Those letter grades were not included in the report card for the COVID-disrupted 2020-21 school year, but some of the raw data was listed including academic, graduation and attendance measures.
Mechanicsburg had the highest four-year graduation rate in the county at 98.4%, compared to last year’s 95.7%, according to state report card data.
The district also had the highest performance index, also known as the achievement component that measures state test performance, at 76%.
As far as chronic absenteeism, which is when at least 10% of the year’s instructional time is missing, Mechanicsburg had a rate of 16.1. These numbers from last year were not available.
When it comes to the prepared for success component, which is how well-prepared students are for future opportunities, Mechanicsburg scored 50.2%. Last year, the district scored 48.3%.
Prepared for success data measures college and career readiness through high school students’ ACT/SAT scores, Ohio Honors Diplomas, job industry credentials, College Credit Plus achievement and more.
Superintendent Danielle Prohaska said the district’s results “in comparison to other Champaign County Schools were very, very strong which is attributed to the hard work of our teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
“While much of the state discussed learning loss as a result of COVID-19, our district results indicate that Mechanicsburg students were exposed to grade-level content and we were able to demonstrate significant learning, according to the state report card,” she said. “Though we will continue to strive for more in the district, our state report card data is something to celebrate!”
Each school and district usually receives an overall A-F grade on the report cards, and more than half of each school’s overall grade depends on how students perform on state tests each spring. The report cards also usually measure student achievement, performance index, year-over-year growth and gap closing.
Last year, schools got the equivalent of an “incomplete” mark and no A-F letter grades because there was much less data than usual. The report cards only contained a handful of normal data points as the spring 2020 state tests in English, math, science and social studies were canceled after mid-March coronavirus-related school closures. The main data categories available last year were graduation rates and high school “prepared for success” measures.
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