LEONARDTOWN, Md. — St. Mary’s County Public Schools has earned a “District on the Rise” designation, with Maryland’s Accountability & Implementation Board recognizing the district’s gains in student math achievement and efforts to reduce chronic absenteeism.
Superintendent Scott Smith announced the recognition during Wednesday’s Board of Education meeting, telling board members the July 8 designation was based on data reviewed by the Accountability & Implementation Board and analysis from the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University.
“This isn’t a letter that went out to everybody,” Smith said.
According to Smith, St. Mary’s County Public Schools and Anne Arundel County Public Schools were the only Maryland school systems to receive the designation.
The recognition comes from the Accountability & Implementation Board, the state body responsible for overseeing implementation of Maryland’s Blueprint for Education and monitoring local school system performance.
Smith said the recognition specifically highlighted student academic growth in math and the district’s work to reduce chronic absenteeism, two priorities that have been central to state education accountability efforts.
Smith quoted the letter saying, “The progress is a testament to your leadership and to the educators and students in your classrooms,” Smith said.
Smith credited years of work across the school system for earning the recognition.
“All the very hard work that has been done in all aspects of St. Mary’s County Public Schools over the last several years is being recognized,” Smith said.
The letter also invited St. Mary’s County Public Schools to work more closely with the Accountability and Implementation Board to share strategies behind the district’s success with other Maryland school systems.
