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Caldwell Parish board weighs impact of state's new "Grow, Achieve and Thrive" school accountability model
Summary
Board members and district leaders described the state's "Grow, Achieve and Thrive" accountability framework set for 2025-26, praised measured growth but warned that new internship and accelerator requirements could disadvantage small, rural districts without nearby colleges or employer partners.
District leaders outlined the state's new "Grow, Achieve and Thrive" accountability model at the Caldwell Parish School Board meeting, explaining that the system splits results into growth, proficiency ("achieve") and a high-school "thrive" accelerator tied to college- and career-readiness benchmarks.
Presenters said the "grow" column will now record finer movement across scale-score bands and include separate growth measures for the lowest 25% of students. The "achieve" component will focus on students who reach the state's definition of proficiency (mastery). For high schools, the "thrive" category will combine graduation rates, nationally recognized exams and accelerator pathways.
District staff described three accelerator pathways: university (ACT 20 or SAT 1080 plus AP/dual-enrollment credits), career (bundled industry credentials plus an internship or multi-year apprenticeship) and service (military pathway with ASVAB scores and a signed enlistment letter). Staff said internships will be phased in over several years and that bonus points tied to participation will phase down as targets are met.
Board members and staff expressed concern the career-pathway internship and apprenticeship requirements could be difficult for Caldwell Parish, a small, rural district with no adjacent community college and limited local employers able to host yearlong or paid internships. District leaders warned that bus time, class conflicts and extracurricular commitments could make sending seniors to off-site programs impractical for many students.
Superintendent Nikki, who led the evaluation discussion, asked the board to consider how the measure will be communicated to families and employers so the community understands both growth the district is achieving and the changes in published letter grades. "So that's what I wanted to present to y'all to see if that makes sense; it's the best I could come up with," she said.
School leaders also highlighted early-grade literacy progress in the district and noted that some observed dips in middle grades coincided with a state-mandated transition from paper to online testing. District staff said additional practice and progress-monitoring are being scheduled so students are more familiar with the digital format before midyear testing.
Board members urged the district to "tell our own story" about classroom growth and to educate parents on what the new scorecards mean for individual students. District staff announced a virtual Parent Academy and in-person conferences to help families interpret benchmark and accountability data.
The district plans to return in January with updated midyear assessment data and to continue work on local internship and apprenticeship partnerships to meet the state's accelerator expectations.
