FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – September 18, 2006

Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) Status of Maine Schools

Commissioner Susan A. Gendron Releases Report on the Status of Maine Elementary and Middle Schools in Meeting No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) Requirements

Contact: Commissioner’s Office (207) 624-6620

AUGUSTA - According to Susan A. Gendron, Maine Commissioner of Education, 457 (92%) ofMaine's 516 tested public schools that have grade four or grade eight, or both, have met No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for 2006 as measured by the 2005-2006 results of the Maine Educational Assessment (MEA). Last March, the MEA was given to students in grades three through eight in every public school in Maine. For 2006, and the past four years, fourth and eighth grade test results were used to determine AYP status. In 2007, school AYP status will include all grades in an elementary or middle school.

Twenty-six (5%) are schools that did not meet AYP for the first time in 2006 in math, reading, or average daily attendance; they are designated as Monitor Schools. There are twenty-five (5%) other schools that did not make AYP for 2006 in either math or reading, or both, for the second, third, or fourth year; they are designated as Continuous Improvement Priority Schools. Twenty-two schools that tested fewer than 20 fourth or eighth grade students in three years are too small for an AYP determination.

The No Child Left Behind Act requires testing of students in grades three through eight and once in high school. For the first time since the Maine Educational Assessment began in 1985, Maine students in grades three through eight took the test. In the past, the MEA was administered to grades four, eight, and eleven. AYP determinations require two years of data, so the 2005-2006 MEA results for grades three though eight will be baseline data for 2006-2007 AYP determinations for elementary and middle schools.

The AYP status for high schools, which reflects results from the 2004-2005 MEA and the 2005-2006 SAT that Maine juniors took in April, will be released at a later date.

Additional information that applies to schools with a fourth or eighth grade or both:

99.5% of Maine's 30,855 fourth and eighth graders took the MEA in March, 2006.

Of the 26 schools that have a fourth or eighth grade that were designated as Monitor Schools for not meeting AYP for the first time in 2005-2006, 23 schools were identified because of performance in reading or mathematics, with 22 schools identified for the students with disabilities sub-group and 1 school identified for the whole group and economically disadvantaged sub-groups. The other 3 schools were designed as Monitor Schools because they did not meet the average daily attendance State target of 88%.

The 25 schools identified this year as Continuous Improvement Priority Schools for not meeting AYP for the second, third, or fourth year must focus improvement efforts on the whole group or subgroup for which the school was identified. They are expected to engage in an analysis of what has worked, what has not, and what needs to happen in their schools to meet both State and federal expectations for student achievement. Schools that do not meet AYP for two or more consecutive years that receive federal funding for disadvantaged students through Title IA of NCLB must develop and implement a formal improvement plan. Consultation from the Maine Department of Education, along with federal funds, is provided to assist these Title 1A schools in their improvement efforts.

Of the 56 schools that have a fourth or eighth grade that were designated as Monitor Schools for not making AYP for the first time last year (2004-2005), 45 schools (80 %) made AYP this year (2005-2006).

Of the 36 schools that have a fourth or eighth grade that were designated as Continuous Improvement Priority Schools last year (2004-2005), 31 schools (86 %) made AYP this year (2005-2006).

SEE ATTACHMENTS: 2006-07 Grade 4 AYP Release 9-18-06

2006-07 Grade 8 AYP Release 9-18-06

2006-07 CIPS Schools AYP Release 9-18-06