By Tara Fischer

Staff Writer

Worcester County Public Schools continue to yield academic success, per a report released by the Maryland State Department of Education this week.

MSDE unveiled its annual Maryland Report Card update on Tuesday, Dec. 3. The report card is a rating tool introduced by the state in 2018 to keep the school community, consisting of students, parents, teachers, and staff, up to date on a facility’s performance. The scores are highlighted by how many stars one through five an individual institution receives. The number of stars a school secures is determined by the total points of possible points earned, which relies on multiple components like graduation rate, curriculum, test scores, student and educator surveys, and attendance. A school must have at least 45 possible points to be eligible for a ranking. The highest number of potential points an educational center can have is 100.

According to a press release issued by WCPS Coordinator of Public Relations and Special Programs Carrie Sterrs, 11 schools in Worcester County were given a star rating, and nearly 91% of these facilities received four or five stars. The school system’s press release maintained Worcester “has highest concentration of four- and five-star schools in latest school report card data release.”

 The WCPS release specified that elementary and middle schools are rated by academic achievement, including factors like the percent of students proficient in English Language Arts (ELA) and math, academic progress, progress in achieving English language proficiency, and measures of school quality and student success, such as the percent of students not chronically absent and access to a well-rounded curriculum.

Maryland high schools are rated based on academic achievement, graduation rate, readiness for postsecondary success, progress in English language proficiency, school quality, and student success.

“All schools’ calculations incorporate school composite scores on a statewide School Survey, which is based on input related to safety, community, environment, and relationships,” the press release added.

Berlin Intermediate School received four stars for the 2023 to 2024 academic year, maintaining the same score from 2022 to 2023. Buckingham Elementary School also remained at four stars, as did Showell Elementary School, Snow Hill High School, Stephen Decatur Middle School, and Pocomoke High School.

Ocean City Elementary School increased its rating from four stars in 2022 to 2023 to five stars for the 2023 to 2024 calendar. Stephen Decatur High School saw a positive trend, as the facility’s score rose from three to four stars in the most recent report. Pocomoke Elementary also jumped from three to four stars, as did Snow Hill Middle.

The WCPS press release indicated that Pocomoke and Ocean City Elementary Schools improved their scores due to “significant progress in reducing their chronic absenteeism.”

Pocomoke Middle was the only school to see a decrease. From 2022 to 2023, the institution received four stars, but from 2023 to 2024, it only collected three. Snow Hill Elementary School, Worcester Technical High School, and Cedar Chapel Special School did not qualify to receive a star rating as they did not have the minimum of 45 or more possible points.

Still, the MSDE report revealed that WCPS has the highest concentration of four—and five-star facilities of all school systems in Maryland.

“I continue to be in awe of our schools’ positive trajectory in Maryland’s accountability system,” Superintendent of Schools Louis H. Taylor said in the WCPS statement. “Worcester continues to outperform our counterparts across the State, and today’s release is just another example of how we are delivering dividends on the investment our community has made in our educational system.”

Taylor also noted that despite the percentage of economically disadvantaged students enrolled in the area’s educational system, the kids continue to thrive. In Worcester County, 49% of children are eligible for free and reduced meals, meaning they live in homes at or below the state’s poverty rate.

 “Research shows the number one indicator of a school’s performance is its level of poverty, but here in Worcester County, our schools continue to help students rise above their circumstances to reach success,” Taylor said.

The report revealed that 41% of facilities earned four or five stars across all school levels statewide, while 83% collected three or more.