District presents NJGPA results showing high overall proficiency, notes subgroup gaps and targeted interventions

Montgomery Township Board of Education officials presented results from the New Jersey Graduation Proficiency Assessment (NJGPA) during the superintendent’s report, saying the district’s 11th‑grade cohort posted high overall graduation‑readiness rates but that some subgroups lag behind.

The district reported that roughly 95.5% of tested students met the NJGPA standard in English language arts and about 92% met it in mathematics, presenters said at the meeting. Officials reported lower rates for some subgroups: economically disadvantaged students and students with disabilities scored below the district average in both subjects. In mathematics the presentation listed subgroup rates including about 79.4% for Hispanic students, 97.6% for Asian students, 58.8% for Black students and about 89.9% for White students; for English language arts the presentation listed about 91.2% for Hispanic students, 98.1% for Asian students, about 76.5% for Black students and 94.6% for White students.

“The NJGPA is designed to measure the extent to which students are graduation ready in both English and mathematics,” said Fiona Borland, director of curriculum and instruction and staff development, who presented the assessment data and described pathways for students who do not meet the cut scores.

Borland told the board that students who fall short of the proficiency cut can retake the NJGPA, use approved alternate assessments (PSAT, SAT, ACT, ACCUPLACER and others listed by state guidance), or pursue a professional appeal to demonstrate readiness for graduation. She also reminded the board that the New Jersey Department of Education has a minimum reporting cell size of 10 to protect student privacy, and that suppressed subgroup charts indicate small counts rather than missing data.

Board members asked about the apparent year‑to‑year shifts in some subgroup percentages. Presenters and board members noted that cohort-to-cohort changes and small subgroup sample sizes can produce large percentage swings: the presentation said the 8% of students not yet graduation‑ready represented about 32 students, and that moving a single student in or out of a small subgroup can change that subgroup’s percentage substantially. The presenters emphasized that those students are identified and monitored by name.

District staff described multi-pronged intervention strategies used before and after the NJGPA: regular monitoring and team meetings to identify students at risk; tutoring and after‑school clinics; math and literacy skills‑lab courses that run concurrently with other classes; benchmark assessments such as STAR/STAAR360 at lower grades; and programs like Achieve to provide supplemental instruction. Staff said these interventions are applied during the school year and are not solely a post-test response.

The presentation included disaggregated three‑year trend data (2023–25) the district uses to target instruction. Officials told the board they will continue to use multiple data points and local assessments to identify standards where students show weakness and to adjust curriculum and supports.

Board members asked for continued attention to economically disadvantaged students and students with disabilities, and for clarity on how small n’s affect subgroup reporting. Presenters said they will provide the board with the curriculum‑level breakdowns and described plans to keep monitoring and interventions in place ahead of the next administration of the NJGPA in March.

The superintendent’s presentation on assessment data concluded before the meeting moved to committee reports.