SJR 498

Commission on Educational Accountability

November 15, 1999, Richmond


At the second meeting of the SJR 498 commission, Kirk Schroder, commission member and president of the Board of Education, reviewed proposed amendments to the Standards of Accreditation (SOA).

Alternate SOL Assessments

Addressing student achievement, assistance and incentives for schools and incentives for educators, SOA revisions will be the focus of public hearings across the Commonwealth in late 1999. The Board of Education expects to adopt the proposed revisions in February or March. Included among the amendments encouraging students to surpass the minimum standards set by the Standards of Learning (SOL) assessments is language permitting the substitution of alternate assessments, such as the Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB), for the verified units required for a high school diploma. Test results would be included in the school's pass rates for accreditation purposes. The board would select an AP test score to reflect an appropriate "passing" level, which would likely be less than the score required to obtain college credit. Board regulations contemplate the involvement of guidance counselors in advising students who opt to substitute alternative tests for verified units of credit. Discussion focused on payment of AP fees, the impact on high school seniors of the July release of AP test scores, the need to schedule timely re-testing opportunities for SOL assessments, and the appropriate assignment of test scores to schools when students have taken SOL tests ahead of their enrollments.

Diploma Seals

Also providing incentives for students are several new diploma seals. The Governor's Seal of Advanced Academic Excellence will be awarded to students receiving an Advanced Studies Diploma and earning a "Pass/Advanced" rating on SOL tests used for verified units of credit. The Board of Education Seal of Academic Excellence will be awarded to students receiving an Advanced Studies diploma with an "A" average and successfully completing at least one Advanced Placement (AP) course, International Baccalaureate (IB) course, one college-level course, or one alternative means of earning verified units of credit. The Superintendent's Seal of Academic Achievement is awarded to students receiving an Advanced Studies Diploma with a "B" average and completing one college-level course or earning at least one verified unit of credit through an alternative means. Students receiving a standard diploma and maintaining an "A" average will receive the Commonwealth Seal of Academic Achievement. The Board of Education Vocational Seal is designed for students who complete a prescribed sequence of courses in a vocational area and either (i) maintain an "A" average in that sequence of courses or (ii) pass an examination conferring a certificate from a recognized trade or professional association or a Virginia professional license in that area.

School Accreditation

Assistance for low-performing schools is tied to various accreditation status levels to be phased in over a period of years. From the present until 2003-2004, schools may be Fully Accredited, Provisionally Accredited, or Accredited with a Warning (in a specific subject area). Schools may be Fully Accredited with Honors and Fully Accredited with High Honors if their pass rates on the SOL tests stand at 80 percent and 90 percent, respectively. With the exception of Provisionally Accredited, these ratings continue in 2004-2005. For 2005-2006 and beyond, schools may receive ratings of Fully Accredited (including with Honors and High Honors), Accredited with Warning in (specified academic area or areas), Accreditation Denied, Accreditation Denied/Improving School Near Accreditation, Accreditation Denied/Reconstituted School, and Accreditation Denied/Failed to Reconstitute. These final three categories are eliminated in 2009.

Table 1: Improvement Chart for
Provisional Accreditation through 2003
Each School Must Meet Following Pass-Rate Benchmarks in Tests Given
in the Academic Years Indicated to Earn Provisional Accreditation
Year English Math Science History/
Social Studies
Grade 3
1999-00
2000-01
2001-02
2002-03		 60%
63%
66%
70%		 60%
63%
66%
70%		 50%
50%
50%
50%		 50%
50%
50%
50%
Grade 5 (includes tests given in Grade 4)
1999-00
2000-01
2001-02
2002-03		 60%
63%
66%
70%		 50%
55%
65%
70%		 60%
63%
66%
70%		 45%
50%
60%
70%
Middle (any tests given in middle school grades)
1999-00
2000-01
2001-02
2002-03		 60%
63%
66%
70%		 55%
60%
65%
70%		 60%
63%
66%
70%		 45%
50%
60%
70%
High School
1999-00
2000-01
2001-02
2002-03		 60%
63%
66%
70%		 55%
60%
65%
70%		 55%
60%
65%
70%		 45%
55%
65%
70%

Table 2: Ratings and Effective Dates:
Current and Proposed Standards of Accreditation
Current Ratings Proposed Ratings
2000-2003
Fully Accredited Fully Accredited
Fully Accredited with Honors
Fully Accredited with High Honors
Provisionally Accredited (annual improvement; no benchmarks) Provisionally Accredited (adds annual benchmarks)
Provisionally Accredited/Needs Improvement (fails to meet benchmark in one or more areas)
Accredited with Warning (no annual improvement) Accredited with Warning (in specific academic area; 20 points below benchmark in any area; academic review)
2004-2006
Fully Accredited Fully Accredited
Fully Accredited with Honors
Fully Accredited with High Honors
Accredited with Warning (no annual improvement) Accredited with Warning (in specific academic area; 20 points below benchmark in any area; academic review)
2006 and beyond
Fully Accredited Fully Accredited
Fully Accredited with Honors
Fully Accredited with High Honors
Accredited with Warning (Fully Accredited but fails to maintain; 3 year limit) Accredited with Warning (in specific academic area)
Accreditation Denied/Improving School Near Accreditation
Accreditation Denied/Reconstituted School
Accreditation Denied (following 3 years in Accredited with Warning category) Accreditation Denied (never Fully Accredited by end of 2006; fails to achieve either Denied/Improving or Denied/Reconstituted ratings)

Beginning in 2003-2004, schools are Fully Accredited when eligible students meet a pass rate of 70 percent in each of the four core subjects, with the exception of third grade science and history, for which a 50 percent pass rate is required. The designation of Provisionally Accredited is given to schools meeting annual improvement benchmarks set by the board, but are not Fully Accredited in 1999-2000 through 2002-03 (see Table 1). Also created is the rating of Provisionally Accredited/ Needs Improvement for schools failing to meet annual improvement benchmarks in any area during 1999-2000 through 2002-03. In 2000-2003, schools are Accredited with a Warning (in a specific academic area) if its pass rate is 20 or more percentage points below any annual improvement benchmark; in 2004 and in 2005, those schools not meeting the Fully Accredited pass rates are Provisionally Accredited.

An academic review is conducted by a Department of Education team for those schools that are Accredited with a Warning; this review will be critical to subsequent evaluations and remedial actions. These schools must file annual reports with the department, describing efforts to implement a school improvement plan. The regional Governor's Best Practice Centers will be available to assist these schools in developing a school improvement plan. In 2006 and beyond, a school may be Accredited with a Warning in a specific academic area if it has failed to meet the requirements to maintain its rating in any one year. After 2006, a school may remain Accredited with a Warning for no more than three years.

In 2006 the Accreditation Denied designation will be implemented for those schools that are neither Fully Accredited nor Accredited with a Warning (see Table 2). A school may be deemed Accreditation Denied/Improving School Near Accreditation, however, if it has never been fully accredited by the end of 2006 and applies to the board for this designation. At least 70 percent of its eligible students must pass the English SOL and at least 60 percent must pass in the three other core areas in 2006. In each area falling below 70 percent, the school's pass rate must increase at least 25 percentage points when compared to its 1999 pass rates. In addition, the school must show annual improvement in each area below 70 percent. This rating ceases after 2009.

Schools may receive the rating of Accreditation Denied/Reconstituted School if they have failed to be Fully Accredited or Accredited with a Warning after 2006 upon application to the board for this designation. This status is actually granted following a voluntary "reconstitution" of the school. A school refusing to achieve reconstitution may be labeled Accreditation Denied/Failed to Reconstitute. Board President Schroder indicated that the board does not possess legal authority to "mandate actions beyond denying accreditation." Reconstitution occurs upon the involvement of a state audit team that makes specific recommendations for improvement. These two reconstitution ratings also cease in 2009.

Beginning in 2007-2008, school accreditation will be determined on the basis of a rolling three-year average, rather than the previous year's scores, for SOL tests. A school's accreditation status is not included on any student transcript.

In addition to the Accredited with Honors and High Honors ratings, the revisions include rewards for successfully performing schools in the form of waivers from compliance with certain regulations and designations as a Superior School of Merit or a Superior School Division of Merit. Recognition for teachers and administrators is provided in designations of Master Principal or Teacher of Distinction for those educators mentoring their peers, and Master Creative Educator for those instructors demonstrating outstanding creativity in the classroom.

The commission expects to meet in December and in early January and will continue its two-year study in 2000.


The Honorable Emmett W. Hanger, Jr., Chairman
Legislative Services contact: Kathleen G. Harris

THE RECORD