October 15-19, 2001
The number of Fairfax County Public Schools meeting Standards of
Learning (SOL) accreditation criteria has jumped to
146 for the 2000-01 school year, according to data released today by
the Virginia Department of Education. (See Table 1.)
In a two-year period, the school system has experienced a dramatic increase in the number of schools meeting or exceeding SOL accreditation standards. In the1999-2000 school year, 112 schools met the SOL criteria.
A total of 22 additional schools have received the accreditation rating of Provisionally Accredited-Meets State Standards based on the 2000-01 SOL results. (See Table 2.) Sixteen schools have received the accreditation rating of Provisionally Accredited-Needs Improvement as determined by the Virginia Department of Education based on the Standards of Learning test results from 2000-01. (See Table 3.) Ten schools received the Accredited With Warning rating. (See Table 4).
Of the 194 Fairfax County Public Schools sites (including 18
special education and alternative sites), 146 (75.3 percent) were
rated Fully Accredited; this is up from 112 Fully Accredited school
sites in 1999-2000. Twenty-two school sites
(11.3 percent) were rated Provisionally Accredited-Meets State
Standards, 16 (8.2 percent) were rated Provisionally Accredited-Needs
Improvement, and 10 (5.2 percent) were rated Accredited With
Warning.
Of 176 general education sites in Fairfax County Public Schools,
145 (82.4 percent) were rated Fully Accredited,
22 (12.5 percent) were rated Provisionally Accredited-Meets State
Standards, 9 (5.1 percent) were rated Provisionally Accredited-Needs
Improvement, and none were rated Accredited With Warning.
Statewide, 731 (39.8 percent) schools were rated fully accredited, 558 (30.3 percent) were rated Provisionally Accredited-Meets State Standards, 420 (22.8 percent) were rated Provisionally Accredited-Needs Improvement, and 130 (7.1 percent) were rated Accredited With Warning.
"These data reflect the efforts of smart, creative, and enormously hard-working teachers, principals, and others in our school system who are making sure that all our schools become accredited," says Superintendent Daniel A. Domenech. "Students and parents have also worked hard to accomplish this."
FCPS comprises 10 percent of all schools in Virginia but accounts for 20 percent of all Virginia schools rated Fully Accredited.
Table 1
Fairfax County Public Schools Meeting SOL Accreditation
Standards
Table 2
Fairfax County Public Schools Provisionally Accredited-Meeting State
Standards
Table 3
Fairfax County Public Schools
Provisionally Accredited-Needs Improvement
Table 4
Fairfax County Public Schools Accredited With Warning
Students from Fairfax County Public Schools to Examine Career Possibilities on Disability Mentoring Day
Several Fairfax County Public Schools students will participate in national Disability Mentoring Day: Career Development for the 21st Century on Wednesday, October 24, by visiting businesses or government agencies that match their career interests. They will be escorted by volunteer mentors.
A kickoff breakfast will be held for the 28 participating students and their mentors at the Falls Church SkillSource, an employment resource center of the Virginia Employment Commission, at 9 a.m. The keynote address will be given by Anne-Marie Hughey, executive director of the National Council on Independent Living. At 10:30 a.m., students will be transported to individual business sites where they will spend part of their day with volunteer mentors. Students and their hosts will return to the Falls Church SkillSource at 3 p.m. to end the day with a recognition activity.
Established to promote employment of people with disabilities and to focus on careers, the day serves to introduce students to employers in a variety of public and private places of employment. Students can explore career possibilities firsthand, gather information about postsecondary education needed for their chosen career areas, and learn about options that may be available while they are still in high school.
The national event is sponsored by the American Association of People With Disabilities, the U.S. Department of Labor, and the Presidential Task Force on Employment of Adults With Disabilities. The local arrangements committee is composed of representatives from Fairfax County Public Schools, the Fairfax Area Disability Services Board, and the Falls Church SkillSource One Stop site.
Boozo 
Allen
& Hamilton will host a separate event at its Tysons Corner site.
Twenty students from Dunn Loring Center's Office Technology and
Procedures classes will participate in similar activities, all
located at BoozoAllen & Hamilton and mentored by its
employees.
For more information, contact Sam Fauble, South Lakes High School
employment and transition representative, at
703-715-4577 or Ginny Brennan, coordinator of career and transition
services, at 703-246-7752.
Fairfax County High Schools Increase, Maintain SAI Ranges
Ninety-one percent--or 20 of 22 Fairfax County high schools measured--maintained or increased their total average Schoolwide Achievement Index (SAI) ratings for 2000-01, according to figures released today by Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS). The results exemplify a continuing increase in standardized test scores in the school system. The SAI is an index of achievement by FCPS schools; it is based on students' scores on standardized tests.
Each high and middle school was challenged to achieve at least a three-point gain in its SAI. Ninety-one percent of the Fairfax County high schools measured achieved at least a three-point gain in the total and in math; 77 percent achieved at least a three-point gain in science and history; and 59 percent achieved at least a three-point gain in English. Not included in the figures were Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology and the new Westfield High School.
Among FCPS middle schools, 21 of the 24 schools each maintained or increased its average total SAI, and eight of the schools achieved the goal of at least a three-point increase.
Elementary schools are challenged to gain five SAI points. There was an increase in the total SAI for 90 FCPS elementary schools, and 19 others maintained their 1999-2000 scores. Of the 20 FCPS Excel schools, 13 have met or exceeded their five-point goals in the total average SAI for the 2000-01 school year, and 19 of the 20 Excel schools achieved an increase in the total average SAI over 1999-2000 levels.
FCPS Excel schools are elementary schools identified as having disproportionately high numbers of children facing significant barriers to learning. The schools are provided with resources to increase instructional time and enhance academic programs, and the schools are held accountable for student success.
The SAI is an index of school achievement based on student scores on the Standards of Learning (SOL) tests and the Stanford 9TA test, both required by the state of Virginia. FCPS created the index as a tool for providing measurable goals for students and schools.
For additional information, contact Ray Diroll, coordinator for the Office of Student Testing, at 703-208-7780.
Schoolwide
Achievement Index
High School Listed Alphabetically
Schoolwide
Achievement Index
Middle School Listed Alphabetically
Schoolwide
Achievement Index
Elementary School Listed Alphabetically
Last update: October 19, 2001
Curator: Therese Payne -- Therese.Payne@fcps.edu