The Duneland School Corporation as a whole has been categorized as “exemplary,” the highest ranking that the Indiana Department of Education uses in its school-improvement program.

However, among individual schools, two Duneland Schools -- Chesterton High School and Liberty Elementary School -- have been ranked in the “ academic watch” category, which is the second lowest category.

All Duneland elementary schools and Westchester Intermediate School have been ranked exemplary, while Chesterton Middle School was placed in the third highest category, “academic progress.”

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Sueellen Reed this morning released the state’s category placements for all Indiana schools and school corporations under Public Law 221, the state’s school accountability system.

Passed by the Indiana General Assembly in 1999 prior to the federal No Child Left Behind Act, P.L. 221 ranks school corporations and individual schools in grades K through 12 based upon performance and improvement data from the state’s ISTEP-plus standardized tests.

The five categories, in order, are: Exemplary progress, commendable progress, academic progress, academic watch, and academic probation.

Schools that are placed on probation can face a number of interventions, such as having an outside team manage the school. Schools on probation do not lose state funding.

The categories are based on overall ISTEP results, as well as the ISTEP results from students who attend school for at least 70 percent of the school year and on a three-year rolling average.

In addition to Duneland, other school corporations in Porter County that are in the “exemplary” category are the East Porter County Schools, the Boone Township Schools, and the Porter Township Schools.

Valparaiso, Portage and Union Township were placed in the second highest category, “commendable.”

Among individual schools, five of Valparaiso’s elementary schools and one middle school were ranked as “exemplary,” while Valparaiso High School and three elementary schools were ranked “commendable.” One Valparaiso middle school was ranked “academic progress.”

In Portage, six elementary schools were ranked “exemplary,” while Portage High School was placed in the “watch” category and two elementary and two middle schools were ranked “academic progress.”

Posted 6/6/2007

School data released Wednesday

By The Associated Press

The state on Wednesday released the 2006 rankings of Indiana’s schools and districts using five categories exemplary progress, commendable progress, academic progress, academic watch and academic probation. Here is a comparison of the numbers of schools in each category in 2005 and 2006:

                                    2005 2006

HIGH SCHOOLS

Exemplary Progress      27 21

Commendable Progress 35 29

Academic Progress       45 45

Academic Watch        209 216

Academic Probation      51 56

MIDDLE SCHOOLS

Exemplary Progress      40 29

Commendable Progress 27 21

Academic Progress        81 54

Academic Watch         145 177

Academic Probation      21 38

ELEMENTARY SCHOOLS

Exemplary Progress     474 404

Commendable Progress 167 174

Academic Progress        175 257

Academic Watch           289 278

Academic Probation         53 53

SCHOOL CORPORATIONS

Exemplary Progress         59 33

Commendable Progress    49 53

Academic Progress          46 36

Academic Watch           139 169

Academic Probation           1 3

Posted 6/7/2007