Preliminary accreditation results issued by the State of Virginia have confirmed that T.C. Williams High School and Patrick Henry Elementary School will both be fully accredited in 2015-16.
T.C. Williams earned full accreditation status after boosting its Standards of Learning (SOL) math results by eight percentage points. It had previously been warned in mathematics. Patrick Henry received full accreditation after being accredited with warning for the past two years.
“I am extremely proud of T.C. Williams for meeting the Commonwealth’s high expectations for student learning and academic achievement. Our students and staff have worked incredibly hard to meet these expectations and demonstrate academic growth,” said T.C. Williams Principal Jesse Dingle.
School accreditation ratings reflect student achievement on SOL tests and other approved assessments in the four core academic areas of English, mathematics, science and history. Ratings are based on student achievement on tests taken during the previous academic year or may reflect a three-year or four-year achievement average.
To be fully accredited, schools have to achieve SOL pass rates of 75 percent in English (reading and writing combined) and 70 percent in math, history and science tests. Schools must meet all benchmarks in the current year, or a three-year or four-year average to be considered fully accredited.
T.C. Williams achieved 86 percent in English, 72 percent in math, 79 percent in history and 76 percent in science in this year’s SOLs.
Patrick Henry increased performance by an average of 20 percentage points across all four content areas in the last two years to reach full accreditation this year. Patrick Henry achieved 79 percent in English, 78 percent in math, 86 percent in history and 78 percent in science in this year’s SOLs. Last year, the school was warned in English and science.
“The staff and students at Patrick Henry Elementary have worked very hard to achieve the gains that have resulted in our school meeting all benchmarks for accreditation. I am proud of the transformation we have made over the past three years to build and establish a school culture that is built on our motto ‘work hard to get smart,'” said Patrick Henry Principal Ingrid Bynum.
