Damakant Jayshi
Annual accountability report card from the Wisconsin Dept. of Public Instruction for the most recent school year show mixed results for Wausau-area schools.
Overall, scores within the D.C. Everest, Mosinee, Wausau and Stevens Point Districts met or exceeded expectations. Some individual schools excelled, while others met few expectations.
For D.C. Everest, the overall score for the 2022-23 academic year was 72.8 points out of a maximum of 100, up from 71.5 the prior year. The Wausau School District received an overall of score 65.7 last year, meaning it met expectations. But that’s down from last year’s score of 68.4 points.
The Mosinee School District also saw lower scores this year, at 66.7 compared to the previous score of 71.8. In Stevens Point, schools dropped from 65.5 to 63.7.
Pandemic impacted performance, says DPI
DPI officials say many districts and schools took a hit during the COVID-19 pandemic and their performance was impacted.
The agency added that “statewide, achievement improved from 2021-22 to 2022-23, though for many schools and districts, 2022-23 achievement performance is lower than pre-pandemic levels; thus, report card achievement scores, overall scores, and ratings may have decreased despite upward trending achievement performance.”
The DPI publishes these state-wide academic report cards for publicly funded schools and districts throughout Wisconsin that use up to three years of data, including achievement rates from 2020-21, 2021-22, and 2022-23. The state agency’s report cards include data for multiple years across four priority areas: achievement, growth, target group outcomes, and on-track to graduation.
Wausau Pilot & Review reached out to officials at each of the four districts for their response to the report cards. In general, the broad response was that the DPI accountability report is but one tool and does not capture the entirety of what the districts are doing for students.
In Wausau, John Marshall Elementary fell into the category of meeting “few expectations.” The same is true for Stevens Point Senior High School and Plover-Whiting Elementary.
Wausau School District
The drop in the overall score for John Marshall for 2022-23, 54.7 points, is noteworthy since its immediate past performance was far better. In 2021-22, the school met expectations with a score of 68.5; in 2020-21, the schools exceeded expectations with 78.1 score and in 2018-19, its score was 83.1, earning it a label of “significantly exceeding expectations.” No data was available for 2019-20.
So, what happened?
District officials have cited demographic changes and chronic absenteeism as factors in the falling score.
“It’s…important to note that John Marshall Elementary School has experienced a change in demographics over the years,” Communications Coordinator Diana White told this newspaper.
The elementary school has become more diverse in recent years. Absenteeism is also playing a role, per officials.
“In 2019-20, 7.0% of students were chronically absent, but in 20-21 the percent rose to 18.2% and in 2022-23 the percent of students who were chronically absent rose to 40.8%,” White said. “If students are not in school, they cannot learn.”
Absenteeism– the percentage of students enrolled for at least 90 days and who missed more than 10 percent of scheduled days – has indeed become a statewide problem plaguing school officials
“Wisconsin students (public and choice) had a 23 percent chronic absenteeism rate for 2021-22, the most recent year of data for absenteeism,” DPI officials said. “In line with national trends, this represents an increase from 2017-18 through 2019-20 (13 percent), and 2020-21 (16 percent).”
Commenting on the overall score for Wausau, district officials cited their increased emphasis on the performance of target groups of students. “A target group includes the 25% of students who perform the lowest in the areas measured by the state report card.” The district also saw an improvement in mathematics, they added.
There is some good news, too.
Two of the elementary schools in the district – Maine (83.7) and Hewitt-Texas (83), have “significantly exceeds expectations.” No school in the district has fallen into the “fails to meet expectations” category.
D.C. Everest Area School District
Among these four area schools, Everest has fared better than the rest by exceeding expectations, per the DPI. Their Riverside Elementary School, with a score of 84.9, significantly exceeded expectations, while seven schools exceeded expectations and three met expectations. None of its schools are in “meets few expectations” or “fails to meet expectations” categories.
Superintendent Casey Nye told this newspaper that the DPI score “does little to measure and illustrate the dynamic experiences that we hold ourselves accountable to providing kids.” He said the district community expects more than standardized test scores.
“They are looking for young people to feel a sense of belonging, to have chances to be creators and leaders, to get out into the community in authentic ways,” Nye said.
Nye said the district will keep looking for ways to improve outcomes for every student they serve.
Stevens Point Area Public School District
Stevens Point has five schools that exceeded expectations and six that met expectations. While none of its schools are in the topmost or the bottom categories, Stevens Point Area Senior High (51.8) and Plover-Whiting Elementary (56.8) had lower scores and were placed in the “meets few expectations” category.
Chris Nyman, assistant superintendent and director of elementary education, told Wausau Pilot that despite “a slight decrease in our overall accountability score, five buildings in our district are categorized as exceeding expectations. Nyman said their “attendance and graduation rates remain above state averages and achievement scores in both ELA and Mathematics surpass state averages.”
Plover-Whiting Elementary School’s story is similar to Wausau’s John Marshall. It exceeded expectations in 2018-19 and 2020-21 with a score of 74.8 and 73, respectively. In 2021-22, it received 60.5. Improvement plans have been implemented, Nyman said.
“Recognizing the unique needs of our diverse student population, we have embarked on initiatives to tailor our teaching methods to better serve individual learning styles,” Nyman said.
But Stevens Point senior high school has a history of poor scores, at least as the DPI accountability report is concerned. It was placed in the “meets few expectations” category for 2021-22 and 2020-21 too, though it did meet expectations in 2018-19, with a score of 68.9.
The district’s Director of Secondary Education, Jeff Mlsna, said that over the past several years the senior high school has faced challenges that have impacted overall performance on accountability report cards.
“The diverse student body we serve has unique needs, requiring us to refine our teaching strategies and support systems,” Mlsna said.
Mlsna said the district recognizes and acknowledges that their educators need “ongoing professional development” in light of the “evolving educational standards and methodologies.”
The director said that by acknowledging these factors, “we are actively engaging in a process of self-reflection and adaptation that is focused on improving the development of our students,” adding they have developed targeted continuous improvement plans and goals, involving both educators and the wider community.
Mosinee School District
The district has no school in the highest rating category, one and two respectively in exceeds and meets expectations categories, and none in the bottom two. No one from the district responded to questions from this newspaper by press time.
