for their work over the last year, and I have encouraged them to press forward with determination and grit to help our students grow their scores even higher this year. Every child’s individual success makes our entire district—and our Tangipahoa Parish community—better and stronger every day.”

“I also want to thank our community for their unwavering support,” Stilley said. “From our families to our extended families, businesses, and local organizations, the constant love and support of our community sends a powerful message to our children that this effort is truly about making their future brighter. Thank you to everyone who helps us in our work educating these students. It truly takes a village, and I am so proud to be part of this Tangipahoa Parish community."

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DISTRICT REPORT CARD 

TANGIPAHOA PARISH PUBLIC SCHOOLS HAVE 4 "TOP GAINS SCHOOLS” AND 1 EQUITY HONOREE ON ANNUAL STATE REPORT CARD

School System Earns ‘B’ Letter Grade for the Index on Progress that is linked to Student Growth 

Tangipahoa Parish Public Schools received its annual report card today from the Louisiana Department of Education, which showed academic gains in the 2017-2018 school year in the areas of ACT Index, High School Assessment Index, and DCAI index. The school system maintained a “C” letter grade for overall school performance, even as the state raised the bar for what it takes to earn that grade, and it achieved a  “B” letter grade for helping students grow year-over-year.

“Having reviewed the data and looking at our progress as the state moves the bar higher, I would say this is a great day for the Tangipahoa Parish School System,” said Tangipahoa Parish School Superintendent Melissa Stilley. “Our success in this year’s testing is directly related to the collaborative efforts at every level, from our students and teachers to school leaders, support teams, and our families. I also credit our School Board members who allowed us to take innovative measures in the classroom to ensure our students’ success."

Every year, schools and school systems in Louisiana receive report cards with school performance scores and corresponding A-F letter grades. The report cards, which can be viewed on the online Louisiana School Finder, communicate how well schools are preparing students for the next grade level by examining student performance measures, like how students’ score on state assessments, how many students are graduating each year or how many students are earning early college credit. Over time, the state has raised the bar for each of these measurements, and for the first time this year, the report card also details how well schools are helping students, regardless of where they start at the beginning of the year, progress toward mastering key concepts and skills.

Among the highlights from this year’s report card:

• The school system achieved a “B” for student growth. Tangipahoa Parish earned a “B” for helping students progress toward mastery in English language arts and Math. It also landed 4 “Top Gains” schools who earned the rating by having over a 90 in an index and receiving no other labels, such as, CIR or UIR.

• The school system improved in a number of performance areas. Though the school system earned the same overall letter grade, it improved student performance on the ACT and had a small increase in the high school assessment index. 

• Four schools received “Top Gains” status and one school is an “Equity Honoree.” The schools include Champ Cooper, Chesbrough Elementary, Southeastern Louisiana University Lab School (Top Gains & Equity Honoree), Spring Creek Elementary.

“These are encouraging results, and strong evidence that our schools did not lose ground even though the state pushed the bar significantly higher,” Stilley said. “In an accountability system where mastery or above is the new ‘basic,’ our students kept pace with the new standards and our scores remain steady, which is important, considering that many districts saw their rankings drop, even by a letter grade.”

“Looking forward, our team is projecting even better performance next year, as our students utilize the Tier I curriculum we have implemented in English Language Arts and math to raise their scores. I am hopeful that this time next year we will see our students reaching their true potential, as reported in the next testing cycle,” Stilley said.

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