Gold Performance Acknowledgements Received by Timpson ISD - November 4, 2011
Submitted by Sherri Strahan

Timpson ISD Superintendent Mid Johnson is pleased to announce that the district and the campuses received several gold performance acknowledgements for the 2010-2011 school year. The district received a gold performance acknowledgement for the districts' social studies scores on the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test (TAKS). Timpson Middle School received three gold performance acknowledgements for percentage who achieved commended on reading TAKS, science TAKS and social studies. Timpson High School received gold performance acknowledgements for attendance and percentage of commended scores on the social studies TAKS test.

Timpson AYP Report - November 4, 2011
Submitted by Sherri Strahan

The Texas Education Agency notified Timpson ISD that the district met Adequate Yearly Progress. Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) refers to the federally mandated accountability system required by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA).

All public school districts, campuses and states in the United States are evaluated annually for AYP. A Texas AYP Workbook is approved annually by the United States Department of Education (USDE) and meets the requirement to evaluate all districts and campuses for AYP.

AYP reports three indicators for each district and campus in the state: Reading/English Language Arts (Reading/ELA), Mathematics, and an Other Measure. The Reading ELA Mathematics indicators consist of the performance and participation components, taken from assessments in Reading/ELA and Mathematics for all students in Grades 3-8 and 10. The AYP performance and participation information is summed across grades 3-8 and 10 and reported for the total number of students and each student group. The district and campus performance rate is based on test results for students enrolled for the full academic year (students enrolled on the date of testing who were also enrolled on the fall enrollment snapshot date). The participation rate is based on participation in the assessment program of all students enrolled on the day of testing. AYP Reading ELA and Mathematics indicators are only evaluated for the total number of students and each student group that meets the minimum size criteria.

In addition to Reading/ELA and Mathematics, AYP evaluates one Other Measure, either Graduation Rate or Attendance Rate. The Other Measure is determined by the grades offered in the district or campus. Graduation rate is the Other Measure for high schools, combined elementary/secondary schools offering Grade 12, and districts offering Grade 12. Attendance Rate is used for elementary schools, middle/junior high schools, combined elementary/secondary schools not offering Grade 12, and districts not offering Grade 12. The Other Measure is evaluated for the total number of students that meet the minimum size criteria.

Timpson ISD Superintendent Mid Johnson said, "I can not stress enough the significance of the district's meting the AYP standard." He went on to say that in addition to meeting the AYP standard and being rated as a Recognized school by the Texas Education Agency the most important characteristics of the Timpson School District is that we have a heart for the students. When everyone in the district has a basic desire to "do what is right for the student", we are on the right path to excellence. In spite of difficult economic times, concern about budget cuts and confusing State mandates, we have maintained our focus on our students and our achievements give proof of that. For more information on AYP go to www.tea.state.tx.us.

Timpson ISD Received a "Recognized Rating" for the District - August 16, 2011
Submitted by Sherri Strahan

The Texas Education Agency recently posted ratings for all public school districts in the state. Timpson ISD received as Recognized rating for the district. Timpson Middle school and Timpson Elementary were both rated as Recognized and Timpson High School received an Acceptable rating. To receive a Recognized rating 80% or more of all students and students in each subpopulation had to pass the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test. Also this year 25% or more students in each group had to achieve a commended performance level on the tests. Students must get approximately 90% of the answers correct to achieve commended performance. Students were tested on math, reading, writing, science and social studies. Only 34% of Texas school districts were awarded the recognized rating this year compared to 49.1% last year. The decrease in the number achieving the recognized status is due in large part to increase passing standards. Timpson ISD has received the Recognized rating for the past two years. Timpson ISD Superintendent Mid Johnson stated he is “extremely proud of the Recognized rating” and credits the hard work of the districts’ students and staff. “The primary focus of the district is on student achievement and this rating indicates that the district is achieving its goals”, said Johnson.

For more information regarding TAKS scores go to www.tea.state.tx.us/perfreport/account and click on 2011 Accountability Ratings. The district also met the federal mandated accountability standards on its adequate yearly progress. Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) refers to the federally mandated accountability system required by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act of 2001 and the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). AYP reports three indicators for each district and campus in the state: Reading/English Language Arts (Reading/ELA), Mathematics, and an Other Measure. The Reading ELA and Mathematics indicators consist of the performance and participation components, taken from assessments in Reading/ELA and Mathematics for all students in Grades 3-8 and 10. The AYP performance and participation information is summed across grades 3-8 and 10 and reported for the total number of students and each student group. The district and campus performance rate is based on test results for students enrolled for the full academic year (students enrolled on the date of testing who were also enrolled on the fall enrollment snapshot date). The participation rate is based on participation in the assessment program of all students enrolled on the day of testing. AYP Reading/ELA and Mathematics indicators are only evaluated for the total number of students and each student group that meets the minimum size criteria. In addition to Reading/ELA and Mathematics, AYP evaluates one Other Measure, either Graduation Rate or Attendance Rate. The Other Measure is determined by the grades offered in the district or campus. Graduation rate is the other measure for high schools, combined elementary/secondary schools offering Grade 12, and districts offering Grade 12. Attendance Rate is used for elementary schools, middle/junior high schools, combined elementary/secondary schools not offering Grade 12, and districts not offering Grade 12. The Other Measure is evaluated for the total number of students that meet the minimum size criteria. According to the Texas Education Agency’s website, only 50.1% of all school districts in Texas met 2011 the AYP standards compared to 78% of all school districts meeting the 2010 AYP standards. According to a news release from the Texas Education Agency dated August 4, 2011:

“The most common reason that a Texas school missed AYP targets was because their students did not achieve both the required mathematics and reading passing rates. Missing the mathematics performance requirements alone was the second most common reason that a school received a missed AYP label. This is consistent with the 2011 state ratings in which mathematics performance was the most common reason that a school achieved an Academically Unacceptable rating in that system. Under the federal system, schools or districts that receive a missed AYP designation for two or more years and receive Title I funds, which are federal funds targeted to serve low income students, face sanctions. If a Title I school misses AYP for two or more years for the same indicator, it moves into the School Improvement Program. The school improvement program categories range from Stage 1, which means a campus or district has missed targets for two years, to Stage 5, which means they have missed targets for six or more years. The sanctions and required interventions increase at each stage. The preliminary AYP results show 249 districts and 242 schools at some level of school improvement intervention. At Stage 1, school officials must approve a campus improvement plan and give students the option of transferring to another school. By Stage 5, the school must implement a major restructuring. Details about the possible sanctions and interventions are available at http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index4.aspx?id=44598menuid=798. AYP evaluations for each district and campus can be found at http://ritter.tea.state.tx.us/ayp/2011/index.html. Superintendent Johnson praised the staff and students for their outstanding academic achievement on both the state and federal accountability standards.