Most schools in CMS history met or exceeded growth ’23-’24: Report

CHARLOTTE, N.C. ( QUEEN CITY NEWS ) – Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District officials released data showing student performance for the 2023-’24 school year on Wednesday. Some of the tangible improvements include graduation rate, school performance, and academic growth.

The North Carolina Department of Elementary and Secondary Education uses the data as a kind of report card for districts and individual schools.

The data includes figures on student population growth and characteristics of the school environment, such as reported incidents of bullying and harassment.

The district says for the first time in its history, more schools were removed from the state’s low-performing designation list than were added (19 to 17).

CMS said 9,721 students graduated in 2024 which is 84% (1.4% more than the year prior).

Other positives from CMS’ year-end results:

• 146 schools meeting or exceeding growth is the highest number in CMS history
• 33 schools improved their letter grade
• 108 schools earned a grade of A, B, or C (5 more than last year)

“We are excited about and encouraged by the positive gains our district and schools have made,” Superintendent Dr. Crystal Hill said. “This progress is the result of diligent and intentional efforts from our school and district leaders, as well as our classroom teachers, school support staff, and our entire community – proving that when we work together, we can achieve great results and improved outcomes for our students.”

The 2022-23 results show 47.7% of third through eighth-grade students demonstrated proficiency in math and 53.1% of the cohort was proficient in reading. Mastery of grade-level math increased by 2% and reading by 3.1% from the previous year.

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The results may impact district residents with or without school-aged children. Economists with the National Bureau of Economics said a 5% increase in a school district’s overall test scores can lead to a 2.5% increase in home values within the district’s boundaries.

In the 2024-25 school year, CMS will focus on launching the Family Academy, providing resources for extending learning at home and ensuring the academic success of all students using the district curriculum.

The district also noted that while there was a decrease in the achievement gap between white, black, and Hispanic students in K-2 literacy, they are working to decrease the disparities even further.

“Although we celebrate today’s results, we also know that we will need to make even greater improvements in the future to reach the goals set for us by the Board of Education and our community in our five-year strategic plan,” Dr. Hill said.

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