Request to Hold Accountability Targets Steady

The Maine Department of Education sent the following letter to the U.S. Department of Education requesting a waiver that will allow Maine to hold its accountability targets -- the percentage of students expected to reach proficiency on state math and reading assessments in order for a school to make "adequate yearly progress" -- at the 2010-11 levels for another year.

States are able to hold accountability targets to the same level for two years in a row under a provision in the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The Maine Department of Education is holding its targets at the same level as it works with stakeholders to craft a new system for holding schools accountable and helping them to improve.

March 19, 2012

Michael Yudin
Acting Assistant Secretary
Office of Elementary and Secondary Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW,
Washington, DC, 20202. 

Dear Assistant Secretary Yudin,

I am writing on behalf of the Maine Department of Education (MDOE) to request a waiver of section 1111(b)(2)(H) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), as amended, to permit Maine to use the same annual measurable objectives (AMOs) that Maine used for adequate yearly progress (AYP ) determinations based on assessments administered in the 2010–2011 school year to make such determinations for the 2011-2012 school year.  Allowing Maine to use the same AMOs for AYP determinations based on assessments administered in the 2011-2012 school year as it used for the 2010-2011 school year will help increase the quality of instruction for students and improve the academic achievement of students by removing the pressure of meeting escalating AMOs so that MDOE and other stakeholders within the State can devote necessary time and resources to planning for the implementation of ESEA flexibility, which MDOE needs additional time to do.

Set forth below in Tables 1 and 2 are Maine’s current AMOs in reading/language arts and mathematics and the AMOs Maine will use if approved for the One-Year AMO Flexibility.

Table 1: Maine's AMOs for Reading/Language Arts & Mathematics, Grades 3-8

School Year

Reading/Language Arts

Mathematics

AMOs in Accountability Workbook

AMOs under One-Year AMO Flexibility

AMOs in Accountability Workbook

AMOs under One-Year AMO Flexibility

2010 – 2011

75%

 -

70%

- 

2011 – 2012

83%

75%

80%

70%

2012 – 2013

92%

92%

90%

90%

2013 – 2014

100%

100%

100%

100%

Table 2: Maine's AMOs for Reading/Language Arts & Mathematics, High School

School Year

Reading/Language Arts

Mathematics

AMOs in Accountability Workbook

AMOs under One-Year AMO Flexibility

AMOs in Accountability Workbook

AMOs under One-Year AMO Flexibility

2010 – 2011

78%

 -

66%

 -

2011 – 2012

86%

78%

77%

66%

2012 – 2013

93%

93%

89%

89%

2013 – 2014

100%

100%

100%

100%

Note: AMOs under the One-Year AMO Flexibility for the 2012–2013 and for the 2013–2014 school year will be the same as in the State Education Agency’s approved Accountability Workbook.

Prior to submitting this request, Maine adopted college- and career-ready content standards in reading/language arts and mathematics that meet the definition of “college- and career-ready standards” in the document titled ESEA Flexibility, as Maine has adopted Common Core State Standards, which are content standards that are common to a significant number of States.  Attached hereto is evidence that Maine has formally adopted those standards consistent with the State’s standards adoption process.

The Maine Department of Education hereby assures that it will provide student growth data on current students and students taught in the previous year to, at a minimum, teachers of reading/language arts and mathematics in grades in which the State administers assessments in those subjects in a manner that is timely and informs instruction, consistent with the timelines and definitions required under State Fiscal Stabilization Fund (SFSF) Indicator (b)(2).

Further, Maine has identified persistent achievement and graduation rate gaps within the State that need to be closed.  As evidence of this identification, attached to this letter are tables that set forth Statewide achievement data, including proficiency rates and achievement gaps, for the “all students” group and identified student subgroups based on the most recent three years of data.  MDOE hereby assures that it will report these data publicly by posting the data, in a format that is easily understandable, on its website on a page that is easily accessible by the public.  Please note, the attached charts do not include the 2010-2011graduation data.  MDOE has been working with LEAs to ensure data quality in reporting graduation data and has requested and been granted an extension of May1, 2012 for reporting to EdFacts.  MDOE assures that the 2010-2011 graduation data will be reported to the US Department of Education as well, to complete all components of this request.

The Maine Department of Education further assures that it will take all steps necessary to plan for the implementation of ESEA flexibility and will submit a request for ESEA flexibility.  MDOE understands that, if it fails to submit a request for ESEA flexibility or if its request is not approved prior to the time it must make AYP determinations based on assessments administered in the 2012–2013 school year, Maine will revert to using its currently approved AMOs for the 2012–2013 and the 2013–2014 school years, meaning that all schools and local educational agencies (LEAs) in the State will be held accountable for reaching 100 percent proficiency by 2014. 

Also attached is the notice MDOE has sent to LEAs in our State regarding this waiver request and the comments received as a result.  The notice provided to the public may be viewed through the MDOE website at http://www.maine.gov/education/nclb/publicnotice.html.

Please feel free to contact Rachelle Tome, ESEA Federal Programs Director, by phone or e-mail at rachelle.tome@maine.gov or 207-624-6708 if you have any questions regarding this request.  Thank you for your consideration.

Respectfully,

 

Stephen L. Bowen
Commissioner of Education
Maine Department of Education

Attachments: