Union County School System

2011 AYP Status

All Union County Schools met AYP requirements for the 2010-2011 school year.

Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) is one of the cornerstones of the federal No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB).  It is an annual measure of student participation and achievement of statewide assessments and other academic indicators.  AYP holds each local school district and each individual school accountable for the academic success of students.  AYP comprises one component of Georgia's Single Statewide Accountability System (SSAS).

The federal law requires that each State set high academic standards and implement an extensive student testing program which is aligned with standards and which measures students' achievement based on the standards.  Each state sets the AYP standard that every school must meet so that every student is proficient in reading, math, and language arts by the school year 2013-2104.

Question:  What are the requirements for a school to make AYP?

A school must meet criteria in three areas: test participation, academic performance, and second indicator.

·Test Participation

A school must test at least 95% of all students enrolled during the state-determined testing period. All students are entitled to an annual assessment of their achievement.

·Academic Performance

If the 95% participation rate criterion is met, a school, school system, or the state must then attain the Annual Measurable Objectives (AMO) for reading/English-language arts combined and mathematics for the Criterion-Reference Competency Tests (CRCT) or English/language arts and mathematics for the Georgia High School Graduation Test (GHSGT). If a school does not meet the AMO, then it has failed AYP.

·Second Indicator

The school must then make progress on a second indicator, which is attendance       for primary, elementary, and middle school, and graduation rates for high school.

Question: What are the required attendance and graduation rates?

If the percentage of students absent more than 15 days in a school year is less than 15% or if the attendance percentages show a decrease from the preceding year, the school meets the attendance criterion for AYP.  The graduation rate must be at or above the preset level of 85% or must show improvement (i.e., an increase over the preceding year) in order to meet the graduation rate criterion.

Question: What happens if a school or school district does not meet AYP?

Schools that do not meet AYP in the same criteria and/or subject areas for two or more consecutive years are placed in Needs Improvement status with escalating consequences for each successive year. Same subject is defined as two years of not making Reading/English Language Arts (participation or academic performance) or two years of not making mathematics (participation or academic performance) or two years of not making second indicator.

A Needs Improvement school is simply a school that has been identified as needing to improve in specific areas. Needs Improvement schools are NOT "failing" schools. Schools that do not make AYP for two or more consecutive years in the same subject are in need of improvement or are simply under-performing.

Question: Are any Union County Schools in “Needs Improvement” status?

No Union County school is in needs improvement status.  In fact, Union County School System has several Distinguished Schools that have met AYP requirements for meeting  or exceeding AYP for three or more consecutive years.   Click here to view our distinguished schools.

Additional AYP information:                                       

Georgia Department of Education

Georgia Parental Informational Resource Center