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District officials review state index scores; no schools received intervention designations
Summary
Administrators explained the state accountability (index) system, noted an average district increase since implementation and said none of the district’s schools met state thresholds for targeted or comprehensive interventions.
District staff presented an overview of the Michigan school index (the state accountability system under ESSA), explained how component scores are calculated and told trustees Jan. 13 that Dearborn schools have generally improved on the index since it was implemented.
Why it matters: the index aggregates multiple measures — including student growth, proficiency, graduation rates, chronic absenteeism and English-learner progress — into an overall score between 1 and 100 for each school. Administrators said the district uses the index as part of school improvement planning and to compare schools with similar peers.
Director of assessment Dr. Patterson and accountability staff walked trustees through the history of federal and state accountability systems, noting that under ESSA the approach is multi-measure and growth-weighted rather than a 100% proficiency target used under No Child Left Behind. Staff told trustees that, on average, district schools are up about eight points on the index since the system began and that the district received no priority, focus or targeted-identification designations this year; all schools were reported as universal support (no state identification requiring intervention).
Administrators explained the timing of the data: most components reflect spring 2024 assessments and graduation and absenteeism figures from the prior year. Staff said the family dashboard and a district memo provided to trustees list each school’s component and overall index scores and that the data are publicly available through the state’s MiSchool Data portal.
Trustees asked how the index is used at the building level and how often schools integrate index information into school improvement planning. Staff said the index is updated annually and used as one input into ongoing school-improvement work; walkthroughs and classroom observations are separate tools used continuously through the year. Staff also explained that the student-growth component measures progress for grades 4–8 and 11 by comparing each student’s year-to-year growth against peers and against targets that indicate whether a student is on a trajectory toward proficiency.
What comes next: staff said principals present data-driven improvement plans to central office during regular data presentation cycles and that the index will remain a regular part of school-improvement planning.
