MADISON — The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) on Nov. 14 published school and district accountability report cards for the 2022-23 school year.

The DPI publishes school and district report cards annually, as required by Wis. Stat. 115.385. Report cards include data for multiple school years across four priority areas: Achievement, Growth, Target Group Outcomes, and On-Track to Graduation. The Achievement and Growth priority areas are weighted based on a district or school percentage of economically disadvantaged pupils, as required by state law. A district or school’s overall accountability score places it into one of five overall accountability ratings: Significantly Exceeds Expectations (five stars), Exceeds Expectations (four stars), Meets Expectations (three stars), Meets Few Expectations (two stars), and Fails to Meet Expectations (one star). Report cards use up to three years of data, including achievement data from 2020-21, 2021-22, and 2022-23.

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. This is the first report card that does not include achievement data from assessments occurring prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The DPI urges caution when interpreting scores and ratings due to impacts resulting from the pandemic.

Visit the DPI’s website for a full news release regarding accountability report cards. For detailed district and school report cards, go to the DPI’s report cards website.

The DPI recommends careful review of not only the report card front page, but of the multiple pages of student performance data broken down by student group and across years to highlight trends and deepen analysis of group, school, and district performance. Additional information on report cards can also be found on the DPI’s Office of Educational Accountability webpage.

Locally, several schools saw a rise in scores from 2021-22, though others drifted in the opposite direction.

Juda saw the largest gains at 9.0 points. Argyle boosted its score by 6.4 points. Monroe was up 3.5 points. Belleville, Benton, Monticello, New Glarus and Pecatonica all saw gains. 

New Glarus was the highest rated school at 81.9 — the only local school above 80. Albany fared the lowest at 60.8

Albany, Belmont, Black Hawk, Brodhead, Cuba City, Darlington, Evansville, Mineral Point, Parkview, Platteville, Shullsburg and Southwestern all saw a drop in scores.